Annarchy

Jeepers, take pictures, document any and all conversation, even if they calm your fears, it doesn’t matter, it will stand up in court. If you don’t have Word, put it in another word type document, if you can.  Document every contact, with the bank, names, dates, and what they said.  I’m so tired of all the people trying to rip-off people that have a real claim, and the ins co. trying to shirk their responsibility.  BTDT.  That’s why I am trying to advise you to take pics and doc everything anyone of them say to you… believe me, it could cost you less, in the long run and get your house fixed to sell at market value.  
 

I worked insurance claims, 10 years…. Pics, & documented conversations with names, dates and times, proved to be a game changer.  They always had to pay, promptly!

Jeepers, you are definitely much more patient than I would be…. Good grief.  I’d be in their office, screaming like a banshee.  That’s what I did with MIL’s house, when her neighbors house burned down and burned her side of her home next to his.  
 

Oh, the adjuster tried to say it wasn’t that bad, paint it over & it would be fine….  I took multiple pics, showing the Ac unit had melted, windows..glass melted and crystallized, smoke damage, darkened inside the rooms, curtains inside were charred, window frames deformed and falling apart, the sprinkler system I put in her yard.. hoses and the sprinklers were melted!  I still have one melted, JIC.. IDK, I should pitch it… lol. Her roof was melted, 10 ft. And her rafters were charred.  And dripping tar, her electric wires, cable, etc., were melted, with bare wires showing…..

I took pics, printed them out & walked into the ins. agency, asking if they were trying to kill her.  Boy did that put a fire under their act.  She’s over 90!  I even called the city senior services to get them involved.  100° mid day, no AC, and not returning any of our calls.  I went ballistic on them, saying, at least the gas company showed up at 7 am, just as I got there, early in the day after the fire, to cut the leaking gas and replace the melted gas meter…it was melted…..

I could smell gas as I drove up, and they allowed me to document the meltdown….

So, the moral of my story is, take pictures, start a word doc, detailing each event, including pictures, then accuse them of trying to kill you.  And document the meeting!  
 

There is no reason, whatsoever, other than trying to scam you, that they haven’t fixed your situation….  
 

…….  Everyone is trying to escape their responsibility………

Sorry for the rant, but, I definitely wouldn’t be as patient as you are….  

Heat…makes sense… we have been awfully hot the last few months.  
 

I will keep trying….  

I’m beginning to think there is no yeast in my house.  Yeah, I clean it every week, as spotless as I can.  
 

However, I started a batch of starter, a month & an half ago.  Two weeks later it finally overflowed my jar.  I followed the recipe to make bread….it was a disaster… it didn’t rise, even after 4 days!  Baked it, but uncooked dough in the center….birds got it.  
 

So I started a new batch, barely even any bubbles, before I went to TX, fed it, stuck it in the fridge.  Got home, took it out, fed & watered it, and it still hasn’t done anything!!!  I have rubber bands marking the levels on both jars, but nothing is happening!  
 

What an I doing wrong?  
 

The first jar was extremely aromatic..yeasty…but, didn’t rise when I prepped it for baking…  

26 minutes ago, Jeepers said:

The glory of God

Absolutely!  It is definitely God’s hand in his healing…  

On 8/21/2023 at 9:50 PM, Jeepers said:

I really dislike our medical system too! But you are wrong about one thing...we do want to know how your visit went too!  

Meh… at least he was a MD.  First thing I noticed, people coming in, “blood work or an appointment?”  I was the only one with an appointment….out of a room full of people.  

He didn’t do an EKG.  Said it wouldn’t do any good.  ‘Go to a specialist’. That said, he began to drill me for 20+ blood tests, thyroid, cholesterol, liver, kidneys, colon, on and on, and pap… that’s when I stopped him… “…total hysterectomy…”. ‘Oh, well, then you don’t need that one.’  

When, I declined all his tests, he asked me, “….then why do you care about your heart?”  Then, said we were done and left the room.  
 

I honestly miss my old Dr. who retired.  
 

The cardiologist, is very nice, concerned and truly seems like he cares.  I was unable to schedule an appointment for the same day as DH’s appointment on that Friday, instead it would be the following Monday.  As we’re leaving, I said, ‘see you Monday’,  he asked why, I told him I couldn’t get an appointment today.  He said “Nonsense, I can make time and see you right now. “. Wow!  So now I’m scheduled for tests….

DH had his follow up, virtual, so he didn’t have to drive an hour, one way, his two leaking valves are healing, and he doesn’t need to go again until January.    He does need to get checked for a hiatal hernia….JIC.

I got a couple more bags of Hatch long green chili, in TX.  Spent Monday, roasting, peeling, removing the seeds, packaging and freezing them.  Today I will finish packaging the extra meat I was able to get.  
 

We have had light rain, off and on, from that hurricane.  Nothing like the forecast predicted.  Yesterday evening we were hit with vicious winds, a few sprinkles, then, clear skies.  Typical, for our area.  
 

Time to get back to work…..

I hope everyone has a lovely day…

Momo, I can relate.

MIL has the TV on 99% of her waking hours, because she lives alone.  Background noise and humor, from all the different shows she likes….then, there’s ‘her’ TV news…..  I am not impressed…. Nuf said….  Terrible reporting…. Get the newest booster shot for covid, or you will die…and a lot more…. 

DH is having serious heart issues..DR said his two leaking valves are healing… however the “stat” blood lab work wasn’t sent to the Dr…he had done 2 weeks ago!!!  We ragged them today, I was so close to ask if they were trying to kill him… but didn’t…DH called later, because they said they would call back…and didn’t….  So frustrating… congestive heart failure! And they don’t care…..  

I really dislike our medical system……

You seriously do NOT want to hear how my visit went……. 

ETA:

As for the “forecast”. They have no idea what they are talking about. Period.  They said we were going to get flooded.  Signs on the road said rain, deep water and limited visibility.  I missed 3 small dust storms.  Not a drop of rain…

lol, I thought I was finally hitting rain, but it was a hive of honey bees, then, dust….  Very grateful I didn’t need to use the windshield wipers…mud, honey…yikes what a mess that makes….BTDT!  
 

DH secured our house, said we got a few sprinkles…and wind.  
 

BTW, anyone know how @Mt_Rider is doing?  Haven’t seen anything from her since Hilary ruined Maui.

You all have been busy bees.  

Me?  Went to TX.  MIL wanted to eat out, specifically at a couple of restaurants, ‘sit down’.  One, was advertised on TV, we went, she was excited.  However, I couldn’t even push my fork through the crust or meat and we couldn’t even cut it with a knife!  She asked about another flavor, because it was “all you can eat”.  We were told he had to finish the first huge first plate before they could bring more.  (  Yes, I did send a nasty review/report to their corporate office!  It was horrible.)  I had to cut the hard coating off mine, it was terrible . Over cooked, hard as a rock and hardly any ‘sauce’.  For boneless hot wings, and I couldn’t taste the sauce!!??  I even asked for more sauce & was told “No”. You have to eat everything on the first plate before you can try another flavor, and they refuse to let you have any extra sauce .  Really??? ( 3-5 business days, IF they reply. ) Of the 12 boneless wings they brought Mom, she ate 3.  The ad suggests a variety plate, with extra dipping sauces, that is not what we got.  
 

DH suggested I leave a review on Yelp…but I thought I would scold their corporate office first.  Then, I might go to Yelp.    People have to pay so much, now days, to eat out, and if you can’t even eat the food, there is a problem.

Got her to do list done and watched; Let’s make a deal, the price is right, the Andy Griffith show, for hours, then, everybody loves Raymond marathon, then murder mystery marathon….”Monk” Marathon, then Golden Girls…which, going there every month, I think I’ve seen all those shows a dozen times, at least.

I am sick of the repetitive commercials….no I do NOT want to see a girl shaving her bikini line, I don’t want to see females in bras and underwear, or men running around in a towel, I do not want to see where you put your deodorant and how to apply it, I don’t want to see horror movie commercials….  Or a thousand commercials about medicines…..

I am very glad we don’t watch TV at home.  Can you understand STRESSED?

Home safe, PTL!!!!!  

Kappydell, that’s nuts!  Yup, we got a few unhinged people around here, and we live in the ‘historic’ part of town.  Several people wanted to make our block an HOA…that didn’t go well with most of our residents. At.All.!  People around here have goats, chickens, pea fouls, peacocks, and, some have sheep, a block away have cattle & horses,  yet another block away are cotton fields, alfalfa, sorghum and corn…. Yup, not gonna happen.. They moved here recently, and want to change everything!  Lol, they moved… to the new construction development, a mile away.  
 

That’s the reason DH is considering moving into the mountains, in northern AZ. 
 

The PTB are trying to build an expressway to Phoenix and Tucson, less than a couple blocks from our house.  Yikes!  We’ve been here since 1982, when we got the opportunity to buy my grandparents house.  I’ve been here since the 1950’s.  It’s a heartfelt ache.  All the neighbors now, think we are the “old people” on the block.  We’ve watched the older generation pass, sell their houses, watched younger ‘kids’ move in, which we watched grow up, and now we are the ‘old people’ on the block. SIGH…..  luckily, some of the long term people, feel the same…. They don’t want the crappy ideas the ‘young’ people have..

Lahaina is gone…

Live feed on YouTube 

Mt_Rider, is your family safe?

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4145562-hawaii-national-guard-activated-wildfires/

https://nypost.com/2023/08/09/maui-residents-jump-into-ocean-to-escape-raging-hawaiian-wildfire/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site buttons&utm_campaign=site buttons

DH had issues!  I couldn’t get a pulse.  Two short quick beats & nothing!  Used the BP cuff… 40 bpm!  Not consistent AT ALL!  EMS sent him by ambulance to the hospital.  I gathered his stuff, into my briefcase, and headed up to the hospital.  
 

Our choices are a local, (10 miles away, that has proved to be negligent, or going 60 miles to the one that has saved his life.)  A typical ‘no brainer’. Plus they have all his records, so, for me, checking in, was basically, unlock the ER doors & go to the room. 

EKG was attached, his heart was still beating, two short and stopping, over and over… basically, this is  normal for most people……….beat……beat……beat……beat……etc.

His was…. Beat..beat..stop………..…beat..beat..stop…….……beat…..etc.

Doc did a bunch of tests…. Finally came in and watched the monitor going crazy, eyebrows raised, as he watched the monitor…left the room ordered an x-ray of his chest.  Came back 2 hours later and said, ‘..the start of congestive heart failure.. ‘. Get to your cardio, ASAP.  
 

Got home around 2 am.  I was beat!  I usually crash 8p.  I slept until 7a, I’m usually up around 4a.  He ragged and chided me for not having my heart issues checked….I keep telling him, it’s just my back & arthritis!  Nooo… that night he insisted adamantly, I make an apt for me. Called his cardio Dr, got an apt for him at 4 p. yesterday.  I made my apt., Monday, closest they could do.  
 

Got there, he talked with the Doc…. Several ‘stat’ tests were ordered.  Doc is very concerned.  As we were leaving, I commented, “..see you Monday morning “…. He asked why?  I told him they couldn’t get me in.  He says, ‘ I can always make time…’. 
 

Now, I’m scheduled for an iodine cat scan in Sept., because DH wouldn’t shut up about some of my symptoms….  Like, …how long has this been going on?  DH says “…years…” doc looked at me with raised eyebrows…. I had to agree….  
 

Dangit!  I’m tired of all this….it’s just my spinal column….  It’s messed up,from the ground up, has been since I was 11 years old and crushed it in a car accident….I know what it does…. DH just doesn’t believe me….  

As I was posting this, he came in and told me, ‘a hiatal hernia can cause the same symptoms he is having…’ after he did an internet search… doc, also mentioned checking his stomach…. Several years ago, they put a balloon down his throat, to open his esophagus above his stomach, because food was getting stuck above his stomach, when he swallowed, not getting into his stomach.  Very painful and, for me, stressful to watch him suffer.  

So, now we wait, do the tests, and wait….

Mother, I seriously don’t know how to make this story humorous…. I wish I could…. Jeepers, maybe you could help…..

Sitting in ER. His heart rate was 40. Two fast beats, stop, fast beats, stop… waiting.,,

Well….. 

Yesterday & today were interesting.  You remember the Gas company replaced all their lines, broke the waterline, flooded our yard, broke the sewer at the neighbors house….they had to have all their plumbing replaced and because of asbestos, 90% of their walls…?

The fiber optic company, first, while starting their project, broke the main water line, by our ‘new’ water system, when I was in TX.  Now, they are finally getting our street done.  

Yesterday, a truck pulling a machine… using a pressure water sprayer & a suction tube.  They dug at the new gas line markers.  (The city, BOLDLY, spray painted their lines, the day before. Lol, I don’t blame them.).  The workers, began doing their thing with the machine, finishing up out on our main street, then went around the block, up the alley/easement towards our house.  All good & well…they got their holes dug, and put orange cones over the holes…. You can clearly see the gas line!  

Yeah, we went out, removed the cone to get that picture…

Then, the driver, pulling the machine, that lets them dig the holes, continued down the easement…. Apparently not paying attention to the utility pole next to our yard!  There’s a brick wall on the other side, which, Pete, the owner of the house, spent months, building a berm next to the wall, ‘to keep people from hitting it’. before he passed.  Here’s a picture I took of the easement, after the left, you can see “Pete’s” berm. (We’ve seen people hit that pole, so many times….  Take a picture, for insurance, JIC…)

He tried to back up the ‘trailer’ and failed….several times…ending up against our fence, trying to get it out….  It wasn’t going to happen, with his backup skills….  

 

The driver un-hitched it and drove away….they ran into my fence many times trying to get it past the pole, which wasn’t going to happen, with the way he was driving.  
 

The back hoe operator came, gently lifted it up, moved it and then cleared the pole.  


 

Today, we were anticipating, they would break the water line, again, but, they were very efficient in running the fiber optic sheathing down the easement.  Filled the holes, smoothed it out, and went down the street to do the next section.  
 

Seriously, I want the job, the last guy had.  He was pressure spraying the street, to remove the excess dirt.  He looked like he really liked his job… in the 100+° day we were having, I can imagine.  

34 minutes ago, Jeepers said:

I just 'stuck around' the house today.

12 hours ago, snapshotmiki said:

how is the air fryer working?

Miki, better than I expected.  I kind of, overcooked the first batch of wings, using the preset setting.  The second batch, I took out earlier, and only cooked the tater tots for half the time.
 

Here’s the one he got me…

https://www.emerilairfryer360.com/frenchdoor

So far, it seems easier to clean, but, the back did get slightly hot, by the time I was done cooking the wings and tater tots.  Still cooler than trying to use the oven.  
 

Today, I made garlic toast in it, using the preset setting…just a bit crispier than we like…so next time, I will turn it off a little earlier.

Seriously, for the price, I think it was worth it.

“Brylcreem….. a little dab will do you.”  Remember that commercial?

Gosh, Jeepers, that’s nuts!  I’ve glued my fingers together… yes, acetone helps a LOT.

Good grief, Jeepers, that sucks!  In a big way.  Nuf said about how I would have reacted! To say the least!

Time to contact your lawyer.  Even at a percentage of the final payout, you will get your home fixed, right, and recoup, your “pain & suffering” from having to endure the crap you’ve had to deal with in the hotel !  Some lawyers are really good at adapting your circumstances to get everything you need and giving you all the funds you need to finish your job and, get their portion, without cutting into what absolutely needs to be done.

BTDT……nuf said

Quick update.. I will try to catch up on posts tomorrow…. Busy day…

We got a flyer from Sam’s, an Ereml Lagasse air fryer was $140., delivered.  I looked online, most places ask $300!  Mine was a cheap WM brand, $50.,  the plastic outer casing was cracked in several places and the door didn’t fit right.  And it leaked oil, a lot, no matter how much I tried to clean it. But, I’ve had it for 5+ years…. 
So, tonight I am trying out the new one with hot wings and tater tots.  We shall see how it works…

Happy belated birthday, dear Lady!

Just a side note, so much of daily life, I’ve skimmed over. Repetitive, daily chores and such.  I could embellish it, but, that wouldn’t be an honest representation of the life I grew up with. 
 

School wasn’t the best, because I smelled like cow poo, I got teased, a lot.  My sister would wash, from the warm bucket, every morning, and by the time I got my turn, it was ice cold.  Meh, such is life.  I’d be clean, but still had the poo smell in my hair.  Lol

Next segment, should be continuing the first winter into spring, year 2…. 

On 7/27/2023 at 1:47 AM, Mother said:

I have a question.  Did you ever have snow filter through the windows and onto the bed in the night?  I did?  Tell us more about the house please?  Did you cook on the fireplace

Edited...  Yes, snow drifts on the windowsills, but I didn't mention my frosty hair.. 

And, yes, this area is protected, for members only.

Spring was full of work.  Dad borrowed his parents old John Deere tractor, pulling a trailer loaded with bales of hay, that we stacked into the upstairs of the barn, then, he plowed two acres, for a garden, next to the barn.  He also plowed a 5-acre area, down the west hill, on the other side of the peach orchard, then, planted corn, after we loaded the manure spreader, with shovels, from the stuff we removed from the basement of the barn… Dad had to adjust the tongue, from a cow yoke, to make it attach to the tractor.

We spent a few weeks, raking the garden area smooth and planting vegetables.  Carrots, beets, cucumbers, radishes, various beans, peas, and a verity of squash.  There was an existing row of rhubarb, we loved to pull a stem off and chew on, while working in the garden.  Sour! But tasty.  Then, dad also brought home 100 chicks and one turkey.

Included, in our chores, that first spring, rolling a bale of hay, dropping it down the shoot, a small window down to the basement level, spreading it for the girls, milking, feed the chicks, go to school, then, come home and get to work, chopping wood, daily, stacking it next to the fireplace, and setting more posts, around a larger area of the field, for the cows. We walked a quarter mile, down the road to the bus stop.  At least, our bedroom had glass windows. 

With no running water, no electricity, we made candles and made sure, we had gone to the outhouse, before retiring for the day.  Not a happy thing to take a candle or lantern outside, and hope you didn’t run into creepy crawlies, when you really had to go.  Mom did put a ‘thunder bucket’ in one of the unused/unfinished bedrooms, just in case we were too scared to go outside or the weather was raining too much.  Nasty thing to clean…. But it served its purpose.   

By the beginning of summer, the second field was enclosed and the cows were able to forage a larger area, other than, just the area in the 5-acre apple orchard.  The chickens were laying, which added, collecting eggs daily.  Mom let them out of the coop, and they found the barn and hay stack.  Easter egg hunting daily.  We would drop their feed in the same spot, at the same time of day, they would all come running, where we could capture a rooster.  Chop its head off with an axe, remove the feathers, clean them and we’d have chicken for dinner.

We were out of school, and had a bit to time to adventure around the property.  We found a hill, on the north 40 acres, covered with wild strawberries.  Beyond the swamp, we found a clearing with black caps and black berries, around the edge of the swamp were raspberries.  We spent hours collecting them and bringing them home.  Mom made, water bath canned, jams and jelly, and made fresh deserts.  Our stove was a wood burning stove...similar to this....

As fall began cooling off, we collected apples, peaches, and, much to our surprise, a couple plum trees and one maraschino cherry tree.  All of the fruit was cleaned, stored, or canned. 

We were tasked with taking gunny sacks out to the corn field and collecting the ears.  Stacking the bags on the wagon, dad had brought, when he borrowed the tractor, then, using old sickles, we cut the corn stalks down, made little teepees, and wrapped them with bailing twine.  Then, had the distinct pleasure of carrying them up the hill to the barn.

School began, but the work was never ending. 

That winter, it snowed, A LOT!  I remember the snowdrifts up the door on the second level of our house.  We always wondered why there was a door to nowhere upstairs.  My sister & I made a tunnel through the snow, to the barn, since, walking through snow deeper than we were tall, wasn’t an option.

I have copied/pasted this into a word document..

Jeepers and Mother have jogged my memories…. Good grief!  
 

Including memories before we moved.  I remember things from when I was 2, here in AZ. Heat, going with my sister to the Dairy Queen a couple blocks away and getting in trouble, lol, or the hoot owls, which are protected now, scaring me at night, next to our bedroom window….  Or sneaking into the kitchen to get a tsp of sugar… lol mom always caught me.  Or dad would get home from the prison shift, with a sandwich and a cup of coffee for me, at 4 am.  Mom always packed an extra…… lol