Nobody showed up...

(note: just in case you don't want to read all this, at least scroll to the bottom for my big treat I got today! :)

So, what else is new! The guys didn't show up to level my house - Frank said "this week," so I have to allow some margin there. Jason, Frank's cousin who makes cabinets was due at 3:00. No phone call, nothing. I tried to send James, my roofer who drove me crazy, an email and see if he is about ready to work again and finish my patio and back room eaves -- guess what -- his mail was returned as no such address! So, I called, left a message on his squirrelly answering machine, and -- no, he didn't call back. I called Mrs. Jones and asked how her husband was coming on my bid for my kitchen. She didn't know but he was due home for lunch and would call me -- ah-hem -- no, he didn't call! I'm so sick of people!

The only one who did call was Bob and he said he would do everything I needed for $4100. I said I wanted something itemized. He said $3100 for the kitchen - guess he thinks that itemizing. All I had to supply would be the cabinets, he would supply the countertops and all pertinent lumber. Well, still, I don't like doing business that way. These blanket numbers make me nervous. I just told him I thought I would be getting my leveling done and would get back with him. Maybe I'll be the one who doesn't call back!

So, I cleaned house while I was waiting in vain. My middle bedroom has been a catch all for when I redid my bedroom and also my office. I had lots of old replaced computer equipment in there, like four monitors and three printers and an extra scanner and even another CPU that needs a power supply. Man, I could open a store if all this worked! That room is the one I decided to put the laminated flooring down instead of the hallway. So, I thought it was a good idea to start putting things away.

I brought the monitors into my office one by one, (heavy son-of-a-guns that they are!!) and hooked each one up to see if it worked. One did not, one was not very good (that was 19" and extremely heavy!) and the other two were fine. So, I decided to put the two good ones on the top shelf of back room closet since it's plenty wide and plenty sturdy. But it's high. Believe it or not, I got those suckers up there! An angel must have helped me get them up there by myself!

The other two I carried out to the garbage spot. I have no idea what the policy is at this park on picking up that sort of trash. I hope it doesn't sit there from now till kingdom come. I almost didn't think I would make it with the 19". I was certainly at my strength capacity on that one for that distance to carry it!

There were lamps and all sorts of stuff that I wanted to move out to the shed. But the shed is in such disarray that you can't hardly walk inside it. So, first I had to get some room in there to put the new stuff (sigh) I started pulling out basically junk, empty boxes with the stryofoam packing, virtually garbage, except for three decent sized rugs that I carried to my pile. They're not in bad condition, need a good cleaning for sure, but I just don't want them anymore. They take up space, and I know I'll never use them again, especially with my feline roommates. Maybe somebody will see them on the pile and take them. I don't care. The trip from the back to the front where my newly created junk pile is is quite some distance. So, believe me, it was taxing on my poor ol' legs and I had to rest, but it's not likely anybody will come and do it for me! There's lots more stuff I want to put out there, big things, like tables and bar stools and matresses -- but I better not, I guess.

Once I did all that I could stand of that project, I looked around at the room to see what else I could do and settled on a bookcase that's in that room that would have to be moved out to put the flooring down. Years ago I had that bookcase side by side with my other one in the hallway; so, I decided to put it back there and leave it, not as a temporary move. The bookcase that is in the hallway now is not as deep as this one, so for it to look right, I had to move the one there now over and put this one in the corner. Of course, books have to be unloaded, drag the cabinet out of the room and pull off enough books that I can shove the other one over, then put the first one in place and reload them both. Those bookshelves have been moved so many times! It's too bad they're not on rollers because I'm forever deciding I want them in a different room or something. By the way, the hall is wide on that end, not the standard hall width. So, they fit perfectly and don't hamper passing through the hallway at all. It's a perfect spot for them, but I just wish I had some better lighting than the standard overhead hall light.

The middle bedroom is still a huge mess, but I think that's enough accomplishment for one day. If I can't get out of bed in the morning, I hope I'll remember why and not worry that it's just from getting old!

One other call today and that was to my girl I work for. She had just come in from taking an all-day job! Wow! Finally! So, she'll bring it over in the morning, and I can do some real work! I told her I had begun to think maybe she met a millionaire and had gotten married and retired! Boy, did she get a big kick out of that one!

Saving the absolute best for last, when I came in here to check my mail, there was something from Robert in Virginia -- he finally got some pictures uploaded of Sarah and sent them out to all of who love her and don't live in Virginia! Mind you, this is the only Christmas picture of her first Christmas that I -- or any of us, I guess -- got! That boy has got to do better about sending pictures! But here's my precious grandbaby. She was 8 months old on the 3rd of this month.