Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Tuesday-3am

I think we had rain. Or maybe it was the day before. I have to look to see what day it is before I blog when I am this tired. This pic was from Monday afternoon, though.
No naps for me. About 2pm the maintenance man arrived. Karma was watching everything...from a safe distance, of course...
...until he wheeled in his big cart to leave inside the door while he went to find a bigger ballast for the kitchen light fixture. Here it was striped down, wires dangling. Karma hid under the end table for the remainder of his long visit.
And then there was light!! Tada!! :):)
He had a terrible time with the kitchen faucet that was leaking from the base.
There was grunting, a couple big pliers, sweating, pauses, heavy breathing, and a red face...I was concerned because he is a sweet older man. But he finally succeeded. The corroded old faucet has a gap now, but it works like a charm...smooth as butter. So smooth I thought I was going to tear it right up and off when I went to use it the first time--LOL! I was so used to it being stiff and having to use force...gave me the giggles!
While he was working on the faucet, the UPS man arrived!! I pushed the box off to the side and out of his way. After he finished with the kitchen faucet, he went and worked on the bathroom sink. That was a project, too! Poor guy! He had to remove pipe from under the sink and run water into a bucket he had and use giant brushes. Gross stuff in there!! Never had that one cleaned since I moved in. Gag!
****
He was finally done around 3:45pm. I asked if he was swamped with repairs before the inspection? No. He was actually glad I had called. The problem is, he said, that people don't call. They find all these things wrong when they do the inspection and then he's swamped afterwards. Huh? What is it with people?!
****
Well, I tried to leave the box alone after he left, but I just couldn't. I pushed it out into the entryway there...
...cut it open, tipped it on its side, and had a heck of a time sliding it out of the box mostly one-handed and using my foot. Tight fit and really packaged well!! Those black corner pieces on the thick styrofoam are actually a stiff plastic! Plus they had cardboard corner protectors on the cabinet itself, too, and the strips of padding tucked over all the drawer knobs.
You know who was immediately sticking her nose into the box half filled with styrofoam...
...checking out the packing materials...
...smelling the new cabinet...
...trying to butt her head right through the styrofoam! As if!!
Didn't work, so she laid at the entrance to the box for a while. I knew this box wasn't going to stay around. Too much packing material and teeny, tiny pieces of styrofoam were spreading all over the place...including Karma's fur--LOL! (I made a trip to the dumpster with my little green cart later on...with a bag of trash, too, while I was at it.)
Well, I pulled the cabinet across the floor over to the desk and did a quick heave-ho!! (So glad it has the side handles!)
The cabinet weighs about 24 pounds if I recall, so it is a bit heavier than Miss Karma (who I seldom ever pick up as she dislikes it so). But I had to lift the cabinet two-handed. I can do that briefly--a quick lift--but am not supposed to try and do an assisted lift (two-handed) of over ten pounds. Oh well. Not supposed to push and pull or grip with that arm, either, and I already had to do a little of that just getting it out of the box...so what the hell, eh? I've had to do singular things like this over the years since the injury so I know my arm will just burn for a couple of days, I'll just baby it for a while, and it will be okay.
****
Anyways, enough boring arm talk! ;)
I love the cabinet!!!
When I took pictures without the flash the wood looks more dull.
With the flash, the wood looks more colorful and rich than it actually does.
It's actually kind of inbetween, but closer to the first one without the flash.
****
Now, Miss Karma is not supposed to be up on my desk unless I am sitting at it and say it's okay. You can have more say-so when your cat is too fat to jump that high from the floor--LOL! And she knows I'd chase her off if she was up there on her own when I'm awake. She's never allowed ever up on the craft table. (I know she sneaks up on both when I am gone or asleep, of course.)
****
Anyways, her curiosity got the better of her. She didn't think I was looking and popped on up from the desk chair. Was so intently investigating that she didn't even hear me turn the camera on--hehe!
How could she resist...
...investigating this new huge box...
...parked in the forbidden fruit area? ROFL!
After I took this last picture I said--"Karma!" like I just noticed her. She leapt down using the chair, ran halfway across the room, laid down, meowed, tail flicking, with this "well, what do you expect, I'm a cat" look. I am sure she has smelled it thoroughly while I slept my three hours--LOL!
****
Yes, only 3 hours and I was awake and couldn't get back to sleep. *sigh* I have a terrible headache from not sleeping much for two days, my arm burns, and I am typing with one hand. Don't be alarmed. No biggie about the arm. This is just par for the course in my life since 1993.
****
I laughed when I read Tuesday's nablopomo prompt:
Has anything traumatic ever happened to you? Describe the scenes surrounding a particular event.
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ROFLMAO!! Which one would I pick?
****
I will have to revisit that one when I can type with both hands and think straight. ;)
****
I actually did find my old protractor before the maintenance man arrived yesterday and did try to make a mandala...or start one...but my circles didn't match up and the protractor lead kept sliding. So, my good intentions ended up in the trash, but I really did try to do something artistic.
****
I think I am going to use one of my stash of discontinued Davocet (pain pills)...zombie out in front of the tube...and hope I get some more sleep here pretty soon. Sorry to complain. Things could be a lot worse. I don't have anything planned for today, so it can be a pajama day. I just need sleep...and eventually I will get some. Plus, if I get pain-restless, I can start filling my cabinet! Whoohoo! Awesome! In fact, that sounds like the best thing to take my mind off feeling so crummy....later gator! ;)

24 comments:

Carolyn Dube said...

I so do that too - where I get the camera, take the fun photo, and the admonish my kids/dog that they shouldn't do that. Those are some of my favorite photos!

Gwen said...

It's a wonder cats don't go missing more than they do, they are so full of curiosty and can get into very small spaces. You must be exhausted!
Gwen xx

Cowgirl Red said...

Love the new cabinet. I threatened to hire a full-time "handy-man" if TH didn't get some things fixed around here. He immediately got someone over here. Rita, I got your note. Thank you. I have moved my blog to my new website http://www.cowgirl-red.com/
I will be having a "Grand Opening" soon. There were too many kinks to work out last week. Love, Terah

DJan said...

That was an event filled day. I do hope your arm is not going to be too awfully sore after all that. The box is really nice! I think you will have lots of fun organizing it. Your pictures are just the best, showing Karma in all her cat-ness.

AliceKay said...

I'm glad the maintenance work is done now so the inspection should go smoothly. Sounds like the guy had quite a chore.

Your cabinet is beautiful. (love the green liner) Looks like it will work out nicely where you set it. I'm sure you'll have it filled in no time. Loved the pics of Karma. :)

Sorry to hear you're in so much pain now and can't sleep. I hope the pain has subsided and you were able to catch more Zzzzzs. Hope the rest of your day goes well.

Artoholic said...

Sorry to hear you're not feeling 100%. Hope you can get some sleep and get back on top soon.

SEVERE cabinet envy here...I want several of those.

Cats & boxes are a match made in heaven!

Toriz said...

Glad the guy got everything fixed, and YAY for your cabinet arriving! :)

Karma would have been having a great time here the last couple of days... Packages full of those packing peanuts, and boxes from all different places for her to investigate; very exciting for a cat like Karma! (Before you ask; it was stuff I'd ordered for people for the holidays, and some bits from some of our magazines that we get). Yes, how could she resist? Especially when she thought you weren't looking, LOL!

My first thought on seeing that prompt was "Where do you start?" ;)

Good luck with the sleep thing, and I hope you aren't in too much pain (and if you are that you're feeling less painful soon!)

Furry Bottoms said...

That is a beautiful cabinet, whooooooooooooa!!! I love it! :)

I knew Karma would go for the box. I knew it, heheee

Intense Guy said...

That is a beautiful cabinet!!! No wonder Karma approves!! You need some of those little papers that say "Inspected by #1033" 'cept it needs to say "Inspected by Karma Kat"!

I'm glad the maintenance guy got things fixed sans heart attack - he show any plumber crack? :)

Too bad Karma... that box was in and gone in jiffy... no new bat cave...

Hope you feel much better soon - frowns at you for overdoing it with moving the cabinet around....

Celticspirit said...

Glad to hear that you got your repairs all done and you gave that old guy something to do. :)

Maya likes to hide under the sofa when people come to visit or see the house. As for Clementine I have to put her in her crate when strangers come because she totally embarrassed me the other day when a friend of mine came to see the house and brought her dog who is Clementines brother. Clementine growled ferociously and wouldn't quit!

I love the cabinet. It's very nice and ritzy looking. Good choice!

Dee Ready said...

Dear Rita, oh, that box is a marvel. It makes me think of the enchanting song from Menotti's Christmas opera "Amahl and the Night Visitors."

Here's the video site. (You have to wait for the credit and some of the opera and then you see the box and hear the song.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAZlS9ZogQE

I so hope you get a good sleep soon.

Peace.

Beth said...

The new cabinet is beautiful. You will have fun filling that.

Karma is having quite an adventurous time discovering new sights and smell. And my goodness, don't cats just love boxes of any kind.

I hope you are able to get some rest today,

Hugs,
Beth

Desiree said...

What a wonderfully full post today, Rita! I'm so pleased to know all the maintenance work has now been completed and loved being shown all the bits, before and after. You had me gagging at the goop that came out from the pipe under the handbasin, too. Your new cabinet is lovely! I can understand how excited you were to get it unpacked and in position, but possibly you should have waited for Dagan to do it for you. I do hope you're not going to have to endure any drawn out pain from the effort and exertion. It was a treat seeing Karma checking everything out so minutely. Loved the bit about her flicking her tail and moaning at you after she'd been reprimanded. I hope you'll get some sleep tonight. Enjoy your pyjama day. I love those when they happen :)

betty said...

I like that cabinet!! You did amazingly well typing one handed!! I hope you were able to rest and relax after your day you had yesterday! Glad all the repairs got done too!

betty

Anonymous said...

OOooooooo pretty box! Love the green lining compared to the color of the wood. I have to say though... since this was ordered from a sportsmen's place I wondered what the mirror was for. So the guys can check their lipstick? Does a full sheet of paper fit in a larger drawer?? I'm surprised it fit on your desk! Karma cracks me up too. You know, if I were a cat I'd be out of lives. Curiosity kills the Donna too.

Love your lamp with the roses.... I love love love roses!

I saw that prompt and thought the same thing! LOL I wondered what you would write. Curious too! LOL


I know exactly what you mean when you talk about taking something and zoning out just because you need the rest. I usually don't have issues with sleep - I can sleep 12 hours at a stretch and still wake up tired - but I do get to that point where I'm hurting too bad and I just need to go out. It doesn't take much to do that for me though.

The maintenance guy seems to be a good one. Seems like he did some good work. I have to ask... what is that round container on your sink?

Rita said...

Carolyn--LOL!! What's bad is if they catch you grinning with the camera pointing at them! ;)

Gwen--Hello! Karma almost got herself trapped under my big dresser when she was a just about too big to get under there anymore. I can't push it around anymore with my bum arm, so she had to eventually find her way back out. Lots of crying involved--LOL! I block it so she cant even try to get behind it anymore...because I know she would if she could! ;)

Terah--LOL@handyman threat!
That is so cool that you have your own website now! Glad you are getting the kinks worked out and look forward to the Grand Opening!! I do love your new logo. I know I have told you that, but it always makes me smile every time I see it. :):)

Djan--My arm is getting better already today. I think Miss Karma enjoyed all the excitement yesterday. She's been exhausted and sawing logs since the activity stopped--LOL! :):)

AliceKay--They should be in and out of here quickly tomorrow for the inspection. Especially since they know I just had things fixed. :)
Already been filling the cabinet! Fun!
All of my pain and erratic sleep is just normal, run of the mill, everyday stuff for me. I was thinking that I probably shouldn't bother to bring it up. Kind of redundant, you know? But it is my life, such as it is--LOL! ;)

Cindy--This is such an awesome cabinet! Was so worth it! (Sometimes you wonder when you order online.) I love it!
LOL@cats & boxes! so true! :):)

Tori--Karma would love all those boxes--yes!! I've seen her try to smash her way into small flat postage boxes and even big bubble envelopes. (Like me, she thinks she is smaller than she actually is!)
Yes--where would I start? LOL!
I don't talk about my arm much. It only becomes an issue when the muscles from wrist to elbow start to burn. Then I just have to pretty much leave it alone or I can end up in a sling for weeks. It's not really a big deal. It's been eighteen years now, so I'm very used to watching what I do (normally), knowing how far I can push it, and paying attention to it when it starts bitching at me--LOL! You adapt. ;)

Rita said...

Nikki--I am really impressed with the cabinet. Can hardly wait to show it to Leah. She has a storage fetish, too--LOL!
Yup--Karma has her box fetish, too. :):)

Iggy--Most everything in here--well, everything she can reach--has been inspected by KarmaKat--ROFL!!
Nope, no butt crack with this maintenance man. He's a very nice older gentleman with a speech impediment. A sweetheart of a guy! :)
Yes, that box treasure was here and gone before Karma could get any expectations built up--hehe!
I know. If it had been much heavier I wouldn't have been ABLE to do it, anyways. I'm generally pretty good about waiting and knowing what I can't do...or what I can and will just have to recoup for a few days--LOL! ;)

Barb--Sounds like Clementine was in protective mode! Some dogs just hate to have any strange dogs around at all and want to chase them off their property! I had a little chihuahua like that. She chased a labrador all the way down the street!! ROFL! But she was no watchdog--would kiss the mailman! Go figure. ;)

Dee--Oh goodness! I have to check out this link! Thanks!
I did sleep. During the day and into the evening. Oh well. ;)

Beth--Karma was awfully intrigued for her to jump up there when I was awake and in the room--LOL! She seemed to love the new wood smell of it. :)
I did get some sleep, thanks!! I'll take it when I can get it. ;)

Desiree--I heard him making a bit of noise in there and went to go take a peek...and he had the pipe off under the sink--gross! It did almost make me gag! Probably was buildup from when this place was built 9-10 years ago--LOL! I left quickly. ;)
I didn't mean to alarm anyone over my burning arm pain. I forget that I never talk about the arm much. I pretty much know what I can and can't do--and the consequences of my actions--LOL! I knew I would have to baby it and would probably have the burning pain up my arm for a few days. Luckily I am right-handed. That's a blessing.
It was a quiet day with some sleep. So, I'll be ready for another crazy day Weds--hehe! :):)

Queenie Jeannie said...

Hi there! Sorry to hear you still aren't sleeping. I'm getting a bit better but still feeling really tired. I wake up in the middle of the night now and have a really hard time going back to sleep. I'm sleeping weird in some way that is just murder on my lower back!!! Of course I'm asleep so I have no clue what it is! My blue light really does help though. Do you have one???

Karma is a character!!!

LOVE your pretty new box and it seems to go perfectly with your desk! Seems too pretty to be holding guns and knives, lol!

I haven't been able to craft in days and I'm sooo behind on the challenge. Then I'm going to be gone for six days. Wondering whether to even bother to keep up with it actually. Thoughts??

I hope you get to feeling better SOON!!!

Rita said...

Betty--I had the accident with my arm back in 1993. Since it acts up and complains off and on, I had to learn to type one-handed...or I should have said almost one-handed, even though I do type totally one-handed, too. I used my left hand to press the shift key...unless that makes my arm burn too much. I have all kinds of adaptations for my arm over the years. I forget about them, actually. ;)
Thanks! I definitely had an R&R day!! :):)

Donna--ROFL!! I actually wondered, too!! I mean, really--what on earth would the guy with his knives and guns stored in there use a mirror for?
Yes, in fact, you can just fit two sheets sideways in one of the big drawers or the top...end to end!!
That rose lamp matches the hanging lamp over my craft table. In my old apartment in Moorhead (across the river in MN) I had the matching table lamp and hanging ceiling lamp both on and over my desk. They went to different spots when I moved, but I love them. :)
I've had a lot of things happen in my life--trauma, upheaval. That's why I love-love-love my boring life in Fargo since 2005!! LOL! ;)
Lack of sleep makes me spacy, disconnected. By rights I should be sleeping 12 hours a day, too!!! I certainly FEEL like I could sleep at any point of the day or night, to be honest--but I don't sleep well since I got fibro. I wake up all the time ( a good night only 2-3 times) and so I don't sleep as solidly and deeply as I used to when people said the house could burn down and I would sleep right through it--LOL! It may be the OA, actually. Back pain, hip pain...and I wake up because of it and have to kind of walk and stretch it off a few minutes. So, I might be up, but sometimes I may as well be sleepwalking--ROFL!! ;)
That low round container is actually a brush cleaner I use for my watercolor brushes. Funny--I keep the brush cleaner and the stamp cleaners out all the time there. Too lazy to keep going to get them...even if I don't use them for months, they are part of the scenery now--ROFL!! :):)

Teresa Evangeline said...

I am coveting all those beautiful little drawers. I really do need to investigate that link and see what my possibilities are. Beautiful.

laurak/ForestWalkArt :) said...

ok, so i'm going backwards here...what else is new! ha!! and what i thought was JUST A BOX from your wednesday post...turns out to be a CABINET!! wow!! that's beautiful!! what an awesome piece of furniture!! no wonder in your next post you showed how all your inks and pens had a NEW HOME!! i LOVE it!!

glad you got your repairs out of the way before inspection time!! unlike karma, milo usually runs and hides at the first sign of someone coming in the house! she's a scaredy-cat! ha! but then she'll likely start sneaking out from where ever she went to hide...to investigate...and see who's here...from a safe distance of course!

have a nice day rita! be well!

Rita said...

Jeannie--I have a lot of lower back pain and don't know how I am sleeping sometimes, either--LOL!
Nope--no blue light. Isn't that what people use for SAD?
I'd still do what I could while I was home and not worry about trying to do every day since you're going to be on vacation. Have a great time in Paris!! :)

Teresa--It's nice! Like a piece of furniture! ;)

Laura--Oh, ya! It's a cabinet! Even nicer than I expected! Happy me!! :)
Karma's normally a chicken, too. That's why I snapped a quick picture because it is so unusual for her to have sat there for maybe five minutes--LOL! All my other cats I've ever had would have been rubbing on the guy's leg! Karma's not normally friendly. ;)
What I can't believe is you take Milo camping without a leash and she stays right around! That blows my mind! Milo is so cool! :):)
Have a super day!

Sarah Anderson said...

what a fabulous cabinet! I now have cabinet envy lol

Rita said...

Sarah--Thanks so much! I checked out your moodling blog and am now following! You sure do a variety of different crafts and I only went back a few days--wow! Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see you again. :)