Wednesday, January 22, 2020

PERHAPS IT'S WEDNESDAY




I think it's Wednesday. Lately I lose track of the days. Some people call it Hump Day. To me, that sounds pornographic. But then, I have a dirty mind...

All I can say for certain is that it sure feels good to have heat again. I'm glad I was able to fix the furnace.

BTW -
I always love your comments on my blog and feel guilty when I don't reply to them (I'm referring to previous post). Anyway, thanks for being there.

On the subject of fixing things, someone asked if my father taught me to do these things.

Short answer: my father criticized me mercilessly almost until the day he died. When I was a kid, he wouldn't let me do anything. Whatever I attempted to do was met with abject negativity and inevitable put-downs.
I was either called a stupid jackass or a crazy bastard.

In time, I finally said "F**k it!", and simply never did anything.

In all fairness - -
despite the fact that my father was a violent son-of-a-bitch, he was brilliant at fixing things. He could repair anything - and he could make anything.
And he did it perfectly. 

He always did things HIS way and NEVER wanted anyone else interfering. 
I definitely inherited this trait.

After my father died in 2005, I was suddenly forced into doing everything and it was a very rude awakening. My mother's health was deteriorating and there was absolutely no one else to help. 
  
I had to deal with funeral directors, attorneys, insurance agents, realtors, etc.- all in the first few days. I also suddenly had to deal with repairs and upkeep around their house - doing things I'd previously never heard of.
The day after he died, there was a major plumbing issue in the kitchen - and I managed to fix it.

 Me in front of my parent's Odessa home

At that time, my parents had a large, gorgeous house in Odessa, TX. After Mom and I sold it, the furniture had to be put in storage.

I rented several large storage facilities (only two miles away - thank God) and moved EVERYTHING in the house ALL BY MYSELF with my pickup truck!!
I usually took about twenty loads a day (or more) ...and it was exhausting!

The only things I couldn't move by myself were a few very heavy awkward items, like a piano, an extra large sofa, etc. There were about six items which I had moved by professionals.

(I even moved the beds, washer, dryer, and two refrigerators by myself).

After that little adventure, I had to drive 100 miles north to find another house to purchase (we didn't want to stay in Odessa).

But I'm starting to ramble and am probably telling too much. In conclusion, I'll merely say that I learned how to do a helluva lot of things after my father died.

Is it too late to post a few photos I took today?
Naw, it's never too late..... 


Bosco, this afternoon


This was taken around 11:00am
eerily Gothic

Just after dusk


 A glimpse of my back porch
in lower right corner


 

17 comments:

  1. Now I know how you hurt your back! Good grief...It must be a strange dynamic to have a father who didn't like any interference, but realize that you share similarities with him. I too have some of my parents' best and worst qualities, as well as a few of my own. :)

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    1. Margaret, I'm glad I was younger and healthier back then, because I sure as heck couldn't do all those things now. Actually, I had serious spinal injuries long before that, but lately they're getting worse.

      I seem to have inherited my Mom's good traits and some of my father's bad ones.

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  2. Dear Jon, again I compliment the contemplative atmosphere of your forest photos, and delight in Bosco's picturesque pose looking out at the world. I like cats. Even when they're not seeking the shape of their containers their movements are gracefully fluid. I have often joked over the years that cats are not not entirely animals, but mainly fur-bearing liquids. We have 4 feral kittens entering catolescence on our property and I have posted some photos at "Invalid's Workshop". They've already bagged 2 mice.

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    1. I like the idea of cats being described as fur-bearing liquids - - what an apt observation.
      Bosco was sitting by the window in that fixed position for such a long time that I decided he was worthy of being photographed. He mostly enjoys watching the birds.
      Unfortunately my cats were never particularly good at catching mice. The mice are too quick and shrewd. And the cats have no incentive, since they get plenty of food...

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  3. Well, Jon, the photos are good even if your early memories aren't. A bit like the memories of my Mom! Good that we both survived to tell a tale, eh? As for repairs and the like in my old homestead I am thankful there are many qualified people I can call on to help.

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    1. Valerie, I'm thinking that perhaps your mother and my dad would have made a good team - - or perhaps they might have murdered each other.

      I always try to repair things myself, but it's always reassuring to know that qualified people exist....even though they can often be expensive.

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  4. Even though your father sounds like an ornery SOB who did things his own way without your help, Jon, it seems that you did manage to cope quite well when you had to sort things out. And, as far as moving on your own, we also did that 2X when we moved from NJ to VA and then from VA to NH. For the first relocation, we used a Jeep pickup and made many trips over a couple of years as we were renovating the VA house and still living in NJ. The second move was done in 2 trips with a couple of small tow behind U-Hauls. If we should ever move again, we plan to hire others🙂

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    1. I suppose moving is a challenging and frustrating endeavor whether you do it yourself or hire others. When I moved from Texas to TN the movers lost an enormous amount of my possessions. I was never reimbursed, since I couldn't afford mover's insurance. Between moving and storage, they charged me nearly $10,000!!!
      I hope I never have to move again....

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  5. It seems a lot of us are thrown into those situations when a parent dies. A lot needs to be done and the other parent is too old or emotionally unable to make difficult decisions. My dad died a little over a year ago and I'm still attempting to help my mother with insurance issues and cleaning out their condo. They have a basement that is full of stuff and she digs in her heels whenever I want to go down there and start getting rid of things.

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    1. Being thrown into those situations can truly be a never-ending nightmare. My father died very unexpectedly and my Mom had absolutely no one to help her but me. I certainly don't regret it, but it drastically changed my life. The only good aspect is that it forced me to do many things that I would never previously have considered.

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  6. That Odessa home … what a lovely façade! I can identify with all unpleasantries following a loved one's death. Were it not for my son stepping up to the plate, I hate to think what might have happened.
    ANYway, yours is a great testimony for the importance of pre-planning. (Not that I've actually done so ….)
    LOVE this picture of Bosco!

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    1. The Odessa house would have been worth a lot today - but it was costly to maintain, and Odessa wasn't exactly an ideal city to live in.
      But I loved the two fireplaces and stained glass windows....

      You're fortunate that you have a caring son. My mother had absolutely nobody to help her when my father died. I was compelled to do everything, but I have no regrets. It helped me to become self-sufficient...and to grow up...(better late than never)

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  7. You have taught yourself well. :)
    It is so true that when you have no one else to rely on you have to learn how to take care of everything yourself most of the time. You just do it because you have to because there's no other choice. Aren't you amazed when you look back? I know I am.
    That photo of Bosco looks so much like Annie Girl!
    Love the scenery you have around you.
    Have a really nice warm day! :)

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    1. You're right, Rita - we're often thrown into situations where we have no choice. Perhaps it's best, because it is a learning and growing experience. I amazed myself by doing things that I previously thought I wasn't capable of doing.

      Every time I see photos of Annie, I think that she closely resembles Bosco. They would probably make a good team....

      The weather has warmed up slightly. It's nearly 40 degrees today with rain.

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  8. Hallelujah! I'm so glad to hear you have heat now. Good job, cowboy!

    Isn't it funny how many things we can do when we have no other choice? Sometimes, our let our own attitudes about things we think we couldn't possibly do get in our way, but when backed into a corner (or freezing our patooties off) we find we're much more capable than we thought we were.

    And I'm evidently much LESS capable than I thought I was... in an attempt to "tidy up" and get rid of the comment that you'd deleted on my blog, I inadvertently deleted your other comment, too. Oops. Sorry about that. BUT... you shouldn't have deleted your word list! I thought they were very good.

    Have a super weekend... and stay warm!

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    1. I always seem to wait until the last desperate moment before I force myself to do things. And I'm always surprised and delighted when the results are positive. It is WONDERFUL to have heat again.

      Don't worry about deleting my comment about deleting. The world is a better place without it. Your blog post was great - - but my attempt at humor didn't particularly amuse me.

      Delete

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