new label

So, in my attempt to organize (aka not do homework or practice...) I have created a new label: ihateplumbing.

Why? you ask? Well, why not.

Feel free to laugh.

okay, not quite as cursed as i thought

But, still cursed enough to hopefully never own a house on a septic tank.

So, yes, the yard was dug up, but for now it's not as bad as I thought. For now at least.

I was told that the main pipe from the house to the septic does need to be replaced, but the blockage is cleared.

So only the shower needs to be sanitized. And there is a medium sized hole in the front yard. It could have been a lot worse. Mmmhmm.

i swear i'm cursed

The septic demons strike again.

But at least the tank was easy to locate this time.

ugh.

It all started with a clogged toilet, that backed up into the shower, which resulted in the front yard being partially dug up.

Wait, you say. Isn't it Thanksgiving?

Why yes.

So the bathroom will be out of commission for at least all day tomorrow. Maybe more.

But in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I will instead give thanks that at least the guy who came out was able to locate the tank access, so the entire yard will not have to be dug up.

And thankfully the backup occurred after I had showered for the day.

awesome.

updates and the like

Wow, how about those celebrity deaths?

Farrah, Michael...and Billie Mays. He lived in Tampa, did you know that? I like Tampa.


Firstly. So the carpet is now almost dry. There's just one little corner in the big bedroom. That means kitty and won't be having sleep-over parties much longer. I may even sleep on the couch tonight. There's nothing better than a little furry thing pouncing on you in the middle of the night. nope. well, maybe a small sticky child.

The blowers will continue in the kitchen and bathroom for at least two more days. And then there's the carpet cleaning to happen. BUT, at least there's progress.


Secondly. Well, the stove is unplugged. My first reaction was, well shoot, I'll have to eat out more, but I've been trying to eat in more, and learn well, practice cooking, etc. etc. So, I remembered my wee crockpot, and decided to experiment.

An aside: I was typing in the word reserved to send in a text message, and perestroika came up. wow.

Okay, so I threw in a frozen chicken breast, some raspberry dressing, blackberry freezer jam I made earlier, a dollop of horseradish the parents must have bought, and some onion powder. Let sit on high for 4 hours or so, and voila, tasty yumminess. I put it on low, and put some rice in the rice cooker, put some carrots on the plate, and buttered bread, and it was a nice meal.

Thirdly. I changed phone services, because I was tired of spending money on something I don't use! Even with breaking my contract early, I'm still saving money every month.

I switched from that one with that one guy and glasses, to a prepay service. I had nothing against my previous carrier, it just didn't have a plan for those types of people who really don't talk on the phone all that much.

Fourthly. I finally saw Star Trek, and UP!

I quite enjoyed them both. I must say, I really enjoy matinee showings!

Fifthly. And now for those who have made it down to the very bottom: I reserved my right to veto the votes. I would probably have voted for Persephone myself - and I still really like the name. It's a beautiful name in theory, but I just didn't see myself using it on a daily basis for x years. Plus, dad didn't like it much. I think he was just mad his suggestion didn't get any votes. :)

So, I began trying to find a common denominator in successful past pet names. (Here they are from the most recent living)


Hatti
Magoo... or Tanker (I guess)

They were always puppies. They were good doggies. Hatti was the best one of the two - they were brother and sister muttlets. It will be a while before I can get another pup pup...taking the both of them on their last walk...not fun.

Albert/o and Alberto Segundo

A beautiful blue beta who became Alberto after I received my mission call to speak Spanish.
My dad and Matthew swear that Albert died while I was on my mission, and replaced him with another Beta fish before I got home.

Scooter Pie the III (We just called him Scooter

We gave this little runlet to Grandma Smith when we moved to Utah. He was a sweet puppy till he was influenced by the two tyrants we already had. (Hatti and Magoo) He died of diabetes.

Snowball kitty (aka Bob after she lost her tail)

She also stayed in Arizona with Grandma and Papa. White cat - snow - didn't think that was a good mix. She was an alley cat that was given to us by a neighbor who heard of Felix's death.

Willy

A lhasa apso that was mistreated, who we took in at Aunt Mellers request. He wasn't nice to very many people outside our family, but he was a good dog. His claim to fame is biting the principal that no one liked at the nearby elementary school. He became a sort of hero to parents everywhere.

Matthew also put his print shop skills to use when Willy had to go on his long walk...he put up 'Mom is a dog killer' signs, complete with skull and cross bones.

Felix

A black kitty who let a little girl dress him up and carry him around the house in purses. I remember walking home from elementary school through our orchard, and there was this circle of kids, staring down...it was poor little Felix, who stomach had been ripped open. Needless to say, he was d - e - d dead. :( That was a sad day.

Wow, that was a bit morbid.

Ahem.

So I also noticed that most of the names were two syllables long, and lent themselves well to nicknames.

Without further ado, kitty's name is Maxine.

So, there you have it folks.

on the bright side...

I did just get cheap-o bookcases for my books, so none of them were on the floor.

Nor any of my fabric.

The only casualties were some empty boxes I was keeping for storage, and possibly my sewing machine and printer. They were on the wet carpet.

But, I have renter's insurance just in case! Yay!

See, there IS a bright side to this. I just hope I remember that four days later when my ears are ringing because of the blowers and kittymeowmeow is going crazy because of the noise. :)

wooo-eee!

A couple of things: one, Persephone won in the poll. It's not for sure yet, but I liked the name too. I'll let you know soon.
There are days, though, when I think Hades would be more appropriate.

Story: I was ignoring the little darling, trying to clean a few things up, so she climbed up on the back of a chair, and then leaped at me, while standing, catching onto my stomach with her claws. Owie.

But, thankfully, those events are few and far between.

I doubt I'd use this name, but I thought Bella may work, too. You know, vampires, bloodsuckers, black cat....



Okay. Next story, and why I haven't officially decided yet on her name.

Today, about 1:30ish, I went into my room to read a book, and take a nap. (You try lounging on the couch with a kitten who wants to play!)

I finally came out around 5:30 (I guess I was more tired than I thought....) and almost immediately stepped into soggy carpet.

I swear I'm cursed!

It turns out, the neighbor's wash machine water intake thing burst, and since they have tile floors, and rugs, it all leaked (okay, their apartment was a LOT worse than mine) a lot leaked over to my apartment, too.

I'll post pictures later. I'm not quite sure where my camera picture uploader thing is, and everything is a mess.

Deep breath.

Breathing.

AAARRRGGHHH!

Thankfully, my neighbor was outside; I forget why I was out there, but I asked him if he was having problems. It turns out he works for a water restoration place. My landlord came right over. All is being taken care of.

Side note: my neighbor was surprised how calm I was. I just am glad it's clean water.

Things are almost all soaked up - it's just the matter of the how much moisture leaked up the drywall.

And I'll get the blower things in my apartment for a number of days. Poor kittymeowmeow. She's currently shut up in my room because the front door is open to let the water soaker upper's hose dump the water in the lawn.

So what did you do today?

septic success!

Here is a lot closer to the end. A stub was found a few feet into the road. I can't remember when all was officially done. Now all we have is an awesome rock filled pile of dirt! Every child's dream. But in this dream, a creek used to run through the property so it is littered with large rocks.

A huge public thanks to Matthew. He dealt with the drama of it all. And Sarah who finished the deal. And Del the digger guy. It would not have happened without them!

septic success... almost

In the almost never ending drama of becoming a sewered house, here are some pictures that I took during the process.











These pictures are from the early days of the process. Before we found out our stub didn't exist within the property, well, one did, but it was out in the street.

ode on a septic tank

Sometimes, our problems are only seen by those nearest and dearest.
Sometimes they are laid bare for all to see.
Always they exist, most times hard to find, buried deep as deep can be.

Yet joined together, no longer alone: these troubles will still arise.

There is a pattern, alone or not these issues will develop.
Let us be kind to, Yes! ourselves - and share life's ups and downs

This life is so worth living!

With those whose Hand is proffered.