Good morning, Danish, Donuts and Bagels in the Break Room. Going to see Lynda at the hospital again today. She's still not allowed out of bed or to move around much. Enjoy the day and hug someone.

Good morning Connie, Gerry, OldBroad, Draclvr, Hagatha and all who follow. Say hello to Lynda for us Connie and hope each day brings a little more strength and comfort. Stay warm on your walk Gerry and then warm up with your WADDB. Yes indeed OldBroad, repairs for our older houses are challenging...hold to those older appliances that still work and are safe. Groceries and errands are on my docket today.

Have a wonderful TGIF good day everyone!

Good morning all.

Finally, a nice day. I have some errands to run in town, and then I think I'll clean up some leaves. My pond fountain is sending up bubbles, which means it's got some pine needles or leaves in it. The pine shrub that's dropping all its needles into the pond is going to be taken out and a prettier evergreen planted in its place, one that won't drop needles and clog up the works. The people who built this place had great ideas but some of the execution was poor.

I'm getting my office redesigned with built-in shelves and desk, something I've wanted for a long time. I have so many books! I had to cull a lot of them when I moved and I'm regretting it now. However, the "unread" pile is growing so I'm sure the new shelves will fill up eventually.

Happy Friday to you all! Still need to cook - argh! Tossed some leftover carrots from last week's meal out. I think I won't be planning a meal for next week.

Good Friday afternoon. Had to take hubby to the eye specialist this morning. If he has to get an injection, then I have to drive home. But he didn't, so I just rode along and read a book on my phone while I waited.

A nice warmish sunny fall day today and another forecast for tomorrow. But tomorrow night the temps start plunging down into the 20's - a HARD freeze! I'm started doing the night closing and feeding down at the Ranch last night through next Thursday night. So, it's going to be COLD down there at 9 pm!

Oldbroad, when I bought this old farmhouse 33 years ago, the first thing I did was replace all the plumbing and wiring with licensed people. It was probably even older than yours. I didn't care if I had to sleep on a pile of straw, that had to be done first! I wish it weren't so, but I guess we just can't expect things to last and work forever. But at least I have great peace of mind now.

Draclvr, you've mentioned that a few times now but it doesn't help nor change the issues I'm having now. Some things are easier said than done. Some things are super easy for some people and unbearably hard for others.

oldbroad, I understand very well! I have a 50 year old home with pretty much original everything. It is impossible to fix all the things. I find it expensive just to paint much less replace. My clients homes I visit on a daily basis run the gamut from million+ estates that replace kitchens like I do toilet paper to those with tarps on their roofs and holes in the ceilings. I just had one complain on money being really tight right now and two weeks later bought a new SUV for over 100K that replaced one only 4 years old because their warranty was going to run out.

Ana

Yes, money can be tight when you purchase items that need to then be paid for. Some people just don't have the money to even dream about those purchases.

I made mistakes in the past that contributed to my future (present) but they can no longer be changed or fixed anymore. Now, I just have to figure things out another way and deal with the issues that have come my way, some of which I own up to causing. There are always reasons and / or excuses that are not always easy to know.

Oh, I get it, oldbroad. I know these thing are really hard for you. Really hard. I absolutely hate having to deal with things going wrong, but I am able to muddle through. Not every one can do that. You posted that link to a 1927 ancient old gas stove that was so cool! My friend and her husband bought an old house down in St. Louis city that had one dated 1904. It was original to the house when it was built! She was able to continue using it for many years because of some grandfather clause. She did have the gas company come in and change out a valve or something to make it safer. She loved it! Can you imagine a modern appliance lasting that long!

I think your last sentence just described life for all of us... I know I could say the same thing for myself.

Unfortunately Drac, the gas company doesn't seem to do stuff like that anymore. They just say you have to get it done. Part of the problem with getting a new stove for him is that we cannot get the old stove out of where it is. I'm pretty certain the prior owners had the laundry room (where the stove is) enclosed and put the paneling up right around where the appliances are. The stove will not be movable out of there unless we take the little area wall down. Another thing you should know is that this is the first and only house we ever bought so we really didn't know what we were doing. This house had some big pros to it when compared to where we were before and it was the only house we were shown that would work for us, and that we could afford with the help of my mom's down payment "gift". Then, a few years later my brother filed bankruptcy because he is a gambler and that didn't help things out much either. The list goes on and on from there.

Anyway, on to other messes. Feel free to laugh at me.

I finally cooked tonight but still have not eaten to see how it actually came out. I made the Hungarian Goulash and the Spaetzle but I goofed on the Spaetzle. I forgot that the pan I was going to use is in my refrigerator with leftover rice in it that I never got around to putting in a container so I pulled a different pan out, bigger around but more shallow. I wasn't thinking about the fact that I could not place my colander over the water in that pan and I was trying to pour the batter into the colander while holding it over the pan which didn't work very well. My batter was probably a little too thick but that enabled me to be able to put the colander on a plate, pour the batter in it (losing some on the plate but not much) and then hold the colander over the pan while trying to push the batter through the holes. Well, that didn't work too well either because my hands get cramps in them real fast. Somehow I did end up getting enough Spaetzle for the Goulash though and it seems to be okay. I will be testing the meal out very shortly. (I eat late because I stay up very late.)

And, I did decide on one really simple meal to make next week. I had two items on my grocery list for tomorrow.

I'd say that qualifies as being between a rock and a hard place, oldbroad. I wish I knew of a way to help make your living situation less stressful. Mine is moving in the stressful direction because my husband refuses to face that fact that he is 81 and I'm 78 and aging is now a factor in where we live. We have options, but he refuses to even consider them. Meanwhile it gets harder and harder for me to navigate steps in this old farmhouse with my bone-on-bone knees.

Your Hungarian goulash sounds heavenly. I had to laugh trying to picture you trying to get your spaetzle dough through the colander and into the water!

I have a good one for today too, but it's not about me. The caretaker who lives at the horse rescue ranch is getting married tomorrow. Carole brought her wedding dress here Wednesday after her final fitting and was going to pick it up today. Guess what! She forgot about her wedding dress! I told her, her poor brain must be mush. She has a lot of issues with anxiety and is actually coping with the stress pretty well, but this one she will remember! I am doing the night closing and feeding, so took her wedding dress down there to her. We laughed.

Oldbroad, our first house wasn't quite as old as yours but it had a number of serious issues that we didn't know about. Back then the real estate business wasn't as well controlled and also there was no house inspection industry like there is now. The basement floor was completely rotted out in places; we didn't see it because it was covered in carpet. Underneath was just dirt, no concrete. We also didn't know that there was white fluffy mold in the walls and as a result I have permanent incurable sinus infection with constant headaches. Of course starting out we had no money to deal with any of it for years.

That's why I insisted on a new house when I moved two years ago. I opted for much smaller, one-story rancher and no view as a compromise because most of the waterfront homes here are all big older homes or really old cottages. I'm too old to deal with old home issues. It gets harder for us as we age.


On a happier note, I recently joined Facebook in order to see local events, and just today got in touch with an old childhood friend I haven't seen in about 30 years. What a nice surprise. We grew up together in Toronto, two doors away from each other, and then reconnected in Vancouver 15 years later, then lost touch when they moved to Australia.

Hagatha, the house did have some problems when we moved in that we didn't know about but mostly neglect by us has been the problem. I do admit that but still feel they just don't make things to last anymore, including new houses. There were repairs I did (not personally) at the beginning but then I got kind of stupid about several different things in my life. Neglecting things is our prerogative though; being forced to do things is not.

I wouldn't mind to connect with some old friends that way but my problem is I only want to connect through distance. I'm not prepared to see anybody in person. I just like to know how people are doing though. The couple of friends I do keep in touch with through email really don't write much though.