Is anyone here?!!

I do miss the earlier days when there were multiple posts a day to read and respond to. Maybe we can revive this list if we make a point of checking in every week and posting something...anything...just to say we're still alive and still improving our living spaces.

I'm probably not going on vacation this year. My Master's degree class won't end until mid-August, and since I'm going back into the classroom part-time next year and also chairing the 8th grade humanities department as we get a brand new English curriculum and incorporate so new materials into the history curriculum, I'll probably be spending the rest of August in meetings. I'm still trying to finish installing the laminate flooring upstairs. I bought it in November and am still not done getting it in; it's hard to find time and harder to find help. Then I have to turn my attention to the kitchen and bathroom floors because the tiles are cracking. There is some kind of problem with the subfloor that'll need fixing. I'd love new countertops in the kitchen, too, and have in mind some kind of quartz or quartz-like product, but I don't know if I want to put that much money in a place I want to sell.

I'm trying for an easy-care garden this summer. I'm experimenting with flower seeds for shade gardens in my back yard. My hostas, columbine, and coral bells have come back beautifully. Hostas are a no-fail plant around here. I'm not planting vegetables this year...too much work. I'll go to the farmers' market and support the local economy. I've become the tiniest bit militant about not buying plants treated with neonicotinoids since they're so closely linked to bee die-off. I accidentally bought a three-color hydrangea at Home Depot that I didn't realize was treated with those until I had it home and in a pot. The little tag that announced the presence of those chemicals was buried in the inside of the plant and not announced on the HUGE tag that had been placed on the outer leaves. I've told HD I won't buy plants from them anymore until they no longer carry plants not treated with neonics. There's a nursery I can go to where I know the plants are not treated.

Our weather has been warm for the Pacific Northwest. We've had some lovely sunny days that are making the plants grow and some rainy days that make it unnecessary to water every day.

I've been shifting furniture around in my condo just because I was sick of the layout. I'm still not happy with it, but it'll do for now. The configuration of the space and the collection of furniture I own preclude very many different arrangements. Oh, to have the Property Brothers help me find and remodel a real house!! I was not expecting to buy a new microwave, but the housekeeper accidentally pulled the handle off my 20 year old microwave, and they're no longer selling replacement parts, so I went ahead and bought a new one. It was less than $300 at Home Depot, has a rack so I can heat up frozen dinners and leftovers in two layers, and will be just fine for this place. It's probably better to replace it before it dies, anyway. But two days after I paid for the new oven, my laptop died, so off I went to Office Depot (I seem to have a weakness for stores with the word "depot" in their names) and picked out a new computer in about ten minutes. I had already been looking at computers since I knew mine was on its last legs. I got an HP Pavilion all-in-one, and I must say I really like it. I bought a wireless keyboard and mouse that I can just tuck in a drawer when I'm not using them, and the computer itself takes up very little space on the little green desk in my living room. I can see it from the kitchen if I want to watch a DVD. This was one of the few computers I've seen recently that still accepts DVDs. Also, it has very good built-in speakers, so I don't have to clutter up the small desk with extra speakers. I listen to a lot of online radio stations, so that was important to me.

My next big purchase will be a TV. I only just got satellite TV in December after living in this condo for 8 years. I still almost never watch TV (except for Property Brothers and a few things on PBS) but I only have this clunky TV from like fifteen years ago that has about a 12 inch screen and a place to insert a VHS tape. I need to buy a flat panel, probably about 28 inches, which seems plenty big enough, and put it on a long swivel arm so I can watch it from the kitchen or the dining room. When my next online class starts at the end of June, I won't have time to watch TV again until the class ends, anyway. Then it'll be time to buy tile, I guess.

My cats continue to tear up the place. They've broken a lamp, spilled a plant, and come close to breaking another lamp. Hamlet lays across my neck every night to chew on my pajama sleeve; one of these nights he's going to suffocate me in my sleep. Beowulf, my older cat, still doesn't care for the kittens, especially since Hamlet is always jumping on him. They're kind of hard on window screens, plants, and anything I leave lying around. Still, I love having them all around. They're good company.

That's it for me. I'm still yearning for a real house, but beyond that, I'm happy with things. I love my job, I have good friends, and I am enjoying taking the Master's Degree classes and really challenging myself. At age 59, it's pretty good for me to have to exercise my brain. Life is good. I hope everyone else is doing well, too.

Shabbychick

Big waves to shabby and Linn! So good to see some posts on here. I think your idea of trying to come on and post at least once a week is a good idea, shabby. Sometimes I really do try to think of something, and can't, but if everyone is doing some sort of post, it might give all of us ideas:).

We will probably go on a couple of short 3 day or weekend vacations at some point this summer. Probably in MO or OK, and maybe AL and TN. I've sent off for some vacation packets to get some ideas. I'd love to take a longer vacation out west to see everything out there, but it is not in the cards for us right now. My husband can't get away from his job for very long, as there is no one to replace him while he is gone. 

Yes, cats are so destructive to a house. They are the reason I don't have a rug of any type on my floors. And the cat hair is pretty bad right now, though most of my cats go outside for the day (we live WAY out in the country and there isn't much traffic). Only one of them is indoors very much at all and she has short hair, so I count that as a blessing! 

We have a small raised bed garden planted with tomatoes, onions, lettuce, peppers, and potatoes. I plan to plant some cucumbers and squash, as well. My dad has a nice patch of corn, so we're hoping to get some of that. I'll help my mom get it ready to freeze and I plan on canning a lot of tomatoes, salsa, and jam this summer. I usually buy strawberries for jam, and we grow grapes and muscadines. We have some fruit trees, but they are too young for fruit, just yet. And the weather has been a little cool, but no doubt it will warm up.

My husband is building some cabinets to go on each side of my Hoosier cabinet in the dining room, and we hope to have that project finished in a week or two. We would also like to get a porch added on to the side of our house this summer, but finding someone to do the work is not easy.

I"d love to see posts from more of you!

Oh my, your cat does live dangerously! I'm sure he is lots of fun, LOL. The dryer incident is rather scary. Hopefully, he learned his lesson and won't get back in there again. We have two cats that are bad about getting in visitors cars if they leave down their windows, so we have to check before they leave. My youngest cat is almost 4 and she is the 'scare-dy' cat around here. She mostly just loves to sit with people when she is in. I don't leave her out at night, as she is fairly small. The rest of them insist on staying outside unless it's too cold. My oldest one is 21 years old. She is deaf as can be, but can still see well, despite the obvious cataracts on her eyes. We pretty much let her do and eat what she wants. She started suffering from UTIs two years ago and the medicine to cure them made her very sick. I finally found a good herbal pet medicine and it has done wonders for her.

I am not a very good gardener. I tried to think of my plants that stay green all year, and only came up with two of them. The Nandina bushes stay green all year. They get tall, but you can keep them trimmed. Also, my rosemary plant stays green all year. I am not sure of your weather, but it is supposed to survive down to 10 degrees. We get colder than that at times and I have lost a few of them. I am planting one on the south side of the house this summer and hope it will finally have a warm spot for the winter.