What did you do today? 2019 version.

[NW-Bound]

... I don't like mine. Too unstable when trying to climb up and down with only one hand because I have the leaf blower in the other hand. The extendable ladders have a little wobble in them because they aren't solid.

Telescopic ladders are not very strong because of the design.

My highest ladder looks like this 20' one, and it is good.

 

[NW-Bound]

The above ladder is at my metropolitan home. I will need to bring it up to the high-country boondocks home to change the smoke alarm battery.

The smoke alarm in the loft is 25' off the 1st floor, but from the 2nd floor it's only 15' up. The above ladder can reach it if I haul it up to the 2nd floor. None of my other ladders is tall enough.


PS. I am ordering new 9V lithium batteries for replacement in the smoke alarms in the high-country home. Alkaline batteries do not last long enough, for the trouble of replacing them. These lithium batteries are expensive at $8 a piece.

PPS. The smoke alarms are wired onto the 115V power. The batteries are only for backup. However, in the winter there's power interruption often enough to run down the batteries.

 

[Moemg]

A sad day here.

we just decided that the time has come and I made an appointment to take him to the vet tomorrow to be put down. I have some pine in the woodshop to make a small casket and he'll be buried next to his buddy Jameson under the flower pot up by the road.

Not looking for sympathy but it is helpful to just type it out.

So sorry !

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Sorry to hear about your cat pb4uski. It seems like you are making the right call.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

We went on a wilderness and wildlife boat tour with a naturalist at a regional park lake. The highlight was seeing two bald eagles in flight.

 

[pb4uski]

Sorry to hear about your cat pb4uski. It seems like you are making the right call.

Thanks. Since I wrote that post he has been peacefully lying in his catbed... shallow breathing but still a heartbeat.... but he is very weak... but he is at home.

The earliest appointment I could get was for tomorrow afternoon but I suspect that he'll probably die before then. It might be just as well as he doesn't like riding in the car and the ride to vet would probably be a bit traumatic for him.

Time will tell but he seems to be at peace and not in pain and we are accepting the inevitable, albeit with sadness and lots of good memories.

 

[rk911]

spent a few hours tidying up the digital photo database.

 

[pb4uski]

Well, he's gone. Shortly after that last post he was making some noises. We put him in his catbed on our bed between DW and I and pet him gently... he made a few little noises but now neither DW or I can hear a heartbeat so he's gone.

We're thankful that it happened at home and as best we can tell he didn't suffer much nor was in a lot of pain but who knows. DW and I were just reminiscing that neither of us has had a pet die at home like this. Sad for us but we're thankful that we were able to be with him at the end.

 

[Calico]

I am so sorry for your loss. The time we have with them is always too brief. I have had to say goodbye to too many cats over the years.

It sounds like he had a very peaceful end, and he knew he was loved right up to the last minute, which is all we can hope for on their behalf, really. My condolences.

 

[Momcpa]

Last month we purchased a new-to-us used car. Traded the old one. We let the insurance co know about the update. They said of course, there would be a premium increase and we understood that. Just got an invoice from them with the partial term increase and we understood that also. But the increase was for $44 and the amount due was $49. I called them this morning and asked 'why'. They said the $5 was for sending out a mid-year invoice. I said nicely... "So that fact that I'm keeping you as my insurance company AND buying more insurance, you are going to charge me $5 extra!?" She put me on-hold, and worked her magic to erase the $5. A pleasant 10 minute phone call was all it took. That's what time in retirement gave me today.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I may have spoken too soon. On reexamination, they decided to blast away some more with the laser, and worse, when I clarified that I lived in Vancouver, WA, not Vancouver BC, they started talking about charging me. I have Medicare Supplement F High Deductible, so I may be on the hook for some of it. But, honestly, they saved my eye, and I’d have paid whatever it took to achieve that.

That must have been scary. I hope you are on the mend now and can enjoy the rest of your trip.

 

[misshathaway]

Purge purge purge

We have a neighborhood Goodwill truck open 8-4 on weekdays in a supermarket parking lot 5 minutes away. I've been there every day for a few days. I hope there isn't some kind of cutoff. I'll have to go in disguise.

I've finished going through the family things. It is SO much easier when it is your own junk. There was one closet that still had most of my work clothes from almost 4 years ago. I kept thinking I might have to go to a funeral. All to Goodwill to someone else who still has to iron blouses and wear pants with uncomfortable waistbands. Oh, the iron and ironing board went too.

Waiting for someone to pick up an air conditioner I posted on the neighborhood free site. ETA "early afternoon". I think I know how this is going to end.

 

[W2R]

There was one closet that still had most of my work clothes from almost 4 years ago. I kept thinking I might have to go to a funeral. All to Goodwill to someone else who still has to iron blouses and wear pants with uncomfortable waistbands. Oh, the iron and ironing board went too.

I got rid of almost all that stuff too, and the iron and ironing board.

BUT - - here's something you might want to consider. For funerals I kept one very basic polyester "little black dress" with a very loose fit (so it will fit me no matter what size I happen to be). One dress doesn't take much room, and it would be awful to have to go shop for an appropriate dress at that time.

 

[Gumby]

We plan to turn our smaller guest bedroom into a big walk-in closet. We generally use it that way already, but we'll do it up right, get rid of the bed and other furniture, get some IKEA modular armoire units, a bench seat and a full length wall mirror. When that occurs, probably in the fall, I'll purge my clothes. I expect I'll keep one suit and my tuxedo. The rest will go to the trash (or Goodwill).

 

[NW-Bound]

Well, he's gone. Shortly after that last post he was making some noises. We put him in his catbed on our bed between DW and I and pet him gently... he made a few little noises but now neither DW or I can hear a heartbeat so he's gone.

We're thankful that it happened at home and as best we can tell he didn't suffer much nor was in a lot of pain but who knows. DW and I were just reminiscing that neither of us has had a pet die at home like this. Sad for us but we're thankful that we were able to be with him at the end.

I still miss my cats. We have been without one for the last few years. And I found myself last night surfing the Web pages of the local pet societies looking at photos of kittens needing a home.

My wife reminded me that we could not get another pet until we settle down with less travel.

 

[pb4uski]

Travel is an issue for us as we split our time between VT and FL. My aunt & uncle who live here year round took him while we were gone to FL and spoiled him rotten other than not letting him go outside. He had a good life... getting spoiled by them in the winter and living with us at the lake in the summer.

DW has been wanting to get a small dog for quite a while and that may end up being our path... but with our lifestyle and traveling that may be an issue... or at least an expense. My sister flies her dog with her and it is pretty costly if you travel a lot. Time will tell.

 

[Lawrencewendall]

Took the newly sharpened chainsaw and took down a 30 ft rotten maple in DS's backyard without hitting his shed or fence. Got it diced up and put on the woodrack. That's enough for one day!

 

[NW-Bound]

... My sister flies her dog with her and it is pretty costly if you travel a lot...

I just remember that in the last flight from CDG to LAX, a passenger brought on board her cat in a small carrier. Prior to boarding, I saw her letting the cat out on leash in the terminal, and did not know that she would be boarding the same flight we did.

Her seat was a couple of rows behind us. I think the carrier was small enough to fit under the seat. The poor cat started crying the moment the plane made the take-off roll. And it was meowing on/off the rest of the flight, which was something like 12 hours. Most people smiled in amusement, but some passengers were upset that they could not sleep.

 

[FreeBear]

2 hour bike ride with DW, now grilled salmon dinner

 

[Ronstar]

Went on a nice long bike ride, took some photos, and might have got into some wild parsnip.

 

[aja8888]

Put new spark plugs in my BMW, then cut the grass.....96F here with heat index well above that. This was a good test for my "cured SVT" and my pulse never got above 118 BPM.

Totally soaked after all that and took a cold shower. Ahh..love summer!

 

[Walt34]

Totally soaked after all that and took a cold shower. Ahh..love summer!

Yes, much better than this:

 

[aja8888]

Yes, much better than this:

No question about that!

 

[HFWR]

No question about that!

Unless, perhaps, it’s a repeat of 1980 or 2011...

 

[NW-Bound]

100-deg days meaning days with a high greater than 100F?

Here, in Phoenix, my utility company has a chart showing the 24-hour averages from as far as 3 years ago. Each year, we have several days when the 24-hour average is greater than 100, and as high as 104F (40C).

In those days, the daily high was 120+F (49+C), and the nightly low was 90F (32C). Now, that's hot!

But of course, it is dry heat.