More of the same

My days have morphed into either work or waiting to go to work. The job has pretty much taken over my life.

I didn't do anything Monday or Tuesday, just rested. Monday's I sleep a lot and Tuesday's I usually catch up on errands and chores. This week I didn't do them until Wednesday because I didn't have to go to work until 3:30. That allowed enough time to do what I needed to do and still get in a nap before work. I have fewer hours this week, but a full 40 next week.

I got my geranium pots weighted and foamed and yesterday I did the arrangements. The spray foam and chain link scraps seem to have done the trick and I have a little bit of foam that I shaved off the top for future projects.

We had a dust storm last night and have a string of thunder storms going through now and both pots have stayed upright and on their stands through all of it. I guess I used enough link weight.

I had another fall on the steps - they have got to go. I need to get that dealt with now while I have an income because I don't know how long I will be able to keep working this particular job. The expectations are way too high and the pay way too little for the expectations. It physically wears me out. About three days in to my five day work week I am exhausted. Of course the temps and the constant sweating doesn't help my mood any. It is very uncomfortable the whole time I am there. It is going some when the store is warmer than my house and I keep the house fairly warm to keep the expense down. 

I am planning on building a small deck over the stairs. I don't want to destroy them, just make them safe. The next owners might like them. The deck will be big enough to cover the whole set of steps and give me wooden steps with railings to hang on to. This time I was moving the ice maker from the kitchen to the work bench on the patio and the steps caught the side of my foot. I dropped the ice maker on the way down and killed it. I had planned on selling it and getting the smaller one like I had before. Oh well, at least I didn't break anything on me. Just a good bruise and a couple of scrapes. Now to find someone to build the deck for me. Worse comes to worse, I will do it myself - but I don't want to. Too big a project. I have built one before and this one should be easier, but I suck and measuring and cutting, so it should be someone better at it than me.

I picked up some ice cube trays at Family Dollar and will try to keep ahead of my ice usage the old fashioned way for now. I had been buying ice, but I can make my own for free. I don't have to carry the trays too far and for now the shelf I use for the ice is available. That was why I was moving the ice maker, to free up the space in the kitchen that it was using by just sitting there doing nothing. 

Basically there has been nothing worth writing about. There has to be more to life besides working and waiting to go to work. It has taken over my life and it isn't very rewarding. Very frustrating in fact. I'm not having fun or even content. I do like the paycheck, it comes in very handy buying food and paying bills, but there also has to be a job out there for me that I might actually like going to, or at worst, not mind it so much. I'm still doing nights and closing and would rather be working mornings. They hired a new manager, so maybe I can get that changed somehow. Might be a little less demanding.

I bought the cooler for the trailer last night. It was one of the last things I needed before I take it out for a test run. I was waiting for the half price sale and it was this week. Of course, so were the clothing items I bought last week. Could have saved even more if I had waited, but we don't get much advance notice.

That is about it for now. Time to try and get a little more sleep. Three and a half hours just isn't enough.

Summer in the Sonoran Desert

Not much going on here right now. It is summer in the Sonoran Desert and is freakin hot. We have been running between 110  and 118 degrees with increased humidity which makes it very unpleasant. It isn't any better at work. Not sure what the temp is set at there, but it is warm when you are moving around and pretty much a constant sweat. I drink lots and lots of water.

I haven't done much except work since the last time I wrote. I did have two days off at the beginning of the week. I went to Blythe and did my shopping on Monday, including getting a smaller pair of jeans for work since I have lost quite a bit of weight since I started. In the afternoon I caught up on sleep and Tuesday I finished what I didn't get done on Monday.

Today is day three of five of this work week. I go in at 2PM. Hoping to get the opening shift sometime in the future as I am a morning person and like to have some day left at the end of the work day instead of coming home, winding down, and getting to bed shortly before midnight. Plus a more regular schedule would be nice.

I hate having to put on long pants, a polo shirt and enclosed shoes when it is so very hot. The humidity is up now too. It is very uncomfortable and I sweat a lot at work. At home I sit in front of my big fan and that helps. But I can't carry that around with me.

I have given up on keeping anything green and growing. The palm tree has pretty much died too. I think it was really an indoor plant, but way too big for my tiny place. I didn't really care for it anyway. I may just cut it all back and see if it comes back in the fall.

I got the light bar and the little solar jump starter for the golf cart, but it is way too hot to work on it. It will just have to wait until it cools off to get the light bar installed and hooked up to the jump starter.

I got my new recliner. It will do. Much more comfortable than the last ones I got. I did have to raise the front with a 2x2, small project. But that brings the foot rest up enough so that it is comfortable. Also tilts the seat back a little so I don't feel like I am sliding out of the chair. It isn't a bad chair for the price. I had to do the same thing to my $500 reliner back in VT.

My silk geraniums are at the post office. I picked up pots for them at the dollar store. Now I just need to figure out how to weight them so I am not constantly picking them up off the ground when they blow over. I also ordered a matching pair of mexican blankets for the couch and chair. These are more red than orange so will be a better fit in the living room until fall when I will use my gray fleece blankets.

I still don't have my amish wagon. It was tracked to the Q post office but the don't have it so the company sent out a new one. Hopefully I will pick that up at the post office today along with my blankets and geraniums.

I got a 120v tire inflator for the scooter so I don't have to mess with the 12v one and the car every time I need to inflate something. Still need to air up the scooter tires tho. Can't use it until I do. Not that I have much of an opportunity to use it these days. Just too hot and not enough leisure time. Although I do need to make a trip to the dumpster, so I may take care of that this morning.

I know, I haven't been writing much, but I haven't had much to write about. My time now is either spent working, sleeping or getting ready for work. I am hoping when it cools off that I will actually do something with my free time. For now I am reading and sleeping.

A very busy week...working

This last week has been nothing but work, sleep and try to sleep. I am really worn out and exhausted by the physical demands of this job. This week I work six days as it is inventory week and everyone is on. I have today off and plan to rest. I'm getting four to five hours of sleep a night, and last Monday I slept most of the afternoon.

A few new things this last week. I ordered and received a new quilt for the bedroom. It cost a little more than I wanted to spend, but I was ready for a change and this one called out to me. I am working, so that helps with the cost a little. With the stripes in the living room on the couch and chair, I decided I had way too many stripes.

My park bench arrived and I got that assembled. Had to scramble to find a replacement for the missing lock nut and washer. I had a wing nut that fit the bolt, so I used that. Other than that it was an easy assemble. I really like the bench. I have it on the front end of the house.

I also got the new towel rack and safety rail for the cool tub. Change the water in the tub and got the rail set. Makes it much easier to get in and out now and less chance of falling.

I had ordered a hose bracket that I got installed too. This reduces the space the hose takes up in the tub and I moved it down the side a little so it isn't right behind my shoulder. Takes up a lot less space. For now it is held in place with duct tape. I am hesitant to put any holes in the tub itself, but I may mount it with screws and a bracket of some sort later.

I hung the second small shade sail on the inside of the cool tub space to block a little bit more of the sun. The water stays cooler and the whole "room" stays a hair cooler. 

I broke down and ordered a recliner online. I know I said I wasn't going to do that, but I really want my outdoor chair back outdoors and with my work schedule, I won't be able to get anywhere to try out some chairs. I haven't been able to find the equivalent of the little recliner I had to leave in VT, so I am taking a chance. This time I am keeping the cardboard box until I am sure I am satisfied with the chair. Just in case. This is a wall saver and is supposed to be a smaller chair. We'll see. 

I wanted something that looked a little less like a recliner, but it seems that you loose comfort when you go for design. So this time I went for comfort. It is black microfiber. Not crazy over the black, but it goes with the rest of the stuff I have and the other option was tan. I hate tan. It will most likely be covered with a sheet or a quilt anyway, so it doesn't really matter all that much.

I lost my large shade sail last week in the monsoon. I ordered a new one (two) the same day, but I haven't received it yet. It really makes a difference on the patio by blocking a lot of the morning sun, yet allowing me to see my yard and all the critters. I ordered a spare this time even tho the old one was about three years old. I used it two summers in VT, and it has been up in the AZ sun since I moved in. I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did. It still looked good, but ripped to shreds in the monsoon winds. Dry rot. Can't wait to get that back up so I can sit outside a little longer in the morning without getting baked by the sun.

My thoughts on the job. It isn't perfect. Too many crazy, varying hours, too much physical labor for the money I am paid. I am keeping my eyes open for a full time office or library/town job here in Q. For now, it is an income. Plus, I have lost 10 lbs since I started working there. I exceed my daily step quota each and every day. Add to that the full body sweating and weight lifting, and it is a pretty good work out. You don't need a gym when you work at DG. I am thrilled about the weight loss and am encouraging it by eating as little and well as possible. I don't have much time to cook, so I am not eating as much at a sitting. So far only one minor low blood sugar event and that was after a very long 9 plus hour day and only one small meal. The disadvantage is that my jeans that I bought when I started are already way too big and I have to wear a belt. I did get a canvas belt on Ebay that doesn't make me sweat quite as much as the leather one did, and I have started carrying a bandana to wipe my face with. My face is also clearing up and I have hopes that someday in the future I won't have to use cover up on it. 

I'm already tired of the summer heat. Maybe some day I can become a snowbird and go to cooler climes in the summer. Need to find an income source tho. Either a partner that has some money, enough to cover expenses, or a telecommuting job somewhere. I really would like to not work at all, but I do like electricity and food. Plus my online shopping habit has to be paid somehow.

I'm lonely and am not really enjoying my life as it is at the moment. But it is something that has to be done. If I am to meet someone, they will come along when they are supposed to. Or not.

I do have to go to the post office and gas up the car since I used all my gas running the AC during my meal breaks. Too hot not to. I also want to stop at Sal's as I haven't been there for a couple of weeks.

Worn out

Yesterday was a strange day. I got ambitious after I got off the computer and did my work clothes laundry. Then I got out the reflectors for the golf cart and got them put on. I finally got the mirror mounted as well. I do love having the sewing machine out and easily accessible as I made a three minute mirror cover for the golf cart out of a piece of an old towel. Earlier I did the cuffs on the jacket. 

   

The cart was about as ready for it’s foray onto a town road as it could be with my limited reflectors. I don’t know how long they will stay on there since they were sticky back and it is freakin hot here. I do need to get some reflector tape and do something with the front. I may put some lights of some sort on the front too. Just have to figure out how to hook them up to the battery. Either way, additional reflector tape won’t hurt. I got hot and started sweating again which irritated my heat rash. I suffered with that all day. Powder helped and last night I actually put an ice pack on it. It seems to be better today, and hopefully I can keep the sweating to a minimum because I have to put on long pants tomorrow. I washed the pants that gave me the rash and tossed them into the Sal’s pile in the shed. Won’t be wearing them again. I ordered a canvas belt on Ebay to hold my jeans up instead of the leather one. Hopefully I won’t sweat as much with the canvas belt. Although I think it is a loosing battle being fully dressed in the heat of the summer AC or not. I will try to find a better fitting pair of black jeans the next time I go to a store. I think part of the problem is that I didn’t shower before going to work. I had been in the tub and figured that was good enough since I would start sweating the minute I got dressed. But I didn’t rinse off the chlorine and that probably irritated things. Lesson learned. Always shower before going to work, tub or no tub.

I did not get the water changed in the tub or the bananas dealt with. I also need to clean out my freezer. I have no idea what is in there any more. Whatever it is, it isn’t getting used. I may just toss out everything and start from scratch.  If I don't know what is in there, it has been there too long. I did manage to re-spray outside to prevent ants. I felt unprotected since the rain we got the other day. I have some granules to put down too, but am hesitant to do so because of the lizards. I would hate to hurt any. But I also don’t want to have to deal with ants in the house.

I had breakfast/lunch around 11. I finished up the stuff from a couple of lunches that I hadn’t eaten, then I took a two hour nap. I was pretty much done for the day. I finished my book that I was reading after my nap, was still tired, so I slept some more. I decided I was too tired and worn out to drive the cart out to the corner. I would have had to shower and dress for that. I just wasn’t up to it, so I let Lois know that I wasn’t going. I sat on my patio and had a perfect view for all of the fireworks but the lowest ones. It was a clear shot and I didn’t have to get dressed and go out in public. I got back inside just in time to see the Boston Pops do Stars and Stripes and watched the Boston fireworks on TV. They have some pretty impressive fireworks. I had never seen any like that. So all in all, other than the fact that I was alone all day, it was good. Got to bed around 10 and slept until 4 this morning. Guess I needed all that sleep.

I actually watched OTA TV. I didn’t start my DVD’s. I may start those tonight. I was just too tired and worn out to care. The job exhausts me. Hopefully I have caught up some. I had planned on going out today and pick up a few things, but I can get by without. I may still go to Sal’s, but take the scooter instead of the car. I will have to inflate the tires first tho. Needs to be done anyway.

Keith left for the UK yesterday. I did not get to see him before he left. Oh well. I’ll see him when he gets back. Hope he has a good trip. Lois and Rusty had to cancel their trip due to Rusty's health. Selfishly I am glad they aren't going, but sorry Rusty doesn't feel well.

I hope to be able to do some fun stuff again some day, maybe even have someone to do it with. I would like to travel again but have a place to come back to. I have the place now and just need the time and money to do the traveling. I want to be a snowbird.

I was missing Jake a lot last night. Plus yesterday was Kryssy’s birthday.

A bit of a ramble

I must be doing something right because my electricity usage is down considerably from last year. I did stop using my ice maker for the summer and I have all the windows covered with clear plastic. I also upped the AC to between 82 and 84 and supplement with fans and the swamp cooler. Last year at this time I had used 1252 kWh, and this year I am down to 786. Yay! Each month is showing considerably less usage from last year since I did the curtains and plastic. The ice maker probably used a lot of that, plus since it was so hot it had a hard time making the ice and it added heat to the inside of the house.  I buy about a bag of ice per week in the summer, sometimes more, but it is cheaper than making my own when it is so hot. I will make it in the winter as I need it, but I don’t use much ice in the winter. No sense having 10 lbs of the stuff in the freezer taking up space.

I’m tired this morning. Closing went OK, but I worked my ass off to get everything done that I was supposed to get done. Between my extended meal break and Kay’s extended meal break I was in a major time crunch. Started everything much later than I was supposed to. The cigarette count was off per usual, but the form is so convoluted it is hard to understand. Should be simple to count and add, but it isn’t. It is like they searched for the most difficult way to chart it. Everything else came out ok except that I entered the deposit into the system twice, oops. Won’t do that again. And it was hot. We still have the humidity from the monsoons, and it makes it very uncomfortable. My clothes were damp and uncomfortable from rushing around and sweating. No rain yesterday tho. 

I did take the old shade sail to the dumpster and did a cruise around the park on the scooter. The tires on the scooter need to be inflated, they were soft, but not bad enough that I had to take the golf cart. I will inflate them on Monday. The park looked good, didn’t see any damage other than water marks. I also got two of the four new solar motion lights installed in the passage way. They worked pretty good when I came home last night! The first one I got I moved to the gate in the back so I could see where I was going there. That one is just up by twist tie so I can remove it when I can’t use their yard to park in when they come back in the fall. I had parked in my own yard the night before, but when I got in the car to go to work after sitting in the sun all day everything was just way too hot to touch, including my glasses. The shade makes a huge difference.

I meant to take a benadryl before I went to bed last night, but by the time I thought of it I was already lying down and didn’t want to move. It would have helped me sleep, plus with the humidity I am having sinus issues. I slept four hours, was up at 3:30 for a little while then got another hour or so in the chair. I will have to try to nap later this morning. Thankfully I only work until 8 tonight, but have a very long shift tomorrow. Every day my start time changes and I am having a hard time remembering what time I am supposed to start. It has been bumped by 15 minutes each day. Today I go in at 1:45. Yesterday was 2, and the day before was 2:15. I find it frustrating that I can’t remember what time I am supposed to be there and have to keep checking.

I have to do a load of work clothes because I am out of shirts and I have sweated so much the jeans need to be washed too. I hate that they are too big now. Even with the belt, I am constantly pulling them up and walking on the hems. But they are a looser weave than the other pants, thus a bit cooler. Although I did wash a pair of the others the last time I washed uniforms and my try wearing them today. We’ll see. I would hate to wear them and have them be miserable, but it is also a shorter work day, so it might be the right day to wear them if I can. OK, laundry is in. Hoping everything dries fast. There is a breeze in spite of the humidity.

The rail for the cool tub came and I got that assembled. The next time I drain the tank, which will probably be this weekend some time, I will put the bottom plate under the tub which will secure it and make it safe. The tank has to be empty before I can move it. 

The store is open normal hours on Monday but thankfully I have Monday and Tuesday off. This may be my last week with two consecutive days off, but I hope not. I don’t care what days they are, just that they are in a row. There is more to life than working. 

Today I have some tomatoes, cukes, a cantaloupe and a watermelon to deal with. I got some tomatoes and a cuke on Thursday from a neighbor, and last night Kay brought me some more plus a cantaloupe. They are from the food bank. I’m going to make an italian salad from the cukes and most of the tomatoes, and I have to cut the cantaloupe and watermelon up and get them in the fridge. They are good snacks. The critters will get the seeds and skins.

Other than that, it is rest and prepare for work later. Soak in the tub intermittently.

I have absolutely no plans for Monday except some well deserved R&R. Tuesday will have to be errand day since everything will be closed on Monday. I’m hoping I will be able to see the fireworks from right here in my yard. I could see them from Keith’s yard last year, so it is promising. There is a picnic in the park and I haven’t ruled that out, but it is doubtful that I will go. There is no one here to play with, and stuff like that isn’t all that fun alone.

First monsoon of the season and a fatality

This week's big news is our first monsoon of the season yesterday. Of course, the timing was horrible. The minute I got in the shower to get ready for work the thunder and lightening started. It was a speed shower. Good thing it wasn’t hair wash day. Lightening around here is pretty scary and can do a lot of damage. Being in the shower isn’t the place to be. I would have liked to have gone out and watch the whole thing, but I had other priorities like getting myself to work on time.

I lost my big shade sail to the wind. The fatality. :( But it was old and I am really kind of surprised that it lived as long as it did. I used it two summers in IP, and it has been up here since I moved in almost a year and a half in the Arizona sun. Again, the timing could have been better as I was on my way to work and didn’t have time to deal with it. I cut the rest of it down this morning and have ordered two new ones on Ebay. I went with a similar color. They call it red, I call it rust. I may put both of them up, or I could save the second one for when the new one fails, and it will fail in the AZ sun eventually. It sure looks different without it this morning.

It hadn’t stopped raining by the time I went to work. The brand new remade Moon Mountain Raod that I had to travel, flooded. It was very slow going. People are saying it is worse than before they fixed it. I couldn’t say as last year I never left the park during or right after a monsoon. It was pretty bad, water coming in on both sides of the road. I can’t really go in any other direction to get to work because I have to cross a wash in whatever direction I go. I have to cross one here in the park to get to the back gate, or one if I turn left out of the park, and one if I turn right out of the park. Wash water is like a raging river and can be dangerous to cross. There may come a day when I will be late for work because of that. Lots and lots of flooding. I saw huge puddles when I came home last night. Other than the shade sail, I had no other damage that I can see. But we have some happy citrus trees and happy cactus. First rain in months. Came from the east, everything on the patio got wet in spite of the shade cloth, just came right thru it. And loud! The rain was so loud on the metal patio roof that it hurt my ears.

Today is supposed to be cooler but we also have another 20% chance of rain. It is really humid and there are some clouds in the sky, we will probably have another blow. We also have a breeze which is nice. I should make a pass around the park to check on damage this morning, especially the places I am supposed to be watching. I go to work at 2 today, so I should be able to pull it off. I also want to get the new solar lights in the passage way put up even though I probably will park in my own driveway again tonight, and take the rotten shade sail to the dumpster so it doesn’t go flying off somewhere. The scooter hasn’t been out for a while so that will be a good outing for it.

Work was OK. The AC has been fixed. It was cooler, but I was still sweating. I just didn’t have the rivers running off my face. But it is an improvement. All the chocolate has stopped melting. As far as work days go, it went well. I managed to get quite a bit of stuff shelved. I’m learning something new every day and they are being pretty patient with me. Ryan said it took him a long time and he was really nervous about it.  I’m getting better at shelving. It isn’t taking me as long to find things and where they go, so I guess it is progress all around. I'm getting 100 to 150% of my daily steps in and that doesn't count the weight lifting. I am dropping weight quite fast. My new jeans are getting uncomfortably loose. I had to start wearing a belt and have taken it in a notch since I started wearing it.

Waiting to go to work in the afternoon sucks tho. I would much rather go first thing in the morning and then have some day leftover after work. I haven’t learned opening yet, want to get closing under my belt first, but maybe I can get mornings some time in the future. I will talk to Patsy or the new manager about it in a few weeks.

Monday and Tuesday were spent recovering from my two weeks of non-stop working and stress. It was nice. Got my shopping done on Monday. Got most everything I needed at Family Dollar so I didn't have to go to DG on my day off, and what I couldn't get at FD, I picked up after work on Wednesday. I had a pretty good haul at Sal's, some more material, a plate, a Los Algodones red cotton jacket, and a couple other little things. And I slept a lot. I needed the down time. Although I was still a little stressed about the whole work thing both days. Hoping that will go away as I get more confident.

Finished watching all of The Gilmore Girls and will start McCleods Daughters on Monday. Hoping the new DVD player does what it is supposed to do. Supposed to be region free, my old one wouldn't play region 4 DVD's. I do have to seriously consider buying a TIVO if I am going to continue to work nights. I would just stream what I wanted to watch but with pay per gig internet, it would be way too expensive.

I think I am going to just take the hummer feeder that I have hanging in the grapefruit tree in. The ants fill it and drown in it every time I change it and the hummers don't use it when there are ants in it. It will make changing the one on the pole easier as I can just fill the clean one and swap it out with the old one instead of the whole process of emptying them and hosing them down and refilling outside. I think everyone will be happier since I will be more likely to change it more often and it will be less fuss for me.