I felt quite a bit better today, but I still didn't get much done. I did actually get to take a nap which was nice, since I didn't get to bed as early as I'd hoped last night.
This morning when I went out to water the the umbrella garden, I felt a bit off from the heat again, but it didn't affect me as strongly as yesterday. I did wear a hat when I went out today, though, so I'm not sure if that made a big difference or not. Then this evening, when it was about the same temperature outside as it was this morning, I went out and wasn't bothered by it at all. So I'm really leaning toward it being a stomach thing rather than the heat. Although, I suppose it could be the direct sunlight and the hat really did help.
I just hope it clears up soon, whatever it is. We've got to get that pod on the driveway unloaded. Speaking of the pod, the code enforcement officer drove by yesterday. She called my husband, but he isn't used to his new phone, and it was silenced, so he missed it. Anyway, she said that we still hadn't gotten the pod moved back (she originally told him we didn't really have to, since we'd be getting it cleaned out), and that he needed to get rid of the branches beside it. He'd forgotten that he'd put the small trees he cut down before we went on vacation on the side of the pod. :::sigh::: And she mentioned that she'd given us until the 15th of June to get the original issues under control.
Huh? Nope. She gave us until the end of July. So Hubster called her back this morning only to find that he had missed her call again. She said she'd totally forgotten to write it down in her book that she'd given us until the end of July. And she wasn't too concerned about the container. It was just the elm trees he'd cut down at the side of the container. So he'll get them out of there before work tomorrow. Hopefully, they're not too dry to go through the chippers. The chippers will eat them up just fine even, if they are dry, but it's much harder on the person who's feeding them into the chipper. The dry ones hurt!
I wasn't successful at stopping my consumption of soda before we left on vacation. I drank 2 cans on most days and 3 cans a couple of days. I'm down to one can a day, and I will drink it tomorrow morning. I can already tell it's making a difference for the good. The nerve pain in my legs has diminished substantially. I'm really hoping it will go altogether when I cut that last can out completely.
Best of all, there were no meltdowns today. Hopper seems to be getting back on track.
Now for the rest of us.
Showing posts with label code enforcement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label code enforcement. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Sunday, May 23, 2010
*Good googalee woogalee!
Today was a long and productive day. So long I had to record the series finale of LOST on the DVR to watch as I can this week. Shh! If you know, please don't tell me what happened!
I took a couple of Benadryl last night, and it helped me to actually get some sleep! I woke up every hour on the hour, but I was able to drift back off within minutes, and I'm so very thankful. I desperately needed the sleep. I'm wide awake now, though, and I don't know that I'll have as much success sleeping tonight.
Bugster came over, and she helped me plant most of the tomatoes, strawberries and peppers in the buckets on the umbrella planter. I still have to find one more bucket to drill holes in and get it filled with plants, because the only other one I have that has a hole in the bottom doesn't have a handle. The first buckets I'd painted and made wire handles for, but I only got 4 finished. I need 8, so I have one on each tine of the umbrella planter, but it won't happen until next year that I have all matching bucket planters for it.
I really enjoyed the planting, although I probably should have worn a mask. I got some planting soil that was full of fertilizer to use to give my plants the best shot, but boy did that stuff stink! I've spritzed my nose with saline several times, but I feel like I am still smelling that stuff. Yuck! But if it means we get bigger tomatoes and peppers, I can deal with it. I'll just wear a mask when I finish up the rest of the planting.
We've got to cut a big tree down in the backyard, because we lost a major branch of it during a wind storm last fall. It's going to mean a lot more sunlight to help out my upside-down tomatoes and other plants, but it also means that there will be a ton more sun and heat on the little window air conditioner that we had in the dining room window. So we took it out and put it on the other side of the house that only gets the morning sun. Hopefully, it will still cool enough of the house over there to make it worthwhile. It was quite the undertaking, but it's in place now, and we'll be able to start working on cutting the tree down in the next week or two.
Hubby cleaned up the side of the house that the code enforcement officer mentioned needed done. He got the trundle beds sprayed off well with water and then doused them with a bug spray to kill any spiders/critters that might be hiding in the springs once they dried. They're now securely under the beds in the house, and it's a big relief to both of us. Just one more thing off the list of things that need done.
Our bitter neighbor lady can't complain now. We have until the end of July to get the storage unit on the driveway unloaded, so I'll be concentrating on finishing the basement as quickly as possible after I finish planting the rest of the garden plants. I am anxious to get things together down there, so we can start using the basement like we envision. It will be nice to have a place to hang out and have a craft area and a place to work out. We're very much looking forward to it.
I have a few projects other than housecleaning/dehoarding that I have to work on in the next couple of weeks as well.
It's going to be a busy summer.
*I told my husband that I couldn't think of a title of the post. This was *his* idea! :D
I took a couple of Benadryl last night, and it helped me to actually get some sleep! I woke up every hour on the hour, but I was able to drift back off within minutes, and I'm so very thankful. I desperately needed the sleep. I'm wide awake now, though, and I don't know that I'll have as much success sleeping tonight.
Bugster came over, and she helped me plant most of the tomatoes, strawberries and peppers in the buckets on the umbrella planter. I still have to find one more bucket to drill holes in and get it filled with plants, because the only other one I have that has a hole in the bottom doesn't have a handle. The first buckets I'd painted and made wire handles for, but I only got 4 finished. I need 8, so I have one on each tine of the umbrella planter, but it won't happen until next year that I have all matching bucket planters for it.
I really enjoyed the planting, although I probably should have worn a mask. I got some planting soil that was full of fertilizer to use to give my plants the best shot, but boy did that stuff stink! I've spritzed my nose with saline several times, but I feel like I am still smelling that stuff. Yuck! But if it means we get bigger tomatoes and peppers, I can deal with it. I'll just wear a mask when I finish up the rest of the planting.
We've got to cut a big tree down in the backyard, because we lost a major branch of it during a wind storm last fall. It's going to mean a lot more sunlight to help out my upside-down tomatoes and other plants, but it also means that there will be a ton more sun and heat on the little window air conditioner that we had in the dining room window. So we took it out and put it on the other side of the house that only gets the morning sun. Hopefully, it will still cool enough of the house over there to make it worthwhile. It was quite the undertaking, but it's in place now, and we'll be able to start working on cutting the tree down in the next week or two.
Hubby cleaned up the side of the house that the code enforcement officer mentioned needed done. He got the trundle beds sprayed off well with water and then doused them with a bug spray to kill any spiders/critters that might be hiding in the springs once they dried. They're now securely under the beds in the house, and it's a big relief to both of us. Just one more thing off the list of things that need done.
Our bitter neighbor lady can't complain now. We have until the end of July to get the storage unit on the driveway unloaded, so I'll be concentrating on finishing the basement as quickly as possible after I finish planting the rest of the garden plants. I am anxious to get things together down there, so we can start using the basement like we envision. It will be nice to have a place to hang out and have a craft area and a place to work out. We're very much looking forward to it.
I have a few projects other than housecleaning/dehoarding that I have to work on in the next couple of weeks as well.
It's going to be a busy summer.
*I told my husband that I couldn't think of a title of the post. This was *his* idea! :D
Thursday, May 20, 2010
An update here. An update there.
We never got a call back yesterday from the code enforcement officer. It must have been a really busy day. It made for a restless night last night. Very little sleep. However, the phone rang at 7:45 this morning, and it was her.
When my husband explained things to her, (that the neighbor was upset about dandelions more than anything) she was very understanding. She extended the time we have to the end of July without hesitation. Apparently, the 'setback' that was mentioned in the letter just meant that the storage pod was too close to the street. However, it's not blocking the sidewalk or anything, so she said she can let it go until we get it emptied out. We will be done for sure by the end of July. She'll come back out and inspect then.
She also said that the next time the woman next door starts giving us grief about things in our yard to just call her, since we have her phone number. She said that it's almost always someone who's mad at someone else who makes the calls. And she said she doesn't have time to deal with dandelions. She also said that the pile of pallets we have stacked up on the side of the house can stay, if it's 'usable wood'. It is.
I was talking to a friend about the whole situation today, and she said someone called on them a few years ago. She happened to go outside when the code enforcement officer was there to talk to her about things. The woman was very friendly and gave her an extension as well. She said that in her case the person who was calling was likely a realtor. Apparently several houses up and down the street had been reported, and when that happens it's usually a realtor who's trying to sell a house.
Jerks.
Breathing a little easier from the whole code enforcement situation.
Holding our breath on another.
My husband tested positive for TB when he had his physical a few days ago. We got the results right before the close of business yesterday. So we had to take the girls in to be tested this morning, and I'll go tomorrow. We won't have all the results until Monday.
Apparently, the positive result just means that he's been exposed to tuberculosis not that he has an active case. His chest x-rays must have shown that he does not have an active case, because the doctor said he's not contagious. Regardless, he has to be on antibiotics for 6 months in order to eradicate it. Even with antibiotic treatment there's a relapse rate of 2 to 5%. Not too bad, I suppose, but he'll have to be monitored with x-rays for the rest of his life.
It makes sense that he was exposed to it given his line of work, but I was surprised to find out that the bacteria can live for several months in the dust and air or on a hard surface. Makes those antibacterial wipes at the grocery store they put out to wipe your cart down even more appealing, doesn't it?
Onto a totally different subject...
I'm very thankful somebody mentioned D-Ribose for my fibromyalgia. Between that and the L-Theanine my friend mentioned, my fibro is not flaring. And considering the stress we've been under the last few weeks, that's absolutely amazing! So thanks to both of you!
My body and I appreciate it more than you can know!
When my husband explained things to her, (that the neighbor was upset about dandelions more than anything) she was very understanding. She extended the time we have to the end of July without hesitation. Apparently, the 'setback' that was mentioned in the letter just meant that the storage pod was too close to the street. However, it's not blocking the sidewalk or anything, so she said she can let it go until we get it emptied out. We will be done for sure by the end of July. She'll come back out and inspect then.
She also said that the next time the woman next door starts giving us grief about things in our yard to just call her, since we have her phone number. She said that it's almost always someone who's mad at someone else who makes the calls. And she said she doesn't have time to deal with dandelions. She also said that the pile of pallets we have stacked up on the side of the house can stay, if it's 'usable wood'. It is.
I was talking to a friend about the whole situation today, and she said someone called on them a few years ago. She happened to go outside when the code enforcement officer was there to talk to her about things. The woman was very friendly and gave her an extension as well. She said that in her case the person who was calling was likely a realtor. Apparently several houses up and down the street had been reported, and when that happens it's usually a realtor who's trying to sell a house.
Jerks.
Breathing a little easier from the whole code enforcement situation.
Holding our breath on another.
My husband tested positive for TB when he had his physical a few days ago. We got the results right before the close of business yesterday. So we had to take the girls in to be tested this morning, and I'll go tomorrow. We won't have all the results until Monday.
Apparently, the positive result just means that he's been exposed to tuberculosis not that he has an active case. His chest x-rays must have shown that he does not have an active case, because the doctor said he's not contagious. Regardless, he has to be on antibiotics for 6 months in order to eradicate it. Even with antibiotic treatment there's a relapse rate of 2 to 5%. Not too bad, I suppose, but he'll have to be monitored with x-rays for the rest of his life.
It makes sense that he was exposed to it given his line of work, but I was surprised to find out that the bacteria can live for several months in the dust and air or on a hard surface. Makes those antibacterial wipes at the grocery store they put out to wipe your cart down even more appealing, doesn't it?
Onto a totally different subject...
I'm very thankful somebody mentioned D-Ribose for my fibromyalgia. Between that and the L-Theanine my friend mentioned, my fibro is not flaring. And considering the stress we've been under the last few weeks, that's absolutely amazing! So thanks to both of you!
My body and I appreciate it more than you can know!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Bitter little women.
So I'm starting this post on Tuesday night. I can't sleep. My head hurts. I either have the end of a really nasty cold trying to finish up or the beginnings of a nasty sinus infection getting well rooted. I can't tell for sure just yet. So I continue to rinse my sinuses and drink plenty of fluids. But the headache. Well, yeah. I don't think water's going to take care of it.
We have a crotchety old neighbor lady. She has one friend on the entire street and I think that other than that, only one other neighbor and myself are nice to her. She likes to stick her nose into everyone's business, and she's gossipy. She rarely has a nice word to say about anyone, so people just avoid her.
I sometimes think that she's bitter, because she's alone now. Her husband died shortly before Christmas 6 years ago or so, and they never had children. So she's very much alone. But she was bitter before he died. She was constantly telling me what I needed to do in my yard. She has a beautifully coiffed lawn with gorgeous flowers. I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see it in a magazine. Her husband spent countless hours gardening and tending those flowers from his mobility scooter before he died. And I'm sure that she feels that she needs to keep it up for him. I understand that. I really do.
The problem is that she feels that we need to keep our lawn up to her standards. And she's nasty about letting us know. Granted, we have a horrible yard. We know that. It's mostly weeds with grass in between in the front yard. Every year, we dig the weeds out the best we can, but we haven't had the money to lay sod. I don't see it happening anytime soon, either, land we'd need so much weed killer we'd have to sign over our firstborn to pay for it. We keep the lawn mowed, but the last couple of years, the elm tree sprouts have gotten out of hand. My husband spent an entire weekend a few weeks ago cutting them all down and wiping them with poison to hopefully keep them from coming back again.
So we do try. Honestly. But we inherited a horrible yard with no sprinkler system, and when you're raising a family on a single income, sod and sprinkler money can be hard to come by. And when you're raising two children with special needs who frequently need constant supervision, and you're dealing with medical problems on top of medical problems time can be hard to come by. Factor crazy work hours by the husband and you're looking at very little time for both of us to work in the yard together. There just aren't enough hours in the day.
About a month ago, she called me up after 8p.m., asked how things went with our daughter's wedding and proceeded to light into me. She didn't let me get a word in edgewise to try to explain everything that had been going on. She just started berating me. Then she threatened to call code enforcement on us. Out of total frustration I told her that in spite of the fact that her dog yaps at all hours for 20 or 30 minutes at a time, that we've never once complained. That we could easily have called in for a noise complaint, but we didn't. Not once.
Her answer? The dog barks because of us. We apparently have cats in our yard at night, and the dog goes nuts to try to chase the cats out of our yard. Mind you we don't own any cats. We never have. But the neighborhood cats that people let out of their houses to run around are apparently our fault as well, and that's why her dog barks. It's our fault.
After listening to her rant full throttle for 10 minutes, I told her I couldn't do it anymore. I was done. I told her, "I can't do this right now. I've got to go. Goodbye." And I hung up. I didn't feel that I hung up on her. I told her goodbye. She knew it was coming. I can live with myself over how I handled it. I didn't want it to escalate, and I knew the way I was feeling it was going to. I'd say something I regretted, and I caught myself before I did.
No sooner did I hang up the phone than she called again. She hung up without leaving a message. She apparently thought better of it and called back immediately. She started ranting on the answering machine yelling some more. She was quite ugly and said that I "didn't have to be so nasty." It went on and on.
So I told the hubby about it, and he called her once he calmed down. Told her that, if she had a problem that she should call him, and he gave her his cell phone number. He explained that with his work hours and my health and the girls, it's been difficult to get much done, but that we are working on things. He told her that he would be out of town the following weekend, so he wouldn't be able to do anything until after he got back home. She said she understood and would give him time to get things done.
He worked outside all weekend Mother's Day weekend (the weekend after he got back home), and all weekend last weekend. However, we found out that the bitter widow from next door called code enforcement anyway. In fact, they apparently came by and inspected things the Monday after Mother's Day. So she obviously did it out of spite, because she didn't give him time to get anything done.
The thing is, she is complaining about the backyard, which is in bad shape. The back porch is covered with stuff we need to get rid of, but it hasn't been nice enough outside for me to go out there with my husband and go through things. Even cool weather makes me ache from tip to tail, but when it's cold it's like I'm frozen stiff. But from our understanding code enforcement doesn't inspect backyards. It inspects what can be seen from the road.
And we do have something stored at the side of the house that they can see. We've been meaning to get it out of there for awhile. It's a trundle bed frame. I know it shouldn't be there. We've been waiting for a clear space to be able to bring it in, so we can use it. And now that the girls' room is finally clean, we have a place we can put it. It will be sprayed for bugs this weekend and brought in.
We also have 4 pallets neatly stacked on the side of the house that I had every intention of using for raised garden beds. They're made of 4x4x12' pieces of untreated solid oak. They'd be perfect to use, because they wouldn't leach any chemicals into the garden, etc. However, they've been neatly stacked there for several years, and we have used them to store the trash cans in the past as well. They're not an eyesore. In fact, they look like they're part of the house. But now we either have to get rid of them completely, or at least break them down and stack them up in a smaller area. We haven't decided 100% what we're going to do.
And while those are easily rectified situations, the other thing that code enforcement apparently has a problem with is the storage container with all our stuff from the basement that's on the driveway. It apparently "does not meet setbacks". So it's either too tall for the area, or it doesn't leave enough room for firefighters to get through, should we have a fire. We're not exactly clear on it.
According to the letter, we have 10 days to comply. Like I said. The two things are really no big deal. We can do them without a problem this weekend. However, we are not going to be able to unload the storage shed yet. So my husband is going to call in the morning and talk with the code enforcement officer. He's going to ask, if we can have a couple of months to get it unloaded and explain the situation. We already had plans to work on the basement and the back porch this weekend. Looks like those plans may be put on hold for a bit.
It's just been frustrating. We are working on things. We've made huge strides. But because they're strides that our meddling neighbor can't see, they're not good enough for her. And now my husband wants to find out, if the backyard is controlled by code enforcement. If it's not, (I believe it's only what can be seen from the street), he wants to pile the stuff that's at the side of the house right by her yard. Just to give her something to think about. I'm trying to talk him down, although I've had visions of white dandelion puffs and a leaf blower headed in her direction!
In the meantime, I've blocked her phone number. If she tries calling our house, she'll get a message that we're not accepting phone calls. The last thing any of us needs right now is her calling the house and going off on us.
Who needs the added stress?
We have a crotchety old neighbor lady. She has one friend on the entire street and I think that other than that, only one other neighbor and myself are nice to her. She likes to stick her nose into everyone's business, and she's gossipy. She rarely has a nice word to say about anyone, so people just avoid her.
I sometimes think that she's bitter, because she's alone now. Her husband died shortly before Christmas 6 years ago or so, and they never had children. So she's very much alone. But she was bitter before he died. She was constantly telling me what I needed to do in my yard. She has a beautifully coiffed lawn with gorgeous flowers. I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see it in a magazine. Her husband spent countless hours gardening and tending those flowers from his mobility scooter before he died. And I'm sure that she feels that she needs to keep it up for him. I understand that. I really do.
The problem is that she feels that we need to keep our lawn up to her standards. And she's nasty about letting us know. Granted, we have a horrible yard. We know that. It's mostly weeds with grass in between in the front yard. Every year, we dig the weeds out the best we can, but we haven't had the money to lay sod. I don't see it happening anytime soon, either, land we'd need so much weed killer we'd have to sign over our firstborn to pay for it. We keep the lawn mowed, but the last couple of years, the elm tree sprouts have gotten out of hand. My husband spent an entire weekend a few weeks ago cutting them all down and wiping them with poison to hopefully keep them from coming back again.
So we do try. Honestly. But we inherited a horrible yard with no sprinkler system, and when you're raising a family on a single income, sod and sprinkler money can be hard to come by. And when you're raising two children with special needs who frequently need constant supervision, and you're dealing with medical problems on top of medical problems time can be hard to come by. Factor crazy work hours by the husband and you're looking at very little time for both of us to work in the yard together. There just aren't enough hours in the day.
About a month ago, she called me up after 8p.m., asked how things went with our daughter's wedding and proceeded to light into me. She didn't let me get a word in edgewise to try to explain everything that had been going on. She just started berating me. Then she threatened to call code enforcement on us. Out of total frustration I told her that in spite of the fact that her dog yaps at all hours for 20 or 30 minutes at a time, that we've never once complained. That we could easily have called in for a noise complaint, but we didn't. Not once.
Her answer? The dog barks because of us. We apparently have cats in our yard at night, and the dog goes nuts to try to chase the cats out of our yard. Mind you we don't own any cats. We never have. But the neighborhood cats that people let out of their houses to run around are apparently our fault as well, and that's why her dog barks. It's our fault.
After listening to her rant full throttle for 10 minutes, I told her I couldn't do it anymore. I was done. I told her, "I can't do this right now. I've got to go. Goodbye." And I hung up. I didn't feel that I hung up on her. I told her goodbye. She knew it was coming. I can live with myself over how I handled it. I didn't want it to escalate, and I knew the way I was feeling it was going to. I'd say something I regretted, and I caught myself before I did.
No sooner did I hang up the phone than she called again. She hung up without leaving a message. She apparently thought better of it and called back immediately. She started ranting on the answering machine yelling some more. She was quite ugly and said that I "didn't have to be so nasty." It went on and on.
So I told the hubby about it, and he called her once he calmed down. Told her that, if she had a problem that she should call him, and he gave her his cell phone number. He explained that with his work hours and my health and the girls, it's been difficult to get much done, but that we are working on things. He told her that he would be out of town the following weekend, so he wouldn't be able to do anything until after he got back home. She said she understood and would give him time to get things done.
He worked outside all weekend Mother's Day weekend (the weekend after he got back home), and all weekend last weekend. However, we found out that the bitter widow from next door called code enforcement anyway. In fact, they apparently came by and inspected things the Monday after Mother's Day. So she obviously did it out of spite, because she didn't give him time to get anything done.
The thing is, she is complaining about the backyard, which is in bad shape. The back porch is covered with stuff we need to get rid of, but it hasn't been nice enough outside for me to go out there with my husband and go through things. Even cool weather makes me ache from tip to tail, but when it's cold it's like I'm frozen stiff. But from our understanding code enforcement doesn't inspect backyards. It inspects what can be seen from the road.
And we do have something stored at the side of the house that they can see. We've been meaning to get it out of there for awhile. It's a trundle bed frame. I know it shouldn't be there. We've been waiting for a clear space to be able to bring it in, so we can use it. And now that the girls' room is finally clean, we have a place we can put it. It will be sprayed for bugs this weekend and brought in.
We also have 4 pallets neatly stacked on the side of the house that I had every intention of using for raised garden beds. They're made of 4x4x12' pieces of untreated solid oak. They'd be perfect to use, because they wouldn't leach any chemicals into the garden, etc. However, they've been neatly stacked there for several years, and we have used them to store the trash cans in the past as well. They're not an eyesore. In fact, they look like they're part of the house. But now we either have to get rid of them completely, or at least break them down and stack them up in a smaller area. We haven't decided 100% what we're going to do.
And while those are easily rectified situations, the other thing that code enforcement apparently has a problem with is the storage container with all our stuff from the basement that's on the driveway. It apparently "does not meet setbacks". So it's either too tall for the area, or it doesn't leave enough room for firefighters to get through, should we have a fire. We're not exactly clear on it.
According to the letter, we have 10 days to comply. Like I said. The two things are really no big deal. We can do them without a problem this weekend. However, we are not going to be able to unload the storage shed yet. So my husband is going to call in the morning and talk with the code enforcement officer. He's going to ask, if we can have a couple of months to get it unloaded and explain the situation. We already had plans to work on the basement and the back porch this weekend. Looks like those plans may be put on hold for a bit.
It's just been frustrating. We are working on things. We've made huge strides. But because they're strides that our meddling neighbor can't see, they're not good enough for her. And now my husband wants to find out, if the backyard is controlled by code enforcement. If it's not, (I believe it's only what can be seen from the street), he wants to pile the stuff that's at the side of the house right by her yard. Just to give her something to think about. I'm trying to talk him down, although I've had visions of white dandelion puffs and a leaf blower headed in her direction!
In the meantime, I've blocked her phone number. If she tries calling our house, she'll get a message that we're not accepting phone calls. The last thing any of us needs right now is her calling the house and going off on us.
Who needs the added stress?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)