4th of July weekend

It was a bit strange having 4^th of July on Wednesday this year.  First of all, I called  it “4^th of July weekend”, assuming that everyone had Monday and Tuesday off, like me.  Someone told me that this was “retiree speak” since the rest of the world had to work both days.   What can I say?

Another strange thing was the lack of neighborhood fireworks.  There was a fireworks ban in much of the greater Indianapolis area this year due to drought conditions.  In years past, I recall driving through the city and seeing fireworks everywhere you looked.   This year fireworks were sparse, and you wondered whether folks would be arrested if they ignored the ban.

We had a great, long “weekend” in Indy and enjoyed a variety of outdoor activities in this awful heat.  We got in several good bike rides in Eagle Creek Park which may have been a bit crazy in the heat which was generally in the low-mid 90’s in the late morning.  Even with lots of water and the beautiful shaded areas of the park, I could feel the effects of the heat later in the day when my energy was zapped.  We recognize that we need to ride bikes earlier in the morning if this heat continues.  Of course it will be a tough choice between sleeping in and exercising… gotta love these retirement choices!

Biking at Eagle Creek Park

 We spent Saturday morning visiting lions, giraffes and bears at the zoo.  We participated in a “walkabout” where we got to visit the exhibits before the zoo opened to the general public.  I loved hearing the lions roar (for no apparent reason-at least that I understood...) and watching the giraffes “necking”.   Ok, it looked like necking, but upon closer look the giraffes were pushing heads and the necks got in the way.   

 I can’t say that I enjoyed the “desert “ display of lizards and snakes.  I swear that all the hair on my body was standing up while looking at each snake.  Although I can appreciate a certain beauty, I can’t get past my fear of snakes.  Although some would say my fear is irrational, it is borne of my childhood experience of black snakes hanging in cedar trees in a very old cemetery that my family mowed.  Although probably only 5 feet long, from the eyes of a kid they were at least 20 feet long!  And I couldn’t really fully enjoy wading in the creek on a hot summer day due to fear of copperhead snakes along the banks.  And then there was the ever-present snake in mom’s strawberry patch called "Peewee", but that’s another story. So pardon me if I don’t exactly enjoy the snake exhibit!

We enjoyed a great summer evening with friends at Conner Prairie with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra performing the music of Queen.  It was a hot, sultry night with 100-degree temps and 2 rain showers, but that didn’t detract from an amazing concert.  People just pulled out their umbrellas during the rain, and when you are singing along to your favorite Queen songs like “We are the Champions”,  “Somebody to Love”,“Fat Bottom Girl”,  “Another One Bites the Dust” and “Bohemian Rhapsody”, you forget about the heat.

Sunset at Conner Prairie

Mike and John enjoying the music

John, Mike, Stacy Jo, Stacy's dad Rocky, Brian and Brian's daughter Kathleen

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra

Chuck and Melanie invited us to a barbecue on the 4^th of July.  Ribs, corn on the cob, potato salad, and cheesecake…it doesn’t get any better than that!  Their cool house was a wonderful respite on a hot day, even during the power outage that lasted a couple of hours.  They are wonderful cooks and we had a great time talking, eating, drinking and watching a movie!  Driving home around midnight in the Jeep with the windows down, it was cool (only 80 degrees) and quiet in the city.  Without fireworks, it seemed the city shut down early. 

As the norm, you expect Mike to fix things.  He didn't let me down on this long weekend...

He rebuilt a carburetor for his 1973 Challenger.  I never saw so many small parts…

How does this thing go together?

A quick drive in the 'hood after the carburetor was rebuilt

 We are headed back to Iowa to knock out a few more projects.   We are looking forward to finishing up our work soon and making the big move.  Scary but exciting, it feels like change is in the wind!  After a great, hot 4^th of July weekend, we are ready for it!

Diane

Let the craziness continue

Well, the week started off with an offer on the house, and then it just got crazier after that.

Our realtor called about 9pm on Sunday night saying she had an offer on our house and asking if she could stop by.  We spent about an hour with her discussing a "low ball offer" from a couple who had been at the house twice in the past week. Although we were pleased to get an offer, we didn't agree with their low offer which included us paying them a sizeable amount at closing so they could update bathrooms including knocking out walls, adding a shower and other crazy stuff like that.  They also wanted to buy a new air conditioner and furnace even though they are working fine and come with a seller's warranty.

But we played the game and came up with our counter offer on Monday morning.  That began a series of back and forth offers for most of Monday. By the end of the day, the deal was off because the prospective buyers could not get the ridiculous price they wanted.  We felt like we wasted an entire day, but we both got comfortable with our bottom line in selling the house.  I'm sure this will help us down the road with more serious offers.

Laundry room is finished!

Next came a realtor's open house mid-week.  In preparation,we raced around like crazy people. We cleaned decks and windows, painted siding, finished the laundry room  and then of course did our normal house cleaning!  We had about 20 realtors traipse through the house, and the feedback was very positive.  Hopefully all of this work will result in additional showings.

Mirror in mirror in mirror...

Tonight we put up a funky new mirror in the master bathroom.   Of course we still need new lights and a vanity, but tomorrow is another day...

And despite all this house stuff, we find time for fun stuff...

Proud PBR momen

One of our neighborhood hangouts, Old Chicago, started another mini-beer tour. Eight American beers in 3 weeks gets you a free t-shirt.  One of the highlights so far was seeing Mike drink a PBR for the first time ever.  Somehow I think my dad is smiling over this...

I have been reading the book "Wild" this past week. It's a great tale of a woman who hiked the Pacific Coast Trail by herself.  Very graphic (describes losing toenails to ill-fitting hiking boots) and very inspirational as she rediscovers herself walking mile upon mile.  It was Oprah's book choice this month.

It might have been the influence of this book, but this morning I had a crazy idea of riding our bikes before it got too hot!  We decided to ride from my house into Ankeny and onto the High Trestle Trail.  We rode about 22 miles in 97 degree heat and a horrible headwind, but we made it!


I also found some time recently to pull out the beads and paint and make this small vase for my mom out of a perfume bottle from an antique store...

Beaded vase

And of course, here are the latest pics of flowers in my gardens...

Textured coneflower

Field of coneflowers

Pink lace

Hazy yellow

Hope you enjoy the holiday weekend!  Stay cool!

Diane

What up with that?

Ok, if you watch Saturday Night Live, you are familiar with the "what up with that?" skits.  Mike and I got on a kick of repeating this phrase when we encounter new stuff or things we just don't get.  Here are a few examples from the past couple of weeks:

WHAT UP WITH THAT?

**Confessions and concessions are one letter apart-after a recent fire in Mike's church, they are now holding Mass in the gym.  We noticed that the "concession" sign had been revised to say "confession".

**CD's and DVD's are modern day scare crows-We attended a great Greek Dinner at Anita and Henry's, and they had several of these tied to arbors and trees to keep away birds.  They were beautiful twirling and reflecting the light.

**The glove box light in a '73 Dodge Challenger can run down the battery if left on for more than 1 month...as we found out on a recent trip back to Mike's house.  That is one heavy car to push out of the garage!

**Pineappling-According to our friend Kevin who farms in central Illinois, pineappling is when the corn leaves twist into points (like a pineapple) during a drought.  Unfortunately we saw this a lot on a recent visit to central Illinois and southern Indiana.  They are in desperate need of rain!

**House showings-it's really odd to know that nameless, faceless people have gone through your house when you aren't there, and they give you feedback on what they do and don't like.

**Lists-my sweetie is a convert to lists.  He has his own "major" and "minor" list of things he has to do to my house.  He gets into a slight panic if he misplaces the list.  That's why I added it to his iPad.

**Sounds you don't want to hear from your kitchen...the head tile floor installer telling his apprentice "you are bleeding on the floor...clean it up!"

**Some church signs are so creative...

We saw this while driving in Southern Indiana

**Cats like newly carpeted steps and new faucets...

Gilbert 

Blue Belle:  Where's the water?

**Vegetables look so much better on new counter tops...

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It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks with lots of house showings (meaning lots of cleaning-YUCK!) and continued work finishing up some house projects.  No bites yet on the house, but a couple of people have been here for a second look...

Here's some of the recent progress...

Downstairs guest bath-new vanity and space age lights

New hallway lights replaced ugly can lights

Mike built stand for sump pump battery.  He was excited to use the plasma cutter and welder!

Mike built a new arch for the cabinets-replaced the wavy ones we were sure came from Cracker Barrel

Laundry room-freshly painted, new linoleum and trim

We took a break from house stuff to catch up with friends and family in Indiana and Illinois.  We visited my mom and enjoyed some wonderful meals with family.  Mom cooked a mean roast in the crock pot, brother Gary cooked an excellent pork roast on his Green Egg and we had a wonderful lunch at the Gerst House (one of our favorite German restaurants in Southern Indiana)  with mom, sister Angie, and nephews Adam and Dane.  

Mike and I enjoyed a good bike ride on the USI trails.  We also had some wonderful down time sitting on the backyard swing with mom and enjoying Angie's new pergola.  After all the circulation problems and surgeries mom has had on her leg, one of my favorite moments was watching her run across the front yard chasing away the neighbor's dog.  I didn't know she could run that fast!  

We spent a couple of hours with Kevin and Kathy in their pool on a hot afternoon.  We also enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with our friend John catching up on life over the past month.  It was a whirlwind week, but it was a much needed break from the house.

Last night we saw an awesome bluegrass show at the Des Moines Civic Center. Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers performed for a couple of hours, and it was a great combination of comedy and great music.  Steve Martin is hilarious and plays a mean banjo.  He said he joined up with the Steep Canyon Rangers after hearing them at a party in North Carolina. He doesn't view them as "his band"; instead he is "their celebrity".  Still tapping my foot today after hearing some amazing banjo, guitar and fiddle playing...

And of course, I feel compelled to finish this entry with yet another flower picture...what up with that anyway?

Have a great week!

Diane

Stop and smell the roses

Stop and smell the roses

Our friend John was taking care of Mike's house last week, and he commented that he stopped to smell the fragrant roses on his way in the house.



I know how nature can transport us to a quieter place, and so here is a brief tour of my recent wanderings through the outdoors.

Pink petunias

Pink roses

Peach lily

Orange lily

Golden lily

Lacy yellow

 Mike's fig tree

Solitary coneflower

Iowa black raspberries

Indiana red raspberries

My camera and flowers are a delightful respite from an extremely busy and stressful time at my house.  Between multiple contractors, cleaning up ever-settling tile dust and lots of house showings, Mike and I are fried!  It was a sign of the times that both of us forgot our 4th wedding anniversary last week.  Oops!  

So we are taking a break to breathe and forget about remodeling.  Yesterday and today I got in some great neighborhood walks.  Mike enjoyed steak and beer at Boys Night Out.  I had a great dinner with Melanie and then met up with Mike and Chuck for a few beers on the patio of a local restaurant.  Hanging with friends is a wonderful way to stop and smell the roses!

Diane

Moving right along

Contractor city...in our driveway

Kitchen table, guitars and desk drawers residing in the living room as painters and tilers complete their work.

Things are moving right along with the house.  It's been contractor city here with painters, tile floor guys and today the carpet installers.  People have been here Monday-Friday from 7-5 almost every day for 2 weeks.  Kind of like a normal work week now that I think about it.  And then Mike continues to do everything else...

Mike installed new kitchen light fixture

Mike installing aluminum tape on mirror

We needed to remove an old mirror from the master bath.  Mike and I learned something new here involving aluminum tape and heat gun and shims.  We were able to remove the mirror in one piece and prevent many years of bad luck!

Mike installed new vanity in guest bath

New tile floor in kitchen

New tile hearth

Freshly painted front doors

Mike prep work for carpet

New carpet

So, it's the end of another day here in Iowa.  We were thinking tomorrow would be a banner day...the painter finishes and carpet is stretched and finished.  Then I walked into the house to take some pictures for this blog and I realize they forgot to carpet the steps into my living room!  Does this ever get easier???

Diane

Never a dull moment

Firetrucks in the 'hood

Life is not dull!  And it's only Thursday...

The craziness started Sunday evening when Mike & I returned from a neighborhood bike ride to find flames shooting out of a huge tree in my neighbor's back yard.

After a quick 9-1-1 call, the local fire department came racing into the neighborhood.  Nothing like a few fire trucks, an ambulance, a pumper truck and the fire chief's truck to bring out all the neighbors on a lazy Sunday evening.

Keeping a distance

Tree house also on fire

All that's left of the tree house

Before the firemen finished their work, my neighbor arrived on his motorcycle.  I saw him walking with the fire chief into the backyard to survey the damage.  He phoned me later to thank me for calling the fire department.  He said he had lit a small fire earlier in the afternoon, and when he left the house, the fire was smoldering and almost out.  Sounds harmless unless you consider in the 20-30 mph winds...Mike and I later talked about all the Smokey Bear messages, and we both shook our heads ...

GOOD NEWS IS...The Ankeny Fire Department responded quickly and soon had the situation under control. No one was hurt.  My back garage and woods were not damaged!

After such an auspicious start to the week, I went into Monday dreading my 6 month mammogram.

GOOD NEWS IS...I'm pleased to say that I'm now 2 years cancer free!  YEAH!  Talk about immense relief!

As I met with the oncologist later Monday morning, he asked if I was having any side effects from the drug called arimidex(estrogen killing drug you take for 5 years after breast cancer).   In my typical fashion, I asked him a question about what the side effects were.  When he mentioned joint pain, I spoke up and described some of the hip pain I've been having.

Note to self:  Be careful of what you say to your oncologist!  Next thing I know I was scheduled for a bone scan on Wed. morning.

The bone scan procedure was painless.  They inject you with some nuclear stuff which settles into your body over a 3 hour period.  Later later they slide you into a large donut-shaped machine that takes pictures of your entire skeleton.

Second note to self:   be selective what you read online about a medical procedure.  I was a wreck between Monday and today when I learned how a bone scan can indicate the spread of cancer.     


GOOD NEWS IS...my bone scan was completely normal!  YEAH!  Talk about immense relief!  I am now breathing again!

As if a fire, a mammogram and a bone scan wasn't enough...

the painter is here this week

the new refrigerator was delivered yesterday

our house went on the market today

and we booked a trip to Ireland in the Fall!

And who ever said life was dull????

Diane