“There are some who bring a light so great to the world that even after they have gone, the light remains.” — Unknown
Joe and Sue were pretty close, and on July 4th last year, they walked around, attempting to find Charlie and Alex, who were out and about on the rides and sides at Old Ranch. Sue, like Amy, would listen to Joe and me and just shake her head, thinking, “There can’t be two of them!”
Sue was always dressed for the occasion, check out her earrings. My beautiful bride took great delight in every activity and could make a disaster delightful. I do miss that smile and twinkle in her eye, which always said to me, “All will be well!”
Even in the latter days of her beautiful life, when she was not feeling well, one would never have known as she never complained and was always positive. I plan to spend the rest of my life, attempting to be half the person she was. I love you, Sue.
Joe and Sue walking around on July 4th at Old Ranch looking for Charlie and Alex.
I skim the newspaper in the mornings on-line (the Register does a good job), and I am happy Sue did not get to see this headline!
Today was busy! Just as the sun began to rise, I was up in the attic connecting the bathroom exhaust fan to the new exit point on the side of the house. Alas, I did not have sufficient length in the connecting duct. I needed a “duct stretcher”.
The Grey Ghost and I hit the 605 freeway on our way to Lowe’s just as the roosters began to crow! Perhaps it was the screeching of the tires and all the burnt rubber that woke them up? We have lazy roosters in our area.
It’s 8:00 AM and I am exiting Lowe’s with fifty feet of flexible ducting; I shall not be short again! I will change out the dryer exhaust, which has not been changed in years, with the leftovers.
On the way home, I passed by a gym, thinking maybe I should try it. Well, I looked at my pedometer and yesterday I only had 4,600 steps for 1.6 miles, I need to get my butt to work to get below 190 pounds again!
Just when I was thinking about the gym!
Back in the attic, I was done by 9:15 AM, just as the sun was beginning to warm things up!
Next, I needed to paint the back of the bathroom door with a primer, which took all of twenty minutes, and most of that was prep and cleanup.
Now came the “fun.” I emptied the old vanity drawers, sorted through the “stuff,” and repopulated the new vanity! About half of what was there went into the trash, and most of that I had not seen in twenty years! I even have more room now in my eighteen-foot walk-in closet.
Knock-knock! Yes, the vinyl gate guy cometh. He measured and measured and picked a price he thought I could afford right out of the air. $1,300 for two gates? Horsefeathers! I called the gate refurb guy and asked him to come and make my steel gates new again. He will take them away, reinstall them, sandblast them, and powder coat both of them for $500; such a deal! They lasted ten years last time, and I hope I am still here in ten years!
New gates are coming soon, and they will be a bright white again!
Did You Know? Powder coating is a type of coating that is applied as a free-flowing, dry powder. Unlike conventional liquid paint, which is delivered via an evaporating solvent, powder coating is typically applied electrostatically and then cured under heat or with Ultraviolet light. The powder may be a thermoplastic or a thermoset polymer. It is usually used to create a hard finish that is tougher than conventional paint.
Powder coating is mainly used for the coating of metals, such as household appliances, aluminum extrusions, drum hardware, automobile, motorcycle, and bicycle parts. More advanced technologies allow other materials, such as plastics, composites, carbon fiber, and MDF (medium-density fibreboard), to be powder coated using different methods that require less heat and time. The powder coating process was invented around 1945 by Daniel Gustin US Patent 2538562.
Santa Claus (the Amazon delivery person) came as soon as the gate guy departed, and he brought me two grates for the stove. Sue and I were going to replace them anyway. I decided to do it and bought them through Amazon on Monday!
We have had our professional Viking freestanding double oven gas convection range for twenty plus years, and that puppy has made a ton of food, so it was time to replace the cast-iron grates. I ordered four replacements, and poor Santa was reeling under the weight. Each grate comes in at almost ten pounds!
You now have twenty more years of life remaining!
Robin called at 11:00 AM and was heading to lunch, so I saddled up the Grey Ghost and met her at the Yucutan Grille in Seal Beach. I enjoyed a margarita and a burrito before coming home to continue my chores. Robin went back to work, but she is coming over tomorrow as we have a 20-way Zoom session planned with friends from work. She and I run the meeting together!
In the afternoon, Bob finished off the bathroom, and now we are awaiting the faucet which is in town and should be delivered this afternoon if all goes as expected.
I was keeping track of things so bob would know when it is here.
I talked to Colleen for a while and she had her grandchildren with her so it was a tad on the noisy side. We gave up and will talk in the morning.
As Bob departed for the day, after our nightly beer, I decided to get into the hot tub and soak for a while. I thought about eliminating the hot tub, but it feels great, so it shall stay! I opened just one half of the cover as that is all I needed. I must remember to order a chemical kit in the near future.
The caldron awaits! I forgot the eye of newt.
Did You Know? The “eye of newt” in Macbeth is just a term for mustard seed. … Yes, eye of newt is a very old term for mustard seed. Many plants have names like that, and these names are often still misconstrued for the literal terms. People often think that witches used these horrible ingredients when they were using plants.
I watched the sun go down and remembered all the times’ Sue and I would sit in there, drinking our wine, and discussing life. We sat together and just enjoyed talking about anything and everything! Wonderful times I will never forget. I got warmed up and then decided to get out and sit in the patio for a while.
No kidding! Dark glasses suggested!
I was pretty warmed, so I sat outside for about twenty minutes, savoring a glass of Grandma’s Wine, meaning, non-alcoholic! This time of day, I often get lonely because it is when Sue and I would sit at the dining room table and talk some more. Some times we would dance in the kitchen to Miss Alexa’s 1950s playlist.
It’s OK; I do have my asbestos thong on!
I decided to go to Patty’s Place for a drink and on the way in to change (no, I did NOT go in my asbestos swimsuit), I stopped to admire the new bathroom. I can hardly wait until Friday morning. I put an Alexa Dot in the bathroom so I could listen to music as I washed this magnificent body! Alexa, “Play music to shower by!” I wonder what will happen?
99% done, the tape is making sure the silicone seals would stay in place while drying.
Off to Patty’s where I met the gang, the gang being Chuck the Bartender and John. It was already 9:15 PM when I arrived, so I sipped a martini and shared war stories with “the gang”.
After one drink at Patty’s Place! When it comes to uncommon Martini orders, I usually order an obscure feature; Tonight I ordered my martini “burnt!” A Burnt Martini is one that’s been doused with a touch of smoky whiskey.
OK, the truth be known, I had two martinis this evening as I was feeling a little blue; I missed my bride. Lucky for them, I decided not to sing this evening.
I make sounds worse than this!
Chuck and John both offered to drive me home, but I did not need assistance as I had a big lunch, and I had a snack before going to Patty’s. I sent then a text when I arrived home at 10:35 PM.
Off to bed, and I crashed hard, not opening an eye until about 5:30 AM the next morning.
