Good Morning Everybody 🙂
"Clink!"

Hi Subclinical 🙂
Your plan for smoothing out your weekly work and new class schedule is great!
Simplifying your life in the same way you simplified driving with the "new" car. ;D

Hi CriticalMass 🙂
I've been thinking...
Even if you have to borrow a little bit to get a new & improved vehicle, it would actually be less expensive than keeping on with the constant repairs you have now with the van.
And maybe the new vehicle would be better on gas mileage too.
The insurance should not be much different than what you have now either.

Another cold cloudy day with rain predicted.
Planning to use up that little bit of left over lavender kitchen paint to give the kitchen area another coat.
Such a tiny area, should not take long at all.
Already did the wall where I removed that cupboard last month.
Then the whole area will be freshly painted and the jar of leftover paint will be ALL GONE!
YEA!!! ;D
I figured out why the kitchen always looks grubby to me.
Years ago we got new wood cabinets and counter top.
They are unfinished raw wood.
I wanted to paint them but Steven said "NO!" he was going to stain and varnish them.
Well, it's been around TEN years with these unfinished cabinets that I can't easily keep clean.
So, my plan is soon as the weather is nice I'm going to prime and paint the %#@& things and to *%&# with him and his never happening plans!
;P

You are correct, Tillie - the gasoline smell has been a mystery for awhile, and it would come and go. Once after some work on the fuel and exhaust systems thought we had it licked.

Anony, three trannies - just wow. We are in a similar boat.

SubC, yes, that is how things feel in many areas of my life including the van. I will definitely have my mechanic in on the hunt for a different vehicle. In addition to mechanical stuff, he knows all the crooked tricks people try to pull with cars they want to sell to hide issues. He told us the other day about how they'll remove the bulb from the check engine light - and he'll shine a flashlight and see the bulb is missing and call them out on it!

And oh boy can I relate to feeling out of sync with life. So much so that when I DO have a moment of feeling in sync, it's memorable. Like the song of the show "Friends" - it hasn't been my day, my week, my month, or even my year. Sometimes not even my decade.

But like i the song, you'll be there for me and I'll be here for you!

Captcha is "Borne Extra." Feel like I sure have borne extra here lately.

Anony, I so want you to be able to go to that workshop! Even if you can only stand back and take notes! People will understand that you have been ill.

And CM , I wish that you would have a new vehicle. My "new" car has made such a difference - even though I have a car payment now - which has cut into some other things, i didn't realize how stressful it was to never be completely sure the car was going to start, or get where I was going, and the walking around in circles and leaning and stretching and climbing because some of the doors didn't work, or lock/unlock correctly. Worrying if the windows would roll back up, tracking miles because the gas gauge didn't work... you slowly get used to things without realizing the weight....

So I am asking the universe to bring you a minivan.

Tillie, that out of sync with the universe - that is how I have felt for months now. Like I was trying to play a song I had never heard before and the notes were just a list of letters with no duration or tempo. So I am stumbling along, and every now and then I hit a few in tune with the orchestra and think "yes, I have it now", only to have everything change in the next measure.

There were so many things I had planned to accomplish on break, but it seemed like I had lost all motivation. I feel like I have finally taken some time to "stop trying to play" and just "listen to the song."

I did one thing yesterday. I made some clay pieces for a project for my class next Friday. (Plus I have washed some stacking drawer pieces.)

I feel like now, if I just stop trying to fit in "extra" things, and just work on being prepared so next week will go smoothly, and then next week smooth the path for the week after that, eventually, it will be like my car and I will have more energy because there will be less wearing on me. I will "learn the chorus" and work on the rest of the song later.

There are ten more weeks of school and Monday I start taking a class that is 8 weeks long. So, I am going to try to spend the next three days creating a general outline for ten weeks, making a specific plan for the first week, and getting fully prepared for Monday.

Hi Anonymoniker 🙂

That mystery smell in CriticalMass' van was most likely that dry rotted fuel line.
So now we know where that gas smell came from.
I've had that happen before and it's a scary situation.

I don't believe all those obstacles & barricades
are for a reason.
What I think is that sometimes the world is out of sync with us.
Like sometimes we need to speed up or slow down to get back in sync with the rest of the planet.
Usually it's slowing down and getting centered that brings us back into harmony with the universe.
(((hugs)))

Tillie, thank you, i hope im ok by then, but its only a few days & there is no way i could do even an hour of that kind of work the way i feel now!
CM, im so glad you didnt blow up in your van! It does seem your van has been an ongoing problem since ive known you on this board? Im still concerned over that mysterious smell in your van? My car is on its 3d transmission in a year. Last time i drove it, i accidently hit the A/C button, which i was told could set it on fire cuza some reason or another. I know ill be safer in a sturdy truck, if i can figure out how to find one on the internet, pick one out, with no mechanical knowledge or guy in my life that knows cars, and can afford a decent one. I hope you get a reliable vehicle soon, too?!
Im binge watching the Sex And The City series again. I dont know why, but i still havent burned out on it after watching it maybe 5 times?
......i do wonder if all these obstacles & barricades are for a reason...?

Anonymoniker,
I was hoping that by the time the workshop came around
you would no longer be infectious and be on the mend.
(((hugs)))

Hi CriticalMass 🙂
Thanks for posting! 😀
We worry when people are absent for too long.
I say finding a minivan is a great plan.
Just have your mechanic check it out thoroughly before you buy.

Watching "StarTalk" on youtube with Stephen Hawking and Neal deGrasse Tyson.

Hi, still alive, but struggling. Apparently the van had more tricks in store for me. Fuel line dry rot this time. Mechanic busy as usual, says he's coming, doesn't show, rinse and repeat.

Anony, I get what you mean about something always coming up. I realize I was blessed that the battery was also dead on Sunday morning because if it had sparked with the gasoline vapors maybe I wouldn't be sitting here typing this. Trying to have gratitude about that. I suppose it's the uncertainty that gets to me the most.

I am to the point that this repair is really the last one I want to do on the van. Even though I'll have to borrow, if at all possible I want to get a newer-to-me minivan, and sell the big old one for whatever I can get. Don't want to wait until big things like transmission, engine, etc. start to fail. I can finish my hauling tasks with a minivan.

I saw those coincidences about Stephen Hawking except not the Pi Day one. That's cool. RIP to an amazing man.

I hope it's not embarrassment that makes me not want to come here and post about all this van stuff. More likely it's just I'm so sick of it all myself. So if I'm not here as much, that's why, and I hope you all are doing well and I'll be back when I have some news I'm not so tired of imparting.

Tillie, its not just a matter of maybe collapsing, but it would not be right to bring this bug to the people at the workshop. Im coughing & sneezing all over the place. I just now went out to do fresh water bowls for the animals & had to come back in & lay down before i even got started!

Hi Anonymoniker 🙂

OK, So here's the plan...
Go to bed right now.
Drink plenty of fluids.
Save up ALL your strength and energy for the earthbag workshop.
Go to the workshop.
Apologize for not being too helpful and sickly.
The people WILL understand since this year almost every single human has had that flu.
Learn everything about building earthbag homes, take lots of notes.

((((HUGS)))) 😉

~Happy Ides of March to all!~
And, aside from all the other previously listed so-called 'coincidental' birth/death dates of our great scientists, Stephen Hawkings was born on the 300th anniversary of Galileo's death!!!
I have a most horrid flu bug. That, in itself, is not a big deal, EXCEPT that for the roughly 5 years that i have been attempting to improve my place, literally every time i try to make a new plan, or anything towards improvement, at least one barricade jumps in my path. It is no way a 'coincidence.' The fact i just talked about coincidences just shows they arent. I dont know what the 'message' is supposed to be, but id really like to know!!! As soon as the earthbag workshop was announced, my back went out, then i got this aweful flu. Is this some subconscious sabotage on my part? Is the Universe trying to tell me to give up on it? ....im so weak right now, i cant imagine helping to build a house in a few days....

Good Morning Everyone 🙂
"Clink!"

Another possibly rainy day.
Got only light sprinkles yesterday.
Forgot I have a dental appointment on the 29th.Just a routine cleaning.
Oh Well... I'll worry about that next week. ;D
Quite a few Daffodil buds out there this year.
Going "stir crazy" stuck inside waiting for winter to be over with.
But it is a good time to do inside stuff so when Spring comes I can spend all my time outside.
YEA 😀

Yeah, WOW!

But he was such a remarkable thinker
it is only fitting.

.....ok, not hording related, but i wanted to add the even more interesting phenomenon of it also being PI day(3/14) on Stephen Hawkings 'departure' AND Einstein's birthday?!?!? Wow?!! ~☆~

~☆~Greetings & coffee clinks!~☆~
I think it is interesting that Stephen Hawking died on Einstein's birthday?! Astrologically, that kinda makes sense!
SubC, i can not believe how much you get accomplished?!! Even at rest you are getting soooo much done?!! You are like Superwoman!!!
Tillie, yes, ive been questioning my insistence on staying independent with this offer from my friend that just inherited money, to help me buy a truck. It has meant sooo much to me, but id never feel right about it, especially cuz its not an emergency, plus hed asked me to borrow money years ago & i told him i could not risk letting go of thousands of dollars, but i gave him just a few hundred to keep. He may have actually paid me back?!? I feel so guilty now?!
There are some gorgeous murals ive seen online! Ive always loved city murals! And the social/political mural(graffiti) art has always been my favorite!!! I have a box of beautiful empty wine bottles for a possible wall, and i think you might mean Hobbit houses that are a thing now. If i were artistic, i could really do a lot! I dont want to get in over my head.
I really like your agreement with 'worry' ...that truly does make sense! 😀
Im just trying to get over this cold flu in time for next week's workshop....and not let my nose drip all over my cat....(ugh) ~♡~♡~♡~

Good Morning Everybody 🙂
"Clink!"

Beautiful clear blue skies this morning.
80% chance of rain sometime today?
Slept in till 9am! ;D
Hoping next week will be a good time to work in the yard.
But today I will just putter around inside.

Stephen Hawking died 🙁

Sweet dreams 🙂
He is such a sweetheart! (((hugs)))

Tillie thank you so much. I just talked to BF again. It's after midnight, he worked all day and all night, including shoveling around his business, got home and had to shovel his parking place, and when I called him to say goodnight, he was clearing off his neighbor's car so she won't have to in the AM. He's such a good person. A lot like you.

Goodnight, I'll try to calm my head. I'll breathe.

Hi Tatoulia 🙂

Sorry you are worrying. (((HUGS)))
Stress causes cortisol and that makes belly fat.
Then we have to worry about that too.

When we finally discovered that Steven had a brain tumor I decided that I would wait and hear what the neurologist had to say before I started to worry.
The brain surgeon told me that he believed that he could successfully remove it and hopefully there would be no brain damage even though it was 5 centimeters ( the size of a billiard ball)and had gone undiagnosed for between 15 to 18 years.
He said that it was a meningioma and those were usually benign.
But as usual with any surgery things can go wrong and there was a possibility he would suffer brain damage to any level of disability, even a vegetative state.
But he honestly believed this could be successfully removed with little to no damage.
Also it had reached a stage where it was now periodically blocking off blood flow to his entire brain and could kill him at any time.
And there was also a large thumb size aneurism nestled right in there.
So, I put all my faith in the skill of the doctor.
This was in a hospital I used to work in and had even had this doctor visit us when we were operating on one of our patients.
I refused to worry until it was necessary.
The doctors nurse thought I did not understand the seriousness of the situation and wanted me to be worrying.
I told her that I would worry when the doctor told me to start worrying.
I was seriously concerned but not worrying.
Had I allowed myself to start worrying and fretting I would not have been able to survive or be of any help for him throughout all this.

Slow deep breaths.
Learn all the facts.
Have faith. (((HUGS)))

Tillie I hear you. But I enjoy the thought of helping you! I pictured you and Cory just sipping some tea while all the junk is carted away!

We got a lot of snow here. I'm determined to go to work tmr no matter what. I just showered and washed my hair and put on clean pjs.

I used the be the first one bundling up and running errands during storms. Now I just stay home. When my BF and I first started dating I'd be up hanging out at his office, sipping coffee, shoveling, talking to the neighbors. Now I just stay in. I guess time is catching up with me.

I'm going to make dinner even though it's late. I wonder if they'll give us a delayed opening at work tmr. It doesn't really matter as I go in when I feel like it anyway. Part of me wishes that it would be another snow day and I could be one of the few in the office.

I've been worrying out of proportion lately. I was just talking to BF and I'm worried about so much stuff. He managed to make me laugh about it so that's good.

Hello 🙂

Hi Anonymoniker 🙂
Lets see...
what key words should we use to google images of houses done up with murals or fantasy themes?
Seems a lot of people have decorated or made homes with salvaged materials and gotten very interesting results.
First one that comes to mind are the "bottle" houses. Then there are the ones made to look like cartoon homes.
Seriously, start looking into this home beautification plan. ;D

Hi Subclinical 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! for getting stuff done! (((hugs)))
So very, very nice of you to make Grandmother Brown's recipes.
I was the only one who would ever make my Father's favorites from his Mother's recipes, and they aren't even all that hard.

Hi Tatoulia 🙂
So extremely sweet & kind of you to offer (((HUGS)))
But, I am a pig headed independent woman and will try my best to handle this all by myself, even if it kills me.
Writing that out I sound just like so many others who have been posting here. ;P

All that baking sounds so cozy and aromatic!
Best kind of aromatherapy on a dark cold stormy day.
So far we have just had a bit of sprinkling and a whole lotta wind.
Been watching stuff on ROKU, did some beading, ate lunch.
Need to straighten out my sock & nightgown drawer, should take about 2 minutes.
My apricot tree is starting to bloom and a hyacinth has one blossom on it even though the bud stalk has yet to sprout up.

Fairytale, not tail. Now I see anony's house with a cute little bunny tail or a big peacock fan.

I wish I had been baking brownies. I am making "grandmother Brown's shoofly pie" I swear, that woman must have loved to bake more than anything in the world. It took me an hour and a half to get the stupid thing in the oven! AND I broke my pastry cutter. Grandmother Brown was dh great grandmother, and all of his favorite desserts come from her and take FOREVER! His mother won't make them.

SubC great progress! very proud of you! I know it's not easy. My brother and I talked about "breaking the seal of inertia" and how often one thing can lead to doing another thing. I'm baking too today! I had two eggs left and decided to bake brownies. We are in the midst of a blizzard.

Anony I think you can tell that we all love the idea of your putting a mural on your home!

Tillie, if Steven goes first, I will help you. I will hire Cory to take care of it. And since you're not sentimental about the hoard, he can enjoy an iced tea with you instead of having to convince you to whittle things down.

Ok kids I love you all.

So, today is the first day that I am actually not at work when I would be.

I did my chores and went to the doctor and got groceries.

Then I came home and started to slump, so I set myself a challenge - I did work and did not sit during my l7nch duty time:
Car cleaned out, fire going, woodbox filled, dishwasher running, catalogs pulled out for seed order.

Then I spent my planning period reading. Now it is over and I am going to work on baking and the seed order until my class time would be over.

Anony, maybe you could do a fairytail/fantasy style cottage?

~♡~Good Morning & coffee clinks!~♡~
Tillie, yes, please play all day long!!! 😀
I keep fantasizing about actually doing a mural of a quaint cottage on this big wreckage of trailer yuckage that i reside in? My place is so horrid, that itd need to be done in a sort of parady? I could even accent it with colorful glass blobs? Im seriously thinking this might be really cute?
Theres a mural artist in town that i could maybe even hire? 😀

~♡~Good Morning & coffee clinks!~♡~
Tillie, yes, please play all day long!!! 😀
I keep fantasizing about actually doing a mural of a quaint cottage on this big wreckage of trailer yuckage that i reside in? My place is so horrid, that itd need to be done in a sort of parady? I could even accent it with colorful glass blobs? Im seriously thinking this might be really cute?
Theres a mural artist in town that i could maybe even hire? 😀

Darn CAPTCHA is emlee "TILES".
Just can't seem to get away from TILES 🙁

Good Morning Everybody 🙂
"Clink!"

Was going to do some more laundry today but it looks like the weather forecast may be right and it may rain by noon.
Woke up this morning a little before 5am and couldn't fall back to sleep so I got up.
No plans to do anything today so I guess today I will just play. 🙂

Hi Subclinical 🙂
No apology necessary.
Just post as much as you need to, that's what this message board is for.
WAY TO GO!!! for making that doctor appointment!
Good idea to wash the plastic drawers and dishes together to make a full dishwasher load.
Your CAPTCHA is GREAT! 😀

Motivation is sometimes a hard thing to come by.
What I do is to pick just one little thing to do that will make me feel better about things.
Then, I do one more little task whether I want to or not.
Working with depression is like trying to run under water, lots of effort to accomplish very little.

Tillie, I missed your post!

I am afraid that I have rested too much. "Doing nothing" is very comfortable and i'm Afraid it is getting to be a habit. Also, it is not making me feel good about myself.

I have a doctors appointment tomorrow, and my daughter called. She said I get one imaginary gold star for making the appointment, and I can have another if I actually go.

My captcha says "first aid Place" ! I have never had a good one before!

Apologies for the serial posts. I am having a hard time finding motivation, so I am hoping this will help.

I sorted through my food bank "bounty" and tossed half a dozen loaves of bread with "sell by" dates after my last trip to the grocery store into the fridge or freezer. I gave the chickens all my previous open bread. Left the rest bagged in the garage.

Realized that with milking i'm going to have more than one dishwasher load most days (but not two)

Remember those plastic stacking drawers I brought home so long ago? I cleaned off one frame and one drawer and then fit them in the dishwasher with the dirty dishes from milking, breakfast, and lunch. There are 14 drawers, so if I run two loads a day, I will be done and ready to use the drawers before I go back to school.

That is something.

I like the dishwasher and the washing machine because they are jobs I can start that will go on without me.