Went to bed late, so put this post on automatic…
Some heavy rain and later scattered showers overnight, with more forecast for today. Joy.
Lots of appointments today, then mom is out of the house for a few hours. I’ll have my hands full, but maybe I can make good progress.
We’ll see.
n
Overcast and dreary here in the southern suburbs of gangland. Cool but clammy.
Sibs have returned to work so it’s just me and Mom for most of this week. Lots on the list to do.
Plugging away, dust vacuuming and sort, contents triage, some wiping and cleaning, and then re-stack the stuff. Lots of actually dirty and gross surfaces. Poor eyesight, limited mobility and energy, and a tendency to bleed whenever anything made contact with skin makes for some rubber glove moments.
Better get started.
n
Headed back to my folks house today. This will be the last day I have the help of my siblings. Didn’t know that, don’t like it, but I’ll Charlie Mike anyway…
Travel, then work. Talk amongst yourselves….
N
Added @rick, Some weirdness with comments this morning, had to reenter my personal info, which never happens to me
70F, overcast, clammy here in the not so secret location.
This is a transitional time for the world, for the USA, for my family, and for me personally.
Clearly the world’s geopolitical landscape is shifting- Russia, China, the UK and Europe- old relationships are changing, new relationships are being forged, and the (relatively) stable world order is shifting.
The relationship between the US and the world is shifting too. Internally, the relationship of the people to the government is, in some aspects, already the mirror of what it was. See the militarized police, and the rise of a paternalistic and socialist government as examples.
My family is undergoing a transition as we have lost our patriarch, father, husband, brother, cousin, uncle, and friend. It wasn’t completely unexpected, it’s been coming for years. But it was still sudden. One minute your life is continuing, pretty much the same as always, then, suddenly, it’s different.
That’s the transition. Fraught with danger and opportunity. With things starting to move, the smallest pressure can make a big change.
In the past, the death of one man has changed the order of the world, the fate of kingdoms. In the present, the death of one man also changes the lives of all those he touched, some in the most minor ways, some in the most profound.
I’m writing here because of the death of one man. I’m writing this because of the death of another.
We’re in a time of transition. Choose where you apply your pressure very carefully.
Nick
Back in Coast Guard City USA.
Siblings felt like we had to take a break from digging through the house and all the papers, so we are.
Still feeling like two people inside my head. One continuing on normally and the other occasionally just losing it. The trigger is usually something very mundane.
Hoping for good weather today…
N
Today I need to do some plumbing repairs as well as continue the search.
I’ll be getting the truck ready for a test run too. Will take it to the same place I was last week, in convoy with sibs, to make sure it still runs. Need to get gas, air, and maybe an oil change first. Gonna stomp on the brakes pretty hard too.
Thanks for the input on brake lines.
n
Lots to do.
Hot and humid here. Cleaned the air filters in the ac unit. Oh my.
Truck is older than I remember. Gonna have to do some things before the cross country trip. Oil change at minimum, possibly more. Brake lines are really corroded. Might need to have someone look at that.
Still no will. Sibs are a bit calmer. Mom is doing well.
Thanks to everyone who shared their condolences and concern. I’ve passed it along to my mom and sibs.
Perhaps some more later.
n
80F at 730am is a bad sign for the day’s heat.
My father died yesterday. We were able to spend time together last week while I was in Chicago with family. Thought he’d beat this one too, like he has so many others. He’d have preferred it this way vs. a lot of other possibilities.
In any case, I’ll be traveling to Chicago to help my mom and siblings settle things, so posts will be short, and comments are likely to be fewer. Or I may unload here every day. I have no idea what to expect. So far it’s been a mix of practical thoughts and being overwhelmed that I’ve lost my daddy, almost like there are two people in my head.
If the day’s open post doesn’t launch by 9am CT, someone else please open the door and start the coffee machine…
n
Currently 80F and 80% at 8am. Yuck.
Off and on spots of rain yesterday but I got the lawn at the rental cut. We have an application in, so hopefully that gets rented. If it does, I’ve got to empty the garage, hang an additional smoke detector, and change the locks.
Today is work here day.
Grapevine is going NUTS. This is another variety from the one that fruited in early summer, hope it might fruit soon. That would be a happy accident if I got a summer and fall variety…
Zukes are all done. Failed to flourish, rotted at the stem.
Fall acorn squash got eaten back to the stem, and never grew beyond the transplant size.
Herbs went nuts. Got some nice sweet banana peppers. Beans and peas turned white, then died. Started at one end of the bed, and spread until they were all dried straw. That was weird.
Nothing from the peach tree. One fruit on the established orange tree. Nothing on the established or potted grapefruit trees. Apple trees finally leafed in and are looking health, if not vigorous (I didn’t expect anything this year)
Bumper crop on the pecan tree, but I’ve never gotten more than a couple after the fungus and the squirrels got done. We’ll see about this year.
I better figure out what I want to plant for fall/spring and get too it. My fear is that I have to get rid of that horrible miracle gro raised bed “soil” entirely. What a horror show that stuff is. NOTHING grows in it, not even weeds, and water will not penetrate it past 1/2″. Def NOT RECOMMENDED.
Kids are stirring, so I better get started on breakfast…
n