Tom's Diary

Began work on the  Shed Roof Replacement Project   this morning.  So far, I’ve stripped the old shingles off of the entire roof, pulled out all old staples that might puncture the new shingles, and then laid down the new roofing felt on all sides of the roof.  The new shingles are due to arrive on or around October 19th, 2009.  In the meantime, I’ll arrange to have the old shingles hauled away; they’re piled up on a tarp beside the shed now.

The cable guy came early this afternoon and replaced my DVR and remote control.  So far, it has recorded all scheduled programs; it missed none.  However, we won’t know for sure that the skipped-programs problem has been solved, at least for a week or two.  Sometimes the old unit would go tens of dayswithout missing a program, and then, when you thought that all was well, you’d find that that show you really wanted to see had not been recorded.  The technician was confident that replacing the DVR would fix things, as he said that they’ve experienced numerous problems with the hard drives in these DVRs, that manifest themselves often as erratic DVR behavior, including the failure to record programs that were previously scheduled to be recorded. 

Watched The Young and the Restless, NBC Nightly News, and listened to several episodes of Dr. joy Browne on the iPod while I worked on the roof.

Sister Diane called tonight.  She’s concerned that Mom might have to begin paying a daily charge while she’s at the nursing facility.  This was not the case the last time Mom was in.  But that was over a year ago, and it’s possible that Mom’s insurance policies have changed this year.  So, my assignment tomorrow is to call the business office at the facility, and if needed, Mom’s medical insurance company, to figure out precisely what Mom’s expected to pay, how much, and when, according to current insurance policies.

[Tad] just sent email, scheduling an alumni board meeting for next week.  He requested that I provide a breakdown of the various funds in which we currently have our money.  We’ll probably discuss whether to reallocate the funds, and to where.

A gray but dry day today.  No sun.  High temperatures reached the upper 50s; a pleasant day for roof work.

Tom

Called the cable company here about the DVR problem of intermittently not recording scheduled programs.  Spoke with Tony, who was quite the jolly fellow.  They’re going to replace the DVR sometime tomorrow afternoon, at no cost to me.  

I had more of the chicken curry I made yesterday for lunch.  Ate it cold this time.  Even when cold, it still tasted quite good, and I saved about five minutes of microwave energy in the process.     Yep, we’re going green in this household.

Finished folding the clean laundry from yesterday.  Sister Christine and I are going to take this up to Mom later this afternoon.

Filed more office papers.  Hmmm.  I’m starting to wonder if I’m saving too much.

Worked on the next post for the    Tom’s Love Quest    blog.  Wrote approximately 700 words today.

This afternoon, sister Christine and I visited Mom.  Mom’s kind of happy but kind of sad too, because she’d really rather be here at home.  But if she’d got to be in a nursing facility, she’s happy at the one where she is. 

She smiled when we walked in and we put her clean clothes in her drawers and closet for her, just like she did for me as a boy, in my dorm,  whenever her and Dad would drive me to school in Pittsburgh on those Sundays that, for whatever reason, I missed the bus or train.  I like doing this for her because I feel that at least in some small way, I’m paying her back a debt that I’ve owed her for going on forty years now. 

Anyway, we stayed for just over an hour, and then her supper arrived.  So we headed out to leave her to that.  Mom has people calling her on her cell phone frequently — two of them called during our visit.  So I don’t loneliness is a big problem for her at present.

No progress today on the shed roof project, although Richard did bring a tarp over today for piling the old shingles on.  If the weather is nice tomorrow, I’ll strip the old roof and apply the new felt.

Watched The Young and the Restless, all pending episodes of Dr. Phil, and NBC Nightly News.  I need to watch everything important on the DVR, as it, along with its hard drive, will be replaced tomorrow, and the shows on the old DVR cannot be copied to the new one. 

Tom

Went through all office files and threw out the ones no longer needed.

Noticed a problem with the DVR (digital video recorder).  Sometimes, it fails to record shows that I’ve programmed.  This just started within the past month.  I can get around it by checking the list of scheduled recordings periodically, and if there are some missing, I can reprogram them.  Perhaps a call to the cable company is warranted.

Made buttered chicken curry for lunch.  Quite good, and there are lots of leftovers to look forward to having later this week. 

Sister Mary Ann stopped by.  We rearranged some furniture to make it easier for Mom to get around when she gets home; after her second opinion doctor visit this morning, we think she’ll get back here at around the end of October.  Mary Ann also recommends that we proceed with building a ramp for Mom, as she’ll be using a wheelchair for some months after she comes home.

Watched The Young and the Restless, Judge Judy, and listened to all pending episodes of the podcast  60 Second Science.

Moved the kitchen table into the back end of the living room.

Wrote the piece about   The Blue Mirror.

Did several small loads of laundry for Mom; they don’t offer laundry service at her nursing facility.  So every week or so, we get a bag full of stuff to wash.  I guess we’ve come full circle because she used to wash my laundry each week when I went away to school.  Now, here I am doing hers.

It rained all morning.  Then the sun came out during the afternoon and the humidity fell way low.   Lots of wind too.  The temperatures got up into the high 60s.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• The Blue Mirror

Once upon a time, my maternal grandmother had this beautiful blue mirror that hung above her living room fireplace all through the 60s and 70s.  The color blue was always my favorite.  So, as a little boy, not quite tall enough to touch the mirror, I’d stare at it for hours from the floor below, marveling at its steel blue luster.  Occasionally, the afternoon sun would catch it and light up the whole room this deep yet somehow vibrant blue.

The mirror was circular in shape with a beveled edge a half-inch wide that ran around its entire circumference.  The glass was three eighths to one half inch thick, and I’d guess the blue mirror to be two to two and a half feet in diameter.  So it was quite heavy.  In fact, it sported a steel cable on its back for hanging, not just a simple adhesive-backed hook.  I got to see just how heavy it was because once, Gram took it down and allowed me to help her clean it.  I carried it for her to the kitchen table, where we sprayed it, and then wiped it off while she instructed me on the most effective ways to clean glass.  I remember thinking the first time I wiped, while peering through the streaks of glass cleaner that my towel made as it slid across the face, how truly wonderful that color was.

Unfortunately upon her death in 1980, Gram’s blue mirror disappeared, and I’ve often thought about it through the years.  That would have been her one possession that I’d have gladly claimed for my own, as a memento.  I’ve asked the family about the mirror, but no one knows where it went.  I’d so love to find another like it and thus, would appreciate anyone’s help who knows about mirrors.  Please respond here or write to me privately if you know where I could find such a relic, or have one made.  I’d love to have that mirror’s likeness hanging once again above Gram’s fireplace.

Take care.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Today’s Business: 2009-09-28

Worked on the response to [Linda]‘s comments, found  here.

Went to Lowe’s to purchase the roofing supplies for the   Shed Roof Replacement Project.

Watched CBS’s Face the Nation, NBC’s Meet the Press, and some of the Steelers game this afternoon.  Unfortunately, they lost to the Bengals, 23 to 20.

Talked with [Emmy].  While on the phone, we watched the end of the Steelers game and all of 6o Minutes.  We enjoy watching the same program when on the phone together. 

Rainy day today until around three o’clock PM.  Then, the sun came out a few times and the roads dried off.  But all in all, it’s been a gray and dreary day; just great for napping.    High temperatures were in the low 60s.

Tom

Made some Cocoa Wheats for breakfast today, sweetened with agave nectar.  It took six to eight tablespoons of this nectar to get the cereal as sweet as I like.  So agave nectar seems not to be as economical as stevia.  But once I got this chocolate flavored cream of wheat to the desired sweetness, it really tasted chocolaty and good.  Now, the house smells like hot chocolate.  Nice.

Revised the following documents in my blogs for increased clarity, brevity, and then expanded some details that seemed to enhance the message.

• http://tomslovequest.com/2009/06/24/low-inspiration/

Went on a   shopping trip   this morning.

Watched all pending episodes of Dr. Phil, 60 Minutes, and NBC’s Nightly News. The DVR is completely empty now.

Cleaned house a bit in the first floor front room.  Threw out around 150 pounds of old books and manuals.  Now, I’m looking around up here to see what can be pitched.

Updated my ICANN information for all my domains, per ICANN’s requirement to annually check the information they have on file and correct if needed. 

Made a complete backup of all my blogs.  Click   here   for details.

Talked with [Emmy].

Paid all pending bills, including the property tax and the cable bill.

A gray and drizzly day today with high temperatures not getting out of the upper 50s.  A great day to enjoy Cocoa Wheats and a couple naps.

Tom

Weekly backups of all my blog sites completed. Total disk space: 35.1 MB, which includes all databases, site code, and static pages. That’s an increase of 400 KB from 34.7 MB in late August.

Note that no backups were taken the past month due to low blog activity.

Tom

Purchased the following today at Wal Mart:

• Friskies Cat Food (34 cans)
• Large-Dial Outdoor Thermometer (2)
• Tide Laundry Detergent (2 bottles)
• Kashi Cereal (2 boxes)
• Cheerios (4 boxes)
• Oates Hot Cereal (1 can)
• Arm & Hammer Cat Litter (2 boxes)
• Grits Hot Cereal (1 box)
• Florida Crystals Organic Sugar (2.75 pounds)
• Pounce Cat Food (8 jars)
• Sun Maid Raisins (4 cans)
• Agave Nectar (1 bottle)
• Bananas (1 bunch)
• Bleach (4.5 gallons)
• Diet Pepsi, Caffeine-Free (8 liters)
• Permanent Coffee Filter (1)

Total cost: $203.20

Tom

Went grocery shopping this morning.  Click   here   for more details.

Listened to recent journal recordings when I was not outside working in the yard today, and I’m still trying to sufficiently answer the question: How do you argue against the idea that we can (or at least, should) function as well in the absense of love, as we do when we have our heart’s desire at hand?  [Linda], I know that you raised this issue   here   some months ago, and so I’ve definitely not forgotten about your post.  I’m still crafting my answer and I’ll post it whenever it’s ready, though I can make no guarantees as to when that will be.  Just keep standing by, and I will have something worth reading eventually.

Installed the two new thermometers purchased this morning on the south and east porches.  For each, I used three screws, where the one I replaced on the south porch only used one.  Three screws should better secure these units, and prevent them from flying away in strong winds.  Bitter experience shows that they will indeed fall off the supports when fastened with just a single screw.  Indeed, the one replaced this morning no longer read the correct temperature, and I suspect that much of that problem was caused by the repeated falling to the ground from its high point on the porch, on windy days.  With three screws holding each thermometer up, frequent falls and subsequent breakage should no longer happen.

Installed the new house numbers purchased this morning on the front fence.  They’re quite visible in both daytime and at night.  Thus, an ambulance coming to care for Mom should have no trouble finding this place.  However, numbers to mount by the south and west doors are still needed.  It was slim pickings at both Wal Mart and Lowe’s.  Many of the number styles were sold out.  Apparently lots of people are doing the same thing as I, since many of the home addresses around here have changed, just as ours has.  So, I might have to wait a few months for everyone else to get their renumbering done and for the stores to restock these numbers.  Then I’ll get what we need.  At least our fence has them, and since it is very close to the road, folks driving by looking for us should easily spot our house number.

While I was at it, I also made numerous repairs to the fence itself.  Lots of boards had loosened over the years due to warping and expansion and contraction due to weather changes.  So I pounded them back into place and reinforced them with additional nails where needed.  The iPod kept me company while I worked. 

Watched The Young and the Restless.

Talked with [Emmy] on the phone.

Talked with sister Christine and sister Mary Ann at length this evening.  All are concerned about Mom and that we do the right thing where she’s concerned.  Figuring out the right thing is challenging, and I’ve never been particularly good at consensus building.  But we’re a good family and all our hearts are probably in the right place.   So I’m confident that we will in fact, do the right things.  We just first have to agree on what those right things are. 

Mostly sunny today with high temperatures at around 70 degrees.  No wind.

Tom

Cracker Barrel Visit

Went to Wal Mart and Lowe’s today with sister JoJo.  We also enjoyed breakfast at Cracker Barrel.  I had an omlet made with egg beaters — pretty tasty actually, a bowl of grits with butter, and some rye toast.  I’m full.

Lowe’s Visit

We went to Lowe’s go get some new house numbers, as our address here has changed as a result of the E911 project.  I also picked up a new spout for the tub — this must be replaced every couple years due to excess hard water deposits building up, and the one in the bathroom now is about due to be changed. 

Total Lowe’s bill: #35.00.

Wal Mart Visit

Then, at Wal Mart, I bought the following:

• Friskies canned cat food (35 cans).  This stuff is quite yummy around bedtime – to the cat!  
• Pounce cat treats (8 jars).
• Cat litter (2 boxes).
• Oat meal (2 canisters).
• Kashi Go Lean cereal (2 boxes).
• Cheerios (4 big boxes).
• Instant grits (1 box).
• Raisins (4 canisters).
• Tide liquid (2 large bottles).
• Bleach (6 gallons).
• Thermometers for the porches (2 large-faced ones).
• Bananas (one bunch).
• Cane juice (unbleached sugar) (1 jar).
• Agave nectar (light) (1 bottle).
• Diet Pepsi, caffeine free (8 liters).
• Fine-screened strainer, used for making tea.  Hopefully, this will reduce the hard water sediment in the cups.
• Pork roast and vegetables set (1).

Total bill: #203.20.

Dunkin’ Donuts Visit

We stopped here for our traditional Friday morning coffee, although sipped mine alone today; sister Jojo wasn’t in the mood for the coffee totday.

Tom