Well… It’s Not the Refrigerator and What I Did Saturday

Would you believe it? We went through all the expense of bringing in a repairman only to discover on Saturday that it’s not the refrigerator vibrating/groaning…it’s the toilet!

Or more importantly, the pipe in the wall the toilet is against, which also happens to be the same wall the refrigerator is against.

The toilet in the half-bath has some draining problems. Or would that be running problems? I keep hearing it gurgle, but see no puddles. And when you sit on the toilet, the vibrating/groaning sometimes gets louder (Hubby equates the noise to the Jaws theme song).

So why didn’t I suspect the plumbing?

Because the noise didn’t start that way. It started when I was no where near the half-bath (and I was in the house alone). Plus, I had purposely USED that toilet before the refrigerator repairman came to see if it would make the noise… AND IT DIDN’T! Which is typical, right? Nothing makes the clunking noises when you want them to, do they? So please forgive me for not suspecting the plumbing straight away.

I’m glad it’s not the refrigerator. Not so glad we might have plumbing problems.

**Fingers crossed it’s nothing serious!**

Saturday was a beautiful (albeit foggy), no-rush kind of day. I was able to do what I wanted when I wanted. Didn’t have to BE anywhere at anytime. It was nice.

I actually got the edging done. I’ve got before and after pictures!

This is the BEFORE shot on the short side. Our yard ends at the green box.

See how nice and straight it is now?

I did the longer side first and didn't think about taking a before shot.

Wow! What a workout. Even took my time by edging a line, then cleaning it up (I think the cleaning-up part took more energy--I filled four bags!). But honestly, if I had tried edging before my exercise routine, I’m not so sure I would have finished. At least, not in one day.

I like seeing these physical results in that way, since I can’t seem to see them ON me.

FYI – I apparently inspired my neighbor to also edge his lawn. Bwahahahaha!

After edging (and the much-needed shower), I did a little shopping. Six years ago Hubby and I bought some posters from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (yes, the one in NYC), but never got them framed (they’ve been stored in the closet all this time). I took them to Michael’s as they were having a 70% off sale. When I get the framed posters back, I’ll take pictures so you can see which ones we bought.

I love framed posters. Have lots of them in the house. I have no idea where the new posters will go, but I’m sure we’ll find some place. And if I remember, I’ll take pictures of the other posters we have.

So… Have you ever had your pipes moan, groan, and vibrate? What was the cause?

Happy Monday!

Stacy

Editing and Reading

I'm finding editing to be a whole lot less stressful now that I set a goal for myself. It's a whole lot more fun, too.

I want to get the first edit of "Memories" done by the end of May (no later than, anyway). So I was back to the calculator. How many pages per day would that entail? Granted, I tend to add pages in my first round of editing (because my first draft is rough), so I would have to take that into account, too. Still, 10 pages per day seemed like a nice round number. Doable, too.

Now, after I've hit the 10 page mark (or the 70 pages per week – since there are some days when I'm just not able to get to my book), I will allow myself to do other things. Not chores (those usually have to come before writing/editing), but fun things. Like watching "Vampire Diaries" (I record those shows to watch when the husband isn't home) or reading.

Yesterday I had reached my page goal (and am only 5 pages short of my weekly goal – I still have today since my week runs Mon-Sun), which was a feat in itself. With a hair appointment in the morning (must hide those grey hairs), and mowing the yard in the afternoon (finally!), and meeting friends for dinner (of which we monopolized the table for 3½ hours), it's amazing I got any editing done at all. But I did (takes a bow) and decided to spend the rest of the night reading.

I started reading "The Vampire and the Virgin" by Kerrelyn Sparks on Thursday. Normally, it takes me a week to read a book (since I usually only read during my lunch hour). I finished it last night. I haven't finished a book that fast in soooo long. I loved getting lost in the story (and that's very easy for me to do with her books). Heck, I just love her books!

I hope one day someone will say that about my books.

Ahh, Fall

Yesterday I mowed the lawn, probably for the last time until Spring. No, not probably, for certain. And while I mowed, I felt a bit sad as I shivered (the high yesterday was 42). Summer is really over. Dag blast it!

Today, I took care of the rest of the yard work. I hate edging, but it was needed. Shovelling snow (Argh!) is easier when the edge of the grass is even. Man, I hate even having to think of snow.

The only good thing about this weekend's yard work was that I wasn't pestered with bugs. The first freeze pretty much did away with everything - no mosquitoes, no bees, no wasps. Saw a stray fly, but that was about it. It's the ONLY thing I like about the cold months.

It's times like this that I wish we could have afforded to live in Calfornia when my husband retired from the Army. I miss the temperate weather. I miss Santa Barbara. But at the time, our family came first, and that meant living somewhere we could afford. And while we had family in the Dayton area at the time, and we were close to a military facility, it was the best choice for us. It was the affordable choice.

Maybe someday we'll move back to California. Who knows, maybe we'll win the lottery! It's something I hope for everyday, just so I can quit my job and write full time. Until then, I need to prepare for the winter. There was a time when I liked the snow. Can't remember when that was, though!