Monday, March 21, 2022

March 21, 2022 Monday--11:30am

Good morning!

Monday

Let there be light!  :)

Yes, maintenance came that afternoon!  

When I first moved in here the blubs flickered and died.  I had a faulty ballast (I think that is what the part is called--wasn't the bulbs or the starter but a larger part).  That was over 5 1/2 years ago.  I totally forgot that there are four bulbs in that fixture!  Skinny ones--two on each side and they burn out together.  So I should be set for another five years or more--tada!

He fixed the faucet in the bathroom and said the washing machine needed a new seal.  He had to order it so not sure when it will arrive but he will call ahead of time and come in the afternoon.  The garage door...said he will put a new seal on the bottom and try to recalibrate the door.  He doesn't need me for that so he will do that whenever he can.  I think he might have had to order the seal for that, too.  

Anyways, I am so glad it was the nice older gentleman I have had basically since I moved in.  (No, I don't know his name--sad, but true.)  He is really nice and cleans up after himself so he doesn't leave a trace that he was here.  Even takes his dirty paper towels with him.  A real sweetheart.

Tuesday
Made soup.

Wednesday   
Made a chicken and rice casserole and I finally set up letters.  Had a stack on my desk again (13).

Thursday
I started on the patio but most of the mess was still embedded in ice.  Asked Leah if I could borrow their ice chopper.  She brought it with her that night--our Craft Nite.  

After doing her help-the-old-lady tasks (LOL!), we focused on cutting covers for the bookcards.  We had to cut to size for all the pre-folded signatures I had originally made from the wider than US half size papers (European and Japanese papers).  The ones on the left red tray, for example.
And the ones on the right red tray.
In the center tray is the stack of ink drop pad pages cut in half.

We discovered that the 6 inches just fits for most of the wider European & Japanese papers.  Easy to trim down 1/2 inch if we are using US sized paper.  Soooo much less waste if we can just cut them in half and get two covers per 12 X 12 sheet!  I was so excited!! 

Leah also cut the rest of the few scrapbooking sheets I had and all of that handmade paper, too.  (Her poor arm and shoulder!)

Step one in the cover assembly-line is done.  Then it's just a matter of sizing for width & length.  Then comes the folding.  Batch two has a huge start.  Whoohoo!

Friday-Sunday
I have been working on the patio a little bit each day.  Chopping ice and shoveling up shells and rabbit poop into a double bagged wastebasket.
This is the view this morning.  You can see the big snowpiles that reached the eves of the garages across the way are quite shrunken down...and looks like the ice is finally melted off my patio this morning!!  (It's 54 degrees right now!)
I think I am down to the yellow patio broom and a dustpan today--hurray!
There might be a tiny bit of ice left right behind the planters, but that's absolutely nothing compared to the 4-5 inches that was there a couple days ago halfways across the patio.  Days in the 40s and low 50s will do that.  ;)  
There were much less shells and rabbit poop balls than it had appeared because the majority of what was out there was actually ice.  

Anyways, this afternoon I can sweep and sweep and get the rest of it up.  I need my gardening tools from the garage to clean off the top layer of the planters, though.  Apparently the rabbits had their late night parties up there, too--LOL!  The planters can wait.  We can't plant till mid-May.  

Okay.  Just checked my phone and we are supposed to get rain this afternoon and Tuesday, too.  So--I may have a patio break whether I like it or not.  (Gramma like!)  Our first rain for this year, I think.  Could turn into snow, but we are on the edge of it and it says the snow will probably hit in Minnesota.  

We've had flood warnings the past few days.  Definite sign of spring up here.  We don't live in the flood zone so we're grateful we don't have to sandbag or worry about water damage.  Feeling very grateful every spring.  Leah's Mom's old house in Moorhead, MN (right across the river) was up on a hill that often got totally surrounded by water in the spring so they had to sandbag and use a boat to get in and out.  Whew!

Always remember to count your blessings.  
Have a week filled with blessings...large and small.  Life is a miracle!  See you next Monday.
*hugs*

16 comments:

DJan said...

It's so nice to get those items you love so much all done! They are really pretty, too. And the patio looks great, just a little bit more sweeping and you're done! :-)

Arkansas Patti said...

That maintenance man seems like a keeper. He really did a lot for you. Must be a way to find out his name.
So glad you don''t have to worry about flooding. Stay dry and warm.

Deb J. in Utah said...

Amen to your final thought there at the end of this post. You have had a busy and productive week. So glad you are doing so well. It's good you won't have to worry about flooding as the spring thaw comes. Have a good week. See you again soon!

Bonnie said...

Yay for the kitchen light and other repairs! Your bookcard covers all look so pretty. Isn't it nice to see the beginning of Spring. We still have some snow forecast but have had a few nice days in between. Take care Rita!

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

Wow, Rita, you have had a week. And you have LIGHT!! Nice the maintenance man did all the work he could that was on your list.

Nice that you got most of the mess on the patio cleaned before the rain. It's also nice to read you are not in a flood zone. I've been worried about the floods. Take care, stay safe, and rest.

David M. Gascoigne, said...

It's great to have a friendly, competent maintenance man. He is worth his weight in gold!

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Wiser words never spoken, Rita, indeed life is a miracle and you are a clear indication of what positive thinking can do as well. It's been another busy and productive week for you and Leah too. The book cover production was amazing to read about, as always. And I am sure that doing a bit of cooking once again felt wonderful too. Cleaning up the Critter Cafe is a project for sure, but you will enjoy being able to sit outdoors on your patio when nicer weather finally arrives. Here's hoping that the snow and ice and cold temps will soon be a thing of the past as they are doing here in NH, day by day.

Anvilcloud said...

I had to stop and drool for awhile at “chicken and rice casserole.” Well, not quite, but you know … It’s been awhile.

Divers and Sundry said...

It's fantastic that the work got seen to, and pleasantly :) Hoorah! Soup and chicken-and-rice casserole sound like great ideas, and I'm always looking for ideas :) I tend to get stuck in a rut. You still have ice! I've already put my house plants back outside. We're having thunderstorms and lots of rain today, so they'll get a good watering.

DVArtist said...

Nice post. Glad you have lights. I made soup as well. The books look lovely. We too are in rain rain rain. Like you wrote count our blessings. Have a nice day.

Jo-Anne's Ramblings said...

Damn you have light must b e good to see what ones doing...........lol

Far Side of Fifty said...

I figured you would get a start on the ice and "stuff" on the patio! Lights are a good thing!! Glad the nice man came to take care of your list!

Jeanie said...

Sounds like you are doing well and super productive. Certainly far more so than I this week! Chopping ice? Never fun and takes energy! I'm glad the maintenance is there and you got the right guy.

Juli said...

Thankfully I think winter is on its way out here. temps are expected in the 20-30's this week, but we've already had some 70 degree days. The week I had the Rona it was beautiful! Even today, low 50's, felt so good. I am slowly working on rebuilding the raised garden bed that rotted out this past year. Hubs is rebuilding the flower bed along the driveway so what else would we do with 75 feet of cinderblock but rebuild a larger and rot resistant garden bed, right? It's exhausting though. I think I got 6 blocks in and leveled before I called it quits.

Love your paper styles. So pretty! And I especially love that you made soup one day. Some days making soup is all you need. :)

Serena Lewis said...

Great that you have light now! It sounds like this maintenance guy is really looking after you.

It looks like Annie is overseeing the clearing up of the patio. hehe It looks like another productive week for you.

We are on flood watch too as heavy rains are expected over the next couple of days. I hope it doesn't affect the poor people who were devastated by the last flood.

Yes, we should count our blessings for sure.

Unknown said...

It's always such a nice feeling to clean up after winter and have everything looking good heading into spring. Glad you got your light fixed!