The Red Book of Westmarch

Rainbow

2011-05-29T10:16:00.002-06:00

Once again into the breech...

2011-05-28T09:24:00.000-06:00

I don't know why today, but here I am.

For the past few weeks we have been operating under severe conditions. There are currently TWO water leaks: one in the yard and one that comes up in front of the furnace / water heater closet in the hallway to the 2nd bathroom & bedroom. *sigh* We have known for some time that we need to get the house re-piped. (Danged contractor -- built the development using pipes that tend to fail after 10-15 years.) We have already patched several leaks: Some in the yard and a couple in the kitchen. Now summer is coming on and we NEED the water to run the AC (evaporative cooler).

On to brighter topics. Dog continues to work on cleaning up the yard to make it better, safer for the dogs who live in it. He has come up with a plan for a better way to keep the kitty graveyard (Mena's resting place). It is currently blocked off with a circle of wire fencing. I cannot really describe his whole plan, but it involves blocks of (scrap) wood glued to aluminum "L" brackets. I went and got some dark oak stain for the wood blocks that makes a nice contrast to the lighter colored aluminum. Last week I stained 12 blocks. Today I just about finished what he had cut (19 of them, I think). The first 12 have been glued to their aluminum bracket. This morning he has spent clearing the space around the fenced in circle. I am curious to see how it will turn out.

It's been awhile...

2010-06-15T13:41:00.002-06:00

Here I am coming up on my 4th wedding anniversary to Dog (aka Robert Rood). How time flies. We had planned on maybe taking a short trip somewhere in NM, stating 2-3 days, and taking in the sights. But before we could finalize any plans, the AC in Dog's truck needed fixing and then the AC in the house stopped working. The third thing turned out to be a water leak in the front yard. There went whatever cash reserves we might had to spend on a vacation.

Even so, we are still taking the week off from work to relax. And we might just take a day trip or two. Over Memorial Day weekend we did the Enchanted Circle drive starting at Taos going up to Questa and through Red River and Eagle Nest before coming back to Taos. We thought Red River would be a good stopping place for lunch -- but there was a biker's rally going on and the town was wall to wall motorcycles. So instead we ended up back in Taos before we found anywhere we could stop for lunch. As it was we got to the Taos Diner just before it closed. *whew* It was a real pretty drive through the Sangre de Cristo mountains, some of the best skiing in NM (when there is snow on the ground).

Confessions

2008-09-19T15:41:00.002-06:00

Last Friday night into Saturday morning Dog decided to come clean.

Ever since I moved to NM in November of 2005 he has had a "cave" -- the master bedroom -- where he escaped to from time to time and closed me out. For all I knew he was taking a smoke break -- he told me it was his way of keeping the cigarette smoke away from me.

Well, it seems he was hiding something else in addition. He started his confession by telling me that he did go to the dump recently -- not to bring the weeds that he had cut down from the yard, but for a whole slew of beer and other liquor bottles that he had had stashed in his cave. (The middle of the night can be a great time for big confessions coz the other person is only half-awake.)

He came to the realization that he would be having a good deal of free time on his hands what with the lay-off and all. And he could either wallow or get up and do things. He decided it would be better for him, for us, for the house if he got up and did things. And he has been. He has been keeping up on the dishes and the laundry. Also, he has cleaned out "the cave" so much so that there is now a usable bed in there and he also cleaned out the closet to be able to expand that space as well.

I am sorry that he felt he had to hide that from me. He told me that he had been terrified that I might find the evidence of his drinking. He feels a whole lot more relieved now. However, he does have bad days. Today at lunch he told me there is this voice in his head trying to tell him that he has been a good boy -- what would 1/2 pint hurt? He said he is NOT going to give into that voice -- until he is sure he has beaten it. He hope that he will be able to let himself celebrate a little on Halloween -- one of the most meaningful holidays of the year for him.

On the other hand, I am glad that he is now talking about it and is no longer hiding it. He told me last night that one of his fears about all this was becoming another CW who has nothing but time on his hands and not much gumption to do much of anything at all.

Moving right along

2008-09-17T13:53:00.001-06:00

Well, I am almost done with the Pride discounts. This morning I was told he may have me start on either Invacare or Sunrise next -- because I seem to know what I am doing. Hah! Little does he know...

And then there were 6

2008-09-17T07:31:00.002-06:00

Or 5 and a half, depending on what you count.

As you may know, Dog & I decided to keep fish. We started with a bowl and three small goldfish. Those we named for The Charmed Ones (Prudence, Piper & Phoebe). Then we graduated to a 10-gallon tank. There have been various permutations and combinations, but our population had held steady at 7 for quite a while: Prudence (she of the original 3), Albus, Forge (one of a pair of simlar fish whom we had named Fred & George), Ginny, Ron, Spike & Angel.

It has been our habit to unplug the filter(s) (we are using two now as the water deterioates so quickly) when we feed them because otherwise the food seems to be sucked into the filter intake all too quickly otherwise. Of course, then we have to remember to plug them back in in a timely fashion. Mostly we do. However, last night we forgot.

*sigh* And we lost Ginny.

Oh, the half comes in due to Ron. He was always a short fat thing that always seemed to have to exert a lot of effort to move. Well, he has not been moving much at all for a few days now. His gills are still working and his mouth opens & closes.

A Pride-Ful of Discounts

2008-09-11T13:12:00.001-06:00

OK, a bit of background. It should be obvious enough that the company I work for (USM) does not pay retail for almost all the equipment it buys (I say almost because there are a very few vendors from which we receive no discounts and thus do pay retail). One of the vendors we deal with is Pride Mobility (you may have seen ads for their power chairs when Ed McMahon was their spokesman). Anyway, we recently received an updated discount schedule from them.

Yesterday, the new temp went through it an figured out the discounts for specific items (based on our price versus the retail). Today I am going through the individual order forms for the various power chairs (starting with their most complex ones) and marking the discounts for the line items affected. This involves not only the base prices that Julia figured yesterday, but various exceptions for specific models that were listed at the bottom of the main list.

Arrrgggghhhh!

My eyes are starting to cross. So, I took my lunch break a little early.

Oh, and after all this prep work, we get to actually enter the info into the computer. The temp will be doing it in the currently used system which involves entering the relevant info not once, but for each data base / office. We are in the process of gearing up a new system into which this information only has to be entered once.

And the Axe Fell

2008-08-05T06:52:00.002-06:00

Every week Dog tries to think of some clever subtitle to his time card. This week was to be Indiana Bones.

Did you notice the tense? *sigh* As of the first of the year, they had cut his hours back to at most 30 a week. But he has been hard pressed at times to make even 20. Well, yesterday he was laid off. He can also work up to 15 hours a week and be paid under the table at a lesser rate. Whoopee!!

At first he told me he would hold off filing for unemployment. After all, he said, what if they get a rush job? But I told him this AM, that I did not think he owed them that much loyalty. He agreed that filing sooner rather than later was the better plan. So, today he is going to wallow a bit and hopefully do some yard work. (Right now at almost 7am the sky is grey so it may not turn too hot too fast.) Tomorrow is some time at High Desert Roofing. And then Thursday he will go down to the unemplyment place. He mentioned two places he would like to put in an application with: Hot Topic and Hastings.

The last time he lost a job and a fiancee he wallowed for 3 months. But the situation was quite a bit different then from now. He has been talking for some time about looking elsewhere and how High Desert is floundering. Also, he now has a partner -- me.

Dog in Metal

2008-07-24T07:09:00.002-06:00

Bonanza!

2008-07-23T07:06:00.002-06:00

Last weekend while walking through WalMart on our weekly shopping run, we happened to pass the vdeo department. I decided to scan the $5 bin of DVD's. And... Lo and behold! I found a 4 disc set of 34 episodes of Bonanza plus 3 "bonus" episodes of Wagon Train. Woohoo!

Mountain Sunrise(s)

2008-07-17T12:24:00.000-06:00

There is a phenomenon that occurs with some frequency during our morning commute. Just so you know, we travel a bit south and mostly east in the AM (reversed in the evening, of course). Also, for those who are not familiar with the area, Just to the east of Albuquerque sit the Sandia Mountains. During our drive, the terrain goes down to the river and then rises as one approaches the mountains.

OK, so here's the deal. When we start out at something after 6am, the sun is most definitely up and in our faces. But most times by the time we cross the river it has gone back behind the mountains.

So that means we can experience TWO sunrises!

High Desert Roofing

2008-07-17T06:38:00.004-06:00

Dog has worked at this company, running their metal shop, for almost 6 years -- longer than he has held any other job (or so he tells me). When he was first working there he told me more than once that it was his dream job. But as with anything else, things change.

The man who owned High Desert Roofing got tired (his word) and pulled away from day to day operations. At the beginning of this year they cut back on Dog's hours -- I don't think he has anything like a full week since, nor has he been able to make even what they allowed him (30 hours). Then not that long ago, Dog told me he had heard a rumor that three of the top managers of the company had bought the owner out. This triumvirate includes a man with whom Dog does not get along all that well but who feels that, since he used to be a contractor in his own right, he has the right to supervise Dog.

I told Dog this morning that I cannot remember a time when a job I had did not have a written job description nor a clear chain of command. Dog has had neither for as long as I have known him. I find that kind of disconcerting myself but until recently Dog has seemed OK with it.

He has been forever telling Craig stories -- how the man messes with him or how the man just not "get it." Another recent development was that Dog was banned from the front office because it was too "distracting." He has tried talking to Craig about it but Craig just pooh-poohs it as of small concern. After all, Dog runs the metal shop, he has no need to go into the front office (can you hear the sarcasm?). Not only does this remove a possible short cut out of the building, but it cuts Dog off from one of his favorite people. He has been feeling like a caged animal for weeks.

So, OK. This week he has been working on a commercial job that actually requires at least two men to manipulate the pieces of metal in order to make them into the needed shapes. Mondy & Tuesday Dog worked so hard at this that he just about crippled himself. He is 44 and probably has arthritis in his hands. His hands without which he cannot perform his job. And his legs don't have the stamina they had when he was 20. So, anyway, he left work at 2:30 Tuesday because his hands and arms were cramping up on him and he was afraid that if he pushed it any farther he would not be able to drive himself home.

Wednesday, before he even could clock in, Craig was in his face asking what time he left. And why did he leave before the coping was loaded? Understand that it has never been Dog's job to load the finished metal onto/into any trailers or trucks. (This is a time where a written job description would come in handy.) Also he called Dog a crybaby for mentioning that his body was hurting. And apparently Craig did this chewing out in front of other people in the office.

Dog started to work on a house package. But he was stewing all the while about this latest incident. Finally he stopped and clocked out. Then he started clearing off a wall that he had spent weeks decorating with pictures, posters, action figures and the like. After that he emptied the cabinet in his shop of all his tools. There is still more of his stuff there. So today he went in prepared to take that away, too.

It's hard to explain here all that went into this decision. He has been talking for months about looking for other employment. Maybe not even in metal as he says he is getting too old to do that much any more. As he says, he hears McDonald's is hiring. He says he does not want to leave High Desert Roofing hanging. So he is willing to put in half days to finish this one commercial job, with some provisos. His best friend works there -- the man in charge of the metal crews but who is not part of the top triumvirate. He does not want Dog to leave. I dunno, maybe he could talk some sense into the others.

Of course, I only have Dog's side of things. But it does seem a bit unfair. Craig seems the sort who says he wants to talk, but he does not seem to listen. He also seems to think he knows it all, even tho he also seems to be talking out his ass, so to speak, at times.

*sigh*

Clouds over New Mexico

2008-07-14T07:24:00.003-06:00

I almost feel I have moved back to the east coast! It's been overcast and rainy for DAYS and days now. Since my last posing about clouds covering the Sandias, we have had morning commutes where we could not even SEE the mountains. Very strange.

On a happier note, we are working on "sculpting" our yard. We acquired some red lava rocks from Dog's parents when they re-did their yard. I am not sure if I told about the garden area that Dog lined out and infused with top soil along our front wall. More on that in a bit. But then he added a square around the big tree in front. Then he laid out round "stepping" stones . Next came the rocks. At first we thought that we could surround the whole square in the red rocks. Partway into the sifting and distributing the stones, he felt that maybe not. So we are doing two sides in red and the rest in the more abundant grey stones. (He had a bunch left from other times he did things and there were some intermingled with the red ones.)

In the two garden spots we are attempting to grow things, including some grass. Not much luck so far, though there are a couple of things sprouting in the wall garden. The trick is to differentiate the planted things from the weeds. We tried three plants at first and they have withered. Not sure if they have actually died. We'll see. Anyway, the latest addition is a succulent. I am not sure what it is usually called, but one of its nicknames is "Hobbit." How could Dog resist? The tag says it can spread to about 3 feet wide and grow around 6 feet tall. So far so good.

Happy Bastille Day!!

2008-07-14T07:01:00.003-06:00

And this from a Anglophile -- go figure. :o)

Morning WOW

2008-07-08T06:41:00.006-06:00

<<<< The one to the right does not really capture it.

On the way to work this morning, I cannot remember the exact moment when I first noticed it, but even though the first Sandia Peak was free of clouds, the ones just south of it were smothered in them. It reminded me of whipped cream topping -- no cherry, though.

>>>>>> This other one does it better.

Sorry about that...

2008-03-13T12:18:00.002-06:00

I have been meaning to post new stuff here. But what with one thing or another, I guess I have not been able to get around to it.

See?

Morning thoughts

2008-02-21T07:37:00.003-07:00

I love "my" mountain.

This morning's commute showed yet another facet of its beauty. There had been a storm in the night. I woke one time to rain and thunder and wind. That made me glad to be snug in my bed next to my loving husband -- even if he kept waking me coz I was snoring.

My first view of the mountain as I turned down the Coors Bypass hill was awesome. It was just getting light behind it. I saw fog / clouds on top of it. And the sides covered with snow. Because of the low light situation, it was all soft greys. Then I was eager to catch another glimpse as I crossed the river. *sigh*

Here is a view I found of it from the river:

A dream...

2008-02-20T12:51:00.001-07:00

Last night I dreamed about a kitchen where the sink was overflowing with dishes. And my mother was trying to prepare some food. She had left some small roundish vivid green (a dark color, but shiny) peels in the corner of the sink that I had to move before starting on the dishes.

OK, I can figure out about the dishes -- it's a chore I don't like doing and I feel guilty when I don't. But why my mother? She's been dead for a something over 8 years and I never was very close to her when she was alive. And is the color of the vegetable peels an issue?

Testing, 1...2...3...

2008-02-19T15:41:00.001-07:00

George Washington Jigsaw Puzzle

Fairly soon after I came online, I found this site for doing virtual jigsaw puzzles. I would spend what seemed like hours completing various images. I chose to share this one since his birthday is coming up.

Horton Hatches an Egg

2008-02-07T08:16:00.000-07:00

Is it real or is it PhotoShop?

Super Tuesday

2008-02-06T11:35:00.000-07:00

Even though I may not be the most informed citizen (my fault entirely), I feel that since it is my privelege to vote, vote I shall. I registered to vote in New Mexico at the State Fair in 2006.

My first opportunity to vote was an election that fall. I armed myself with a map (Google or Yahoo, I can't remember now) to my stated polling place. However, I neglected to make a dry run in the daylight. Rio Rancho has a LOT of open land not yet built on. For the time of year, it was full dark by the time I got home and left again to try to find this place. However, the street I was supposed to make a left turn off of has very few street lights so that I could not see where I was to make my turn. So I gave up and returned home, disappointed and not a little bit anxious (driving in the dark to a place I did not know).

This week, I re-verified where I was to go. This time the address brought up the left turn to be at a light off the same dark street. Yay. And this time of year there is a small amount of light left by the time I get home. Double yay. So, I got there, and parked the car. Then I proceeded to walk what seemed like half-way around the high school building to get into a line. I could see that the line snaked up and down the corridor I was in. What I could not see was that the line also snaked around inside the orchestra/choir room and the band room. At least those -- who knows how many more rooms and miles of corridor there might have been. All of this it to say that while I did give it a good shot (I waited in line at least 30 minutes), I decided to give up and go home. My decision was helped along by the man who was in the part of the line about to leave the band room when I was just entering it who said it took him more than an hour to traverse the room. Ack.

I will try again in November.

Share the Joy

2008-02-04T14:47:00.001-07:00

Tonight I am stopping at WalMart to get a couple of goldfish and some gravel. We have the fishbowl. We are hoping that at least Lucy will enjoy watching the fish swim around.

Food for Thought

2008-02-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

As per usual on Fridays, I stopped at Mickey D's on the way to work for breakfast. Since I get in around an hour early, I have plenty of time to eat it.

Then around 9 or so, my boss came around with a menu from a local restaurant (Dos Hermanos) that does burritos, etc. It seems some people were complaining that they were too hungry to work. So I thought I would get a nice burrito for lunch instead of the frozen lasagna I brought from home which I put in the freezer in the fridge here at work. But for some reason (maybe coz there were 9 things ordered) my burrito was missed. OK -- back to Plan A.

Then I almost forgot to take a lunch break. Around 1pm I got the lasagna out of the freezer and went to go nuke it. And, lo and behold, someone had unplugged and moved the microwave from its usual place. *sigh* On to Plan C. I hied myself back to Mickey D's for a chicken sammich & fries.

Finally, I should add that I promised Dog that I would stop at Subway for subs on the way home tonight. Here it is 4:30 and I am still stuffed from my lunch.

Happy Anniversary

2008-01-29T10:56:00.000-07:00

Today would have been Ted's & my 37th anniversary.

Joys of Commuting, Part Deux

2008-01-29T10:04:00.001-07:00

Ack. Last night the wind blew and it kept precipitating -- only it apparently changed to sleet somewhere along the way. The dog's food & water bowls were topped off with what looked like shaved ice. At least the windshield was clear, tho there was a small amount of frost / ice on the east side of the car.

We left home circa 6:30 -- just a tad later than usual and the sky was brightening. I walked into my office at just 8am. I was very glad that Dog followed me into my parking lot and walked me from the car to the front door as the lot was covered in ice.

The cops had blocked off access on westbound Coors up the hill towards Rio Rancho just before it meets with NM 528. We were (more or less) OK since we were going east and down the hill.

Just so you know, I only got into third gear a few times, and that was on fairly level stretches of street. One guy here at work complained about the folks who were going 5mph. My speed did not top 25mph, I don't think.

The Joys of Commuting

2008-01-28T16:03:00.000-07:00

Until Dog's hours were changed, we used to make the morning commute starting around 6am in our caravan mode. Now we tend to leave the house closer to 6:30.

This morning it was raining. Yuck. These days it's still dark at that time and rain just makes it that much harder to see. Not to mention the crazy people who seem to think that there is no difference between dry and wet pavement. When we got to the turn onto Alameda before getting to the Rio Grande bridge, the traffice was backed up all the way to that turn. At the time I put it down to the weather. But come to find out, there had been a water main break over the weekend that closed down one of the river crossings thereby making the others heavier. *bleah*

Well, OK, that right turn is one of those merging types even though there is a light. As I got to the head of the queue, this one driver left a space for me to get in line. I took advantage of that, but that left Dog waiting in the wings, so to speak. And he never really managed to catch up to me. *sigh* He told me when he called that that maneuver of mine hurt his feelings. Both of us like that we do most of our commute together even if we are not in the same vehicle. And I cut him off, as it were.

Oh, and he called me coz he was home before 10am. It seems that since it's near the end of the month there is no metal available for him to make anything. Also, there weren't any special orders for him to do. *sigh* It would still be best for us if he could make close to that 30 hours a week. Not to mention the fact that he would probably go stir crazy at home all the time. Planned time off from work is one thing, making the effort to go to work and not being able to do anything is another.

Later on in the day, he called again. It seems that they have not yet been able to fix that water main break. Last I heard they were trying to locate some dry sand and none was to be had. So I am taking the long circle route home -- north up I-25 to Bernallio and back down NM 528 to home. It is quite a bit longer, but at least the speen limit is higher and I will probably been able to keep moving.

The Power of Three

2008-01-23T12:03:00.000-07:00

#1
First of all, Dog's parents decided they needed new gutter, especially to keep the water from dripping on their patio. So, of course, Dog said he would get it and all they would have to pay for would be the materials and the labor hanging it (Dog would fab it for free, ie on his own time). For the hanging, Dog asked Randy where he worked who said he could do it for $300. The job was ready to do this past weekend. But it seems that Randy mis-measured the length of gutter needed. So Dog had to make an additional "stick" Sunday morning. Prior to operating the machines, he removed his wedding band and put it in his jeans pocket. The bad news is that Monday morning when he went to put it back on, it was not in that pocket. He searched all through hi "cave" retreat -- no luck. He spent the day in a fret, wondering if I would throw him out. When he got off work, he went over to his Mom's house and scanned the yard. Please note, that this yard is "landscaped" with small stones. So, of course, he did not see it. When he called me that afternoon, he told me with a lot of trepidation in his voice. I, of course, forgave him. And told him we could get replacements (a pair, so we would still match). Tuesday afternoon, when he got home from work, he was looking down at the keys in his hand while standing before the door to his "cave" when he noticed the ring on the tile floor! He immediately rushed to the phone to call and tell me. He told me that he thought it waited to be found until after he told me and got my forgiveness.

#2
We have a TV, but to date the only thing we have used it for is to watch DVD's (movies & episodic TV). Monday afternoon, before I got home from work, he watched something. Then, as we sat on the couch to eat our supper, he turned on the TV and tried to start the DVD player. It simply would not play. It would recognize that a disc was in, but then it would turn itself off. Dog tried and tried, so many times, I lost count. Each time the result was the same. Tuesday he came up with a solution, of sorts. Instead of spending a lotta bucks on DVD's, why not get cable and maybe learn something as well as be entertained? I think we still need to see about getting the player fixed or getting a new one. But, we'll see.

#3
This one happened where I work. When I started here, I was given a userid (&password) for the main application we use that was based on my name before I married Dog. After I got married, I was told that IS did not see any reason to change that account just because of the name change. Not a big deal. I continued to use that ID with nary a problem (except for other system issues that did not have anything to do with my ID) -- until Tuesday morning. I tried for 20 minutes or so to sign in. I kept getting an error message to the effect that the system sis not recognize the userid/password combo. Then commenced a series of emails between myself and the IT manager in St Louis, MO. I said I am having problems logging on. He asked for the userid & password. And then it was he could not log in with it either so he passed it on to the software vendor. Then he comes back and tells me that since he could not find a record of a Karen Pauls, he re-used that account for someone else. And was requesting a new account from the vendor. That was around 9am. Around 2pm, I emailed him inquiring about the progress, and he wrote back saying he was still waiting for info from the vendor and probably would not have anything til the next morning. In the meantime, I had been using what I thought was a free temporary sign-in. Come to find out -- one of the other buyers here had laid claim to it. Oy. So my boss had me sit at a temp's desk and use her computer and sign-on to finish my work. Since there was no word from the IT manager in my email box when I came in on Wednesday, I wrote and asked him how it was coming. He responded that they were currently working on setting up all the required permissions which required them to access all 11 databases. Fortunately, there was a staff meeting this morning. So, by the time he emailed me that I could start using the new userid and password, I did not miss that much time because the meeting was still going on.

A desert winter's night

2008-01-17T13:14:00.000-07:00

It's been below freezing over the past some nights. But last night it was down around 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Our dogs have free run of the yard within the stone wall. They can find shelter from rain near the house (in the front between the front door and the garage and the covered patio in the back). But last night was going to be too cold. So we prepped the house as best we could: Covering the couch with sheets, picking up all the CD's & DVD's, trying to make sure that breakables were out of harm's way, pushing back the coffee table to give them room in front of the couch, clearing off the couch of all the stuff that tends to stay on it, throwing away trash, putting the cats' food & water on the counter, and moving the catbox to the garage. We also left the kitchen window open slightly -- the cats' usual way in & out. Then after we ate supper, we let in the dogs. We closed out bedroom door and Lucy the youngest cat slept with us most of the night. Dog set the alarm for midnight -- so he could get up and let the dogs out for a bit. I even got up with him.

Now that was a sight. I had picked up all the trash lying about and put it in the kitchen trash can. But I neglected to put that can out of the reach of the dogs. Oops -- bad mistake. I first saw shards of the aluminum foil I had wadded up strew in an area behind the couch. I dreaded looking in the kitchen (I saved that til morning). When I went to sit on the couch I saw what looked like a plastic glass on the floor. I picked it up and found it to be the Parmesan cheese shaker with the shaker lid chewed off and all the cheese gone. I told Dog guess we'll be buying some more Parmesan.

When we let the dogs back in and went back to bed, Dog reset the alarm for 4:30. When I finally got to the kitchen in the morning, I found it not as bad as it could have been. The bread wrapper that had had like 4 slices of bread left was on the floor and the bread gone and some other things was strewn about. But at least they had not knocked the can over and emptied it. I was thankful for small favors.

Partnership

2008-01-16T07:55:00.000-07:00

I wrote last time about how my marriage is a partnership and how Dog & I work together to solve problems. I have a couple of small to large examples from yesterday.

When I got home, Dog had done prep work for supper -- burgers made & marinated in the covered frying pan surrounded by sliced mushrooms and curly fries laid out on a foil covered baking sheet in the oven. Then while he started actually cooking (after the oven had a few minutes t0 pre-heat), I made sure the dogs had fresh water and filled their supper bowls w/dog chow.

While that was nice, there was another thing that I appreciated more. I did not think I would have digestive trouble since we did not go immediately to bed after eating like we usually do. But around 11:30 I woke up with a sharp pain in my belly -- it was a big bubble of gas trying to escape. Sometimes I can burp it away, but apparently this time it did not work so well and my back started hurting. So I got up to take some Alka-Seltzer and to try to get comfortable on the couch. But my back was hurting so bad, not only could I not get comfortable sitting, but also I beagan thinking about when I broke it.

I was panting with the pain and whimpering. I came back to bed to try to get comfortable there. No luck. So I asked Dog to get some water and ibuprofen. I took 6 of them and after a short while the pain dulled. But I still could not stay in one position for much longer than a couple of minutes (if that) before the pain intruded. I asked Dog if we had a locatable heating pad. No luck. So then I thought that maybe his warm hands rubbing my back would help. And, by golly, if that did not take it away. *sigh* It took it away, but I still had some trouble falling asleep lying down. So I went to recline on the couch -- again. This time I managed to doze a bit. And when Dog got up for a drink of water, I felt I could give lying down another try.

Now I am at work. My tummy was still a little burpy this morning so I decided to forgo the cereal and milk for a McSkillet Burrito and a Diet Coke. So far, I am still pain free. :o)

Bad News, Good News

2008-01-10T09:59:00.000-07:00

Well, High Desert Roofing, Dog's employer, is going through a winter lull that apparently necessitated some lay-offs and other cut backs this time. One of the cut backs was that Dog was reduced to a 30-hr work week.

There are a couple of good things following from this. He said that he had been doing a LOT of make work (fabricating things they really did not need) in order to fill the 40 hours. I mean, just how many canales or vents does one need? Especially when they sit and sit and sit... Another thing is that he has been able to work on chores that are usually left to the weekend (ie dishes and laundry). And yesterday he had supper in the oven when I got home.

I am glad that I am here to help support him in this -- emotionally and financially. Yet another way our marriage is a partnership.

Happy Holidays!

2007-12-21T12:29:00.000-07:00

Today is the Winter Solstice, and we are celebrating our holiday this evening. We had been invited to join the family Christmas celebration at his niece's home in Colorado, but we decided to forgo the hustle-bustle of holiday travel (and the very real possibilty of CO snow) and cocoon in our cozy house.

Manic Monday

2007-12-18T09:42:00.000-07:00

You know how things come in threes?

#1
As I was about to leave, one of my co-workers came back in the building to tell me that I had a flat tire. *sigh* I put on my damsel in distress face and asked him if he knew how to change a tire. Then I drove home on the doughnut spare with my stomach in knots the whole way. But I made it home OK. *whew*

#2
Dog was hiding in the bedroom when I came in and demanded a hug. But it seems he had a worse day. Even though he made a job how it was drawn on the work order, apparently it was done backwards. So, we BOTH needed hugs.

#3
As I went to take off my earrings, earrings that Dog had gotten me in the plaza of Santa Fe made of ocean jasper, only one was still in my ear. The other one was gone. I just about cried over that. And whatever appetite I may have had flew the coop.

Dog was so wiped emotionally by his day, that he ate the soup I heated for him while he reclined in bed. I choked down about a half a can of chicken noodle.

This too shall pass...

Still Catching my Breath

2007-12-12T11:46:00.000-07:00

*whew*

Setting the stage ~~
Yesterday it precipitated something as I was coming home. It hit the windshield as water, but in my headlights it looked solider. Anyway, nothing noticeable was on the ground at home, but the vehicle windows needed scraping. And the temperature is just below freezing. Fortunately, the streets looked clear.

The Incident ~~
Our route for the morning commute follows NM 528 down from Rio Rancho and across the river. Some distance from the river are some railroad tracks. Just after those the street rises and in most cases you don't realize it's an overpass. I am very glad that the traffic was fairly light this morning because just as I had time to register that the road was shiny as I hit that hill / overpass, the car went into a skid. I managed to keep my foot off the brake. The Cruise Control was set for 35mph. I am glad that both hands were on the wheel. I am not certain, to this day, what they mean by turning in the direction of the skid. What I did was to turn it the other direction than where it was headed, back and forth. I hope I more or less kept it in the lane, but at least there weren't any cars coming up in the left lane. Dog was behind me as usual. However, THIS time he followed me all the way to my office (he usually does not make the turn I do, but goes a little farther before turning south on I-25's frontage road).

Aftermath~~
I was still breathing hard when I pulled into this parking lot. When I managed to get the Mustang parked (I had to back and fill twice), Dog was standing there. So the first thing I asked him was how bad did it look. He told me that he came to congratulate me on my smooth moves in pulling out of the skid -- and to ask if I was OK. I was OK, but I sure needed a hug.

Ho, Ho, Ho...

2007-12-11T12:51:00.000-07:00

Tis the season to be jolly.

Dog & I started exchanging our holiday gifts early -- one at a time. The first one I gave him was a Bill Cosby CD with "To Russell, my Brother, Whom I Slept With" on it. Then there was the Sally the Zombie t-shirt and the dragonette emerging from the egg sculpture / figurine.

He has given me an elephant box. The elephant itself is done in carousel motif and inside the small enamel box is an elephant pendant like the one on the box. Then there was the malachite earrings set in sterling silver and the Tinkerbell purse.

Well, back to the salt mines...