Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Sep 13 - 05:47 PM

If it is cooler or rainy now it is a good time to broadcast (via hose end sprayer, watering can, backpack sprayer, there are various methods) beneficial nematodes around the house and in any kennel and general traffic areas for your dogs. Put them out on a cloudy day or in morning or evening. They do best when they can get down into moist soil and not be exposed to bright sunlight. You buy them from a refrigerated supply in places like feed stores or via overnight shipping. The package of stuff is poured into a bucket and allowed to spread out into the water. You can filter the water through a paper sieve often provided with them so your sprayer doesn't clog. Once you mix them keep the tank agitated and spray them pretty quickly (they won't survive in the water for a long time.)

They may seem expensive for the application, but if you have a large yard and buy the larger package, putting them out now in the fall should take care of fleas in the entire yard for the fall and into the spring. You can redo again next year, but they stay in the environment and they kill flea eggs in the soil stage.

SRS

Subject: RE: Diotomaceous Earth
From: wysiwyg
Date: 12 Sep 13 - 01:15 PM

I have to say, as an anti-flea treatment, Diotomaceous Earth (food-grade DE) really does work. In the rug it ensures that any flea eggs that hatch will not survive long enough to lay the next round of eggs. On the pets it is a good supplement to Frontline; I think if we keep up applying it to the pets weekly, we may be able to eliminate the Frontline altogether.

Vacuuming it up off the rug, if you use enough to really work, requires a vac bag change about every 60 square feet, because the dust clogs the bag pretty fast. They recommend using a broom to "scrub" the DE down into the carpet pile; we found that an old-fashioned, non-electric carpet sweeper was much easier to use. We covered the thickly-DE'ed sections with clean sheets so that when we walked on them, the dust sank into the fiber instead of rising into the air with each step. By the end of the recommended week of leaving it on the carpet, a lot of it had gone below surface level-- which means it will keep acting as we continue to vacuum it up to the surface and as any new eggs fall to the floor into it.

The DE also absorbed some dirt and barefoot-oils and looks much cleaner than it did, pre-treatment. No odor.

We used about 4-5 lbs of it for a 12x25 foot LR and a 12x12 DR, plus on the pets and their bedding. I'm setting a reminder on my calendar to pre-treat the carpets next year just before the heat/humidity of fleas season hits.

~S~

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Sep 13 - 10:57 AM

I don't have a great opinion of tablets for much computer, mg, but that's mostly because I don't like to "type" on a screen and they have such a small amount of memory in them.

Take a look at the refurbished laptops at NewEgg.com. See if there is something there that might give you more life than the tablet. The tablet is already a couple of years old, chances are things (applications, etc.) have moved beyond its operating system. That can mean that the OS of the older device can't support newer programs so well. I have that problem with my smart phone - they updated the OS to the point that it is no longer efficient. I can't control if this downloads or not, that won't be the case in your device, but still, the changes in the last couple of years have been substantial.

Good luck in getting those spaces built the way you want, Dorothy. I can hardly visualize what this old mill must look like now.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Dorothy Parshall
Date: 12 Sep 13 - 10:14 AM

Went to the country yesterday, arriving late morning. After lunch, the heat and humidity defeated me. I was a blob. Then the rain came - in torrents! In the end, I gave up trying to figure out how to sleep there, forget getting pots made a a firing going! Came back to the city, took a hot bath and did not cough all night for a change! This morning, R is trying to find out when Bruno can come and put that wall in so I can have a safe place, with air cleaner. After about half an hour on the phone with B, we are no further ahead. Steam coming out my ears!

I really wanted to have new pots for the weekend but yesterday was the last day to manage it. OK, so now I will continue to try for the next event. And the orders promised by 1 October. The work area is not bad for pollution. Only the end of the space near the futon on which we sleep where all the pollution is blowing through from the lower end - Well, hard to explain and frustrating to figure out. I am venting because I am so tired of coughing.

I am going to go take another hot bath, recover, go to the country, try to find a carpenter who is available, meet with Vanessa who is bringing her pottery wheel over today. Need to get a key made for her. V visited on Monday and we agreed she can do pottery in the pottery area. She will help get it organized. Her existence will be encouraging for me. Now, need to find a carpenter down there rather than wait on B to have time for us.

Darn, R just left and I forgot to ask him to put the air cleaner in the car. BATH, NOW.

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: GUEST,mg
Date: 12 Sep 13 - 05:00 AM

i need some tech advice. just broke the laptop someone gave me and am reverting to an even older and slower one. i have free wifi in the big house on the property here and i think it will reach my cabin. i need to save money on internet. i mostly want it right now for internet and email and maybe hulu etc. plus i have a computer protection plan for 10/month. i am thinking a very cheap tablet like this..i know imet will be disposable and customer support is awful

http://www.amazon.com/Archos-70-Internet-Tablet-Black/product-reviews/B00422SH5C/ref=cm_cr_pr_btm_link_next_3?ie=UTF8&pageNumber=3&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending

click

if it lasted two months i would probably get my money's worth. only problem is i wnant to get back to genealogy and don't think i could do it on this but by then might afford a newish laptop..

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Sep 13 - 10:31 PM

Cleaned out some veggie bins in the fridge - things have been freezing so I needed to move objects around to avoid blocking vents. I stopped on the way home for a fresh batch (my two bags of grocery are always so much more affordable if I don't buy any meat, just veggies).

I moved a touch lamp (with three settings) to the antique desk where I've set up the laptop. It looks warm and welcoming.

Several of my eBay listings now have watchers. I need to find some more things to list, and be prepared to keep several things up at once. They'll end either when people buy them now or when they finish the last day and people bid at the last minute. The good thing at eBay now is that each listing shows how many total people are watching the sale (you can choose to watch it, adding it to a list of items you are considering bidding on so you don't need to search for them every time you visit). This puts pressure on those who really want your item to go ahead and buy it before one of the others gets it. (I'm sharing the information to give Linn a bit more information about the eBay process).

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: wysiwyg
Date: 11 Sep 13 - 05:46 PM

Main floor vacuuming (and removal of DE) is done. All LR surfaces are seriously de-junked; I filled a whole trash barrel with sale items and another with paper trash. There will be more sale stuff when I tackle the DR's china cabinet, which has become a default curio cabinet. Photograph and PURGE!!!

A GREAT thing happened a few days ago-- I have been holding a box of fam fotos and of the origanal fam there are now only my brother and I left. He has estranged himself, so I did not want to send them to him-- bad history in 'em, which he'd likely toss in the trash.

Well, my son and DIL want them, and will sort them and get them into acid-free containers. On my bext visit I'll give them caption info. They will then take it on a visit to my brother, and present it as a completed project. If he does not want the result, they do-- but I get it outta my HOUSE as soon as I can ship it and it is WAY past time to move these along the family foodchain. It is the last box lurking in the LR needing to go where it belongs. It feels like a huge weight off my shoulders. (It goes with a whole LOT of stuff my mom had "assigned" to me that I never should have agreed to and that she never should have asked of me.)

~S~

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Sep 13 - 04:39 PM

The recycle impulse has enablers on campus in the form of folks who specialize in recycling. I found a bunch of plastic jewel cases in the trash yesterday and I lugged them to the large e-waste bin on our ground floor, and called that department to pick them up. This afternoon I saw him packing that stuff up and had him come down to my floor where a bunch more stuff is being discarded that should be recycled. Business cards were exchanged and people are realizing that not only can he pick this stuff up, he can take over some of their work (co-workers don't need to spend hours shredding discs, he can have it done.) I'm glad when my persistence on this finally pays off.

I'm seeing more watchers on some of my eBay listings this week, so maybe some of my techno-discards will find a new home in a fiscally satisfying manner, instead of finding their way to the gray bin upstairs or to the Goodwill.

Hump day. Something to celebrate!

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Sep 13 - 10:31 AM

I would love to see some before, during, and after photos of this arbor. I've been thinking about using some wooden lattice in several places in the yard. Over the weekend I drove past a house that had 1/2 width panels along the side of the garden as demarcation between lawn and garden, and it looked much nicer than my droopy chicken wire.

Going to a reception at work today, where I have a couple of photos in an exhibit that is up this semester. One of them is a submission I made last summer, the other isn't labeled as mine, but it's from about a decade ago, from a study I made of photographing the library from all angles. I went out in the fall in the afternoons to get the great light. It is simply labeled "university collection" because I used it so long ago they've forgotten where it came from. I'll let them know today and claim it (I am turning over my prints and negatives this semester, so the originals will be in one of those boxes.)

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 11 Sep 13 - 07:20 AM

I found some energy this afternoon so I did a round of changing beds and laundry, formatted and uploaded another batch of photos to Flickr, and fed the crows and squirrel.

In the evening I measured the depth of the drain across the entrance to my carport. Boards that were supporting the angle iron that holds up the grating had rotted. I made a trip across town to buy a treated board 2 x 10 x 12' to replace them. I hope it will do the job.

Also bought ten 2 x 3 x 8' boards to make an arbor for the back yard. I hope the weather will stay warm until the arbor is built, stained and dried.

I hope I can stay on task until it's done. I'd planned to get up early, haul the big saw out into the carport and spend all day working on that and other saw tasks, but it looks as if I'll need the morning for sleep and I'll be driving the carpool to a meeting in the evening. That won't leave much time for set up, working and clean up.

rags

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Sep 13 - 01:00 AM

I worked the circulation desk tonight in the library, my primary job was to answer virtual chat reference questions. All of us are taking turns at the desk until staff is hired to do the evening shift. It's a friendlier part of the library these days, after the debacle of the "reorganization."

A few weeks ago I picked up a George Foreman grill at an estate sale ($2.50/it needs a drip tray, easily remedied). I have one word for the best use so far: quesadillas. They were a little over-stuffed, but that wasn't a problem, since it cooked on both sides simultaneously so doesn't need to be turned (always precarious).

Cucumber relish heated, hot-packed, processed, and sitting on the counter to cool. The summer garden's last hurrah. :)

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 10 Sep 13 - 07:24 PM

During Tom's arterial study this morning, one of the readings involved 10 minutes where neither Tom nor the tech nor I could talk. I went over songs in my head -- "Maggie May" twice, "Cruising 'Round Yarmouth" once, and a couple verses of "Three Drunken Maidens".

My way of meditating, I think.

Maggie, you are SO right about needing a smoothed out place to write, not cluttered with WORK.

Linn

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 10 Sep 13 - 06:48 PM

I have a small ultrabook that I picked up before the Seattle trip. It's meant to use for writing and is extremely portable. As it sat on the secondary desk in my office I've glanced over at it every day from the big computer (quad core, purchased for the heavy lifting it can do with Adobe software). I realized I needed to move it to a different room, in it's own station with a comfortable chair at an attractive desk and a good lamp. I did that last night, and feel like I turned a corner. A place to write that isn't overpowered by the place to do other work.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 10 Sep 13 - 05:51 PM

We finally got home this afternoon and the first thing I did (after getting Tom safely in the house and settled in) was pour myself a gin & tonic. (I don't usually drink before a glass of wine or half a beer with dinner.)

That's what kind of day it is.

And when I checked my email, I'd gotten another request for a contribution from my Senator, Jean Shaheen. I'd send a rant back at her request yesterday saying how disappointed I was in her vote on the Syrian situation in the Foreign Relations Committee last week. So, I added to it and resent it again today. Isn't there ANYONE in Washington who cares about history, LEARNS from history, and makes decisions based on history?!? History IS important. ALL of the mistakes this country has made has been from a combination of greedy self interest and lack of respect (or even knowledge) of history.

Well, I'd been planning on going upstairs and under-reacting (word I learned during the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago -- when the police "over-reacted") until supper, but it's too late now. Gotta read Tom the program text and performer blurbs again before emailing it off to Babs and then I can make supper which, thank gawd!, is a really quick fix.

I WILL get some down time after supper!

Linn

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 10 Sep 13 - 11:14 AM

Cucumber relish sat in salt water and turmeric overnight, soaked further in fresh water this morning, drained, and is now in the vinegar/brown sugar/spice mix soak until I get home tonight and can heat it and jar and process it. I'm looking forward to this - again, I haven't made relish before. I should be able to try the dill pickles pretty soon that I made back in July.

My garden is a mess of tall grass. No chance to weed today (though I did some weeding yesterday out front and pulled the spiderwort and grass out of a small bed of penta that have grown nicely but were hidden in the weeds). Hopefully by the weekend those predicted temperatures in the low 90s mean that the overnight lows (in the low 70s) will lead to nice mornings for weeding.

Yesterday I had an "ah ha!" moment and realized an adapter I was considering taking to work to run a spare monitor on my laptop docking station didn't fit that setup, but it does go with a video card I have for sale on eBay. I've photographed it and I'll revise that listing. Maybe that'll be the push to sell the thing. :) Meanwhile, one of the IT guys had the correct adapter cable and I have a two-monitor setup now.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 10 Sep 13 - 09:10 AM

It's been a busy few days and today will be a bit mad, too.

Finally got the Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival (PMFF) schedule grid worked out. Since Tom can no longer see to do it, I did it, conferred with him, and then sent it to another board member (who also maintains the website...and more) to proof, check for conflicts, make sure performers have enough time to get between venues, make sure we're best utilizing everybody, etcet etcet etcet. Between conferences Saturday night and Sunday morning, we got it all worked out.

And now the "Welcome" text (Tom dictates, I type it in, editing, fact checking and punching it up as I go, then back to Tom, probably revise, etc.) and the performer list for the program are ready to go to Babs for final proofing. Then I can get the program file to the printer by the weekend.

On Sunday, around everything else I was doing including running around between Nottingham and Lee) I turned a lot of those tomatoes that I got at the farmer's market (and the basil I got while relaxing with great conversation on a friend's deck a bit later) into a big batch of the heirloom tomato soup from The Splendid Table. A lot of it I hope to get into the freezer for winter days when you need a hit of summer.

Yesterday Tom had an appointment with an orthotics place as the Wound Center is prescribing two things for him -- a protective shoe that will take the pressure off his heel wound when he's walking and an ankle boot that will immobilize his ankle so the ankle wound won't be in constant motion.

Today Tom has an arterial study at the Wound Center this morning and then his regular weekly appointment this afternoon. We'll have time to kill in between, but lunch will take up a bit of it. Tom's working on his bio for a Bate's college reunion book -- the deadline is October 1, so I'll take it along and maybe we can get it put together in our "spare" time today...

Linn

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: LilyFestre
Date: 10 Sep 13 - 06:43 AM

:) Thanks Maggie!! :)

Michelle

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Sep 13 - 10:42 PM

A small (1 quart of cucumbers) batch of relish (with home grown cucumbers and red and green bell peppers) is sitting on the counter in salt water. I haven't made relish before, but I wanted to try it with these end-of-the-season cukes. I should come up with about 3 pints of relish, and next year I'll plan ahead better as far as planting the cucumbers. They were really crowded in the area where I planted them, but I'll move them to a mound further down the yard and let them spread and climb as much as they want. And be prepared for the prodigious output!

The kitchen is looking great, the peninsula counter is clear except for the kettle and toaster and tea things on one side, under the overhang from the top cabinets. Working tonight was nice, no clearing off first.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Sep 13 - 02:14 PM

We know you'll do it!

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: LilyFestre
Date: 09 Sep 13 - 02:10 PM

It's been fall-ish here....great morning temperatures...nice chilly nights, beautiful sleeping weather but I hear that in the next few days the temperatures will be near 90 again. UGH. Just in time for canning.

Today I spent some time cleaning out a double cupboard that is kind of a pain to reach (corner cupboard near kitchen sink). I took everything out, chucked all expired items (6 cans...UGH), wiped down the shelves, reorganized, emptied another cupboard and combined that with the first emptied cupboard. All soups, beans, canned meats, fruit, etc. Looks great...I'm going to use it as my lunch cupboard. I struggle with making a healthy lunch...I know what one is but never seem to get around to making myself one...I just grab what's easy. Well my friends, soup and fruit IS easy...DUH. Anyway, that's my plan...we'll see.

I rejoined Weight Watchers today. It's time and I'm ready.

I wish I had been ready 40 pounds ago but I just wasn't.

It is what it is. I told my mom I had rejoined and her first comment to me was, "Well, I KNOW you can do it!"

Thanks to my mom for never once saying things like, "It's about time. Are you gaining weight? What the hell is wrong with you? When was the last time you stepped on a scale? Just how many chins are you going to grow? Etc." The voice in my head could go on for hours without an interruption from anyone. I love and appreciate her supportivenss. Pete says he will go along with whatever I need.

Have I mentioned how much I love and appreciate my family lately? I do. I do. I really, really DO!

Have a great day everybody!

Michelle

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Sep 13 - 01:46 PM

It's a bit overcast today, keeping the temperatures "down" so that we may only hit about 95 today. I transplanted a chrysanthemum into one of my outdoor pots, it's a burnt orange color on sale at the grocery last week. Time to start seeds indoors or in pots outside, and now that I have another set of shelves in the window that I can easily reach I'll get started.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Sep 13 - 01:07 AM

There were areas in the front lawn where the grass is still growing that I mowed (mostly it goes dormant, nothing kills Bermuda grass, not even a drought), and an area in the back where I keep the grass green for the dogs. Watering also taken care of for now.

I've moved a couple of obstacles from the hall outside my office, a file cabinet that is now tucked away in the office closet (but on a wheeled base so I can shift it to use the files) and a wire shelf that is now in the window for plants. There was a plastic file case on the shelf on top of the file and that is on a shelf in the closet. The job will be to make myself file regularly rather than let it pile up.

Laundry is in, dishes ready to run when this first load is finished, and then another load will be programmed to run before I get up and can dry before I leave for work. In hot weather I try to run these machines at night.

Eight items up on eBay now, and I'll try to keep at least this many balls in the air and list more. It looks good in the sun room to have this many boxes packed and measured and ready to ship once someone buys them. If no sale, then after a suitable number of listings things will be donated to Goodwill.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 08 Sep 13 - 09:25 PM

I've been in "I'll just do one more thing" mode all day. At almost 630 P.M., I'm still debating whether or not to shower and get dressed.

I cleaned all the dead blooms and shriveled petunia stems from the three window boxes. Most of the plants in the box on the South side are doing well, but I think I've lost the battle to save the petunias in the boxes on the North side of the house. I suspect the soil remaining damp, because of rain after a watering and no drainage, has allowed something to infect the plants. I may try moving some plants from planters into the boxes until frost, (which could come any day now).

The rest of my time has been spent attending to message boards and tweaking photos.

rags

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: LilyFestre
Date: 08 Sep 13 - 08:42 PM

I made breakfast and lunch, did 2 loads of laundry and rode along on several errands today. I have had 3 naps and at 8:42pm, I am ready to go to bed. The heck with dinner. I am DONE. (Pete is more than capable to make something for himself and Jeremiah).

Goodnight.

Michelle

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 08 Sep 13 - 11:31 AM

Rags, if you can identify the stuff you're storing that you use the least, that is certainly the least painful place to start. Once you get going you may well find you inspire yourself and can move into the next least-emotional space.

My eBay listings typically go up for a week. Sometimes as an auction, sometimes I add a "buy it now" price (this has to be about 33% higher now, so sometimes that price looks ridiculous so I don't bother). Other items are listed for a set sale price, no bidding, you can click on it and buy it. They run for a week and I relist, and if I decide it is too high priced or needs some tweaking, I do that before relisting. I have usually sold most things within a week, but now that I'm listing some more commonplace items they sometimes run for several weeks.

This morning I've been going through seeds packets. It's time to plant for fall (after I weed for fall) and I am tossing some of the truly ancient packs of commonplace seeds. I have a drawer-size plastic sock bin thing that I sort the seed packs by year and type (flowers or food). It goes back a few years, and what I end up doing is combining some of the older seeds in with a new batch - they get used and may grow, but I'm not relying on a several-year-old pack for the sole seed source. That said, I also think mixing years of seeds gives a little more diversity to the seed source which is probably a good thing.

It's supposed to be hotter today, but I'm tired of waiting for it to cool off so I'll be out there working for a little while. I need to weed some of the new beds and finish the front yard mowing. I watered the sweet potatoes yesterday so now I can pull the hose off of the turf and run the mower through there. (The sweet potatoes came back this year as volunteers on the berm in the front yard. I didn't have a great crop last year, but they looked so nice, so I let them stay and am watering again this year.)

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 08 Sep 13 - 08:15 AM

when do we start reducing? i say when we turn age 50..you don't want to put it off until it becomes physically impossible, and you don't want to have more than you can maintain well...plus we all probably should be prepared to be mobile, downsize, evacuate etc.

Oh no, mg! I'm almost 20 years behind on the program. I don't think I can ever catch up.

SRS, Good luck with your e-Bay sales. How long do your items stay listed?

I can't think of any furniture that we have that isn't being used. The room for my son's family is occupied only a couple of weekends a month and during school holidays, but all the beds are needed when they are here.

I guess I'll really need to work harder on emptying the roof space storage area, as soon as the weather is cooler? Perhaps another toy run to the son and family in Alberta will be made when we go to adore the infant whose arrival is expected very soon? I'm told that he will be called "Quits".

Michelle, Your grandmother sounds like a wonderful person. How lucky she is to have such a thoughtful (and naughty) granddaughter.

rags

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 07 Sep 13 - 08:03 PM

What an influence you are!

I had a "spare" wire rack that is now standing in from of the third of three windows in the bay window in the sun room. I'll use it for more plants (it used to hold pots and pyrex and such in the kitchen). And more items are listed or ready to go on eBay.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: LilyFestre
Date: 07 Sep 13 - 07:40 PM

Whirlwind trip downstate to celebrate my Nana's 91st birthday! I cooked up one of her most favorite meals last night for dinner and today the entire family (which is quite small) took her out for lunch. She was thrilled and that made my heart happy. She has a wonderful sense of humor and likes to tell people that she's decided her job on this earth is to make people laugh AND that she is a cougar (now chasing all men aged 70 and up). LOL With that in mind, I'd like to share that I got her a very sweet purple nightgown and some racy purple polka dot panties...her smirk was worth the 400 mile round trip....LOL!!!

XOXOXO

Michelle

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 07 Sep 13 - 07:17 PM

Yes, Mudcat has been pretty slow on a consistent basis for the last couple of weeks. I think Max has restarted it a couple of times, I don't know if he's working on anything to speed it up.

I understand about the contents of the house. Yes, we have been removing stuff and only not finding more efficient ways to store it. I understand about the furnishings conundrum - it takes me a long time to get around to removing pieces. In the last year I donated a loveseat sofa that came from my best friend when she moved out of the area. It isn't the couch that is important, it is the memories of the kids "camping out" on that sofa in the living room when they were little, and those memories aren't gone. Someone else is now using that sofa who needed it more than I did. I have family antiques that will go to the kids, but I have a lot of "gray area" stuff that they probably won't need, so that is where I need to concentrate on my thinning. The next big thing to go is the futon in my front room. Yes, the dogs sleep on it now, but I've kept lots of layers of sheets and blankets on it to keep it from picking up an aroma. My daughter's housemate is moving in December and taking the living room futon, so my futon will go up there to replace it. I've given her other sizable pieces of furniture, and when she eventually gets ready to move into a house of her own or they somehow break up the household (she shares a house with four or five other students) then I might help her move it elsewhere, but not back here. With that gone my front room will be a lot more manageable.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: mg
Date: 07 Sep 13 - 06:45 PM

when do we start reducing? i say when we turn age 50..you don't want to put it off until it becomes physically impossible, and you don't want to have more than you can maintain well...plus we all probably should be prepared to be mobile, downsize, evacuate etc.

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 07 Sep 13 - 04:34 PM

SRS,
It's impressive that you can accomplish so much when the temperatures are so high. The new pantry shelves must be a great help.

At what point do we stop adding ways to organize more thing and start actually reducing the number/volume of things? I know the clock is ticking its way closer to the time when I will have to move into a basement suite or a small apartment. I think back to when I moved into this house over 40 years ago. We came from a small apartment, had only a small collection of furniture and very few "treasures" collected. There was so much empty space! I long to return to that state, but there is nothing that I've acquired since then that I feel I can part with without feeling a great sense of loss. My feeble attempts to get rid of things hasn't made a noticeable difference. Another obstacle, as of September 1st, our Regional District has imposed a fee system for loads of rubbish we take to the dump, that used to be free.

Thursday evening, I mowed both lawns (front and back yards). Friday evening I put fertilizer on both. Pushing and pulling the heavy lawnmower and the much lighter fertilizer spreader are equally hard on my spine, knees and hands. I'm taking anti-inflammatory meds and resting today. I don't know if I will manage looking after this house and yard much longer. So much upkeep that should have been done this summer and last was neglected. That can't continue much longer.

rags
P.S.
Is anyone else finding that it takes a very long time for Mudcat to load anything? Sometimes I give up waiting.

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 07 Sep 13 - 03:29 PM

Relisting eBay items, pricing them to move. Adding more.

My ex just came over to pick up a few things and we did the tour of the pantry and I sent him home with a fresh batch of jelly and salsa from last fall. We were out with the dogs for a while (Zeke obsessively fetching) - it's still very hot so I'm leaving the mowing till evening.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 06 Sep 13 - 10:09 PM

Got plenty of birthday calories today. Went out for dinner with a friend and had a bowl of ice cream when I got home. Tomorrow is a fasting day and I need to mow the lawn so I'll burn more calories than I take in with my one small meal. I hope this law of averages keeps on working!

As usual there is a mix of stuff to do this weekend. Looks like it'll be hot every day for a while, so I'll have to work outside early or save stuff till later when it cools. I can't put off mowing, so I imagine that is first on my list for tomorrow.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 06 Sep 13 - 02:51 PM

That's a cute chain pull you posted on facebook - a blown glass bat - I suppose the next best alternative is to lure a real bat into the room to perch on your fan pull chain. :)

The installation of new shelves in the last couple of weeks has taken a lot of pressure off of the flat surfaces in my kitchen, they're no longer over-crowded. I'm still going back and forth on where some things need to live on the new shelves, but already it makes my canning activity much easier because I can see my empty jars all in one place, not stacked throughout the wire shelves as they were before. The next push is to decide if I want all of the vintage and antique items out the way they are or if some of them need to go away and be rotated into and out of the display on top of my cupboards, fridge, freezer, and kitchen queen.

Each day this week it has been up to 100^o and the air quality has been poor, but the sun is setting earlier and the mornings are a little cooler. Autumn is beginning to be detectable.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 08:34 PM

Sounds like an excellent plan, Linn! And a good example to follow.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 07:17 PM

Dried some of the laundry that was washed yesterday, but it will have to wait to be folded. (Nothing that can't sit in the dryer overnight.)

Got a mess more appointments for Tom at the Wound Center, with vascular docs and with the infectious diseases doctor (because if the heel wound is too deep, he'll need intravenous antibiotics again every 4 hours or so -- Tom has replacement heart parts). They are very very cautious, and, I guess, that's good.

Did a lot of running around today -- had to pick up a replacement computer mouse at my other computer guy's place, then had a nice visit with an old (in age) old (known him since 1973) friend who lived close by. Brought him the book "Misquoting Jesus" which he'd been wanting to read and de-accessioned a spool of week-whacker cord to him.

Was home long enough to have lunch (I finished off the heirloom tomato soup -- gotta get some more tomatoes at the farmers' market Saturday and make a big batch to freeze) and organize some paperwork (so I can photocopy some more documentation and take it to Community Action tomorrow). Took my elderly friend's mail to the post office and bought stamps for him on my way to get my hair cut -- all of a sudden as of yesterday it needed it desperately. Had a nice visit with my stylist of the past 30 years, too (but I left with a pile of magazines...). Then over to some other friends with the BB gun (and BBs) I promised to sell to them. Sold it to George for what I had just paid Carol to cut my hair (and tip).

It all works out...

BLTs with heirloom tomatoes for supper. Not Brandywines but they look and taste like Brandywines. Boy, were they good!

I think tonight I'm NOT going to work on filing Tom's freelance writing as I have most of this week. (Oh, looks like I haven't mentioned that here. Discovered why my archives don't have newspaper articles for a lot of events in that era -- Tom wrote the article and it was hidden in the boxes.)

Think I'll just read tonight and relax for a change. Too much running around today.

Linn

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Elmore
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 03:17 PM

Got tired reading this thread. Time for a nap.

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Dorothy Parshall
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 02:29 PM

My health consultant points out that even food grade DE is contaminated with aluminum, thus causing a friend to have aluminum poisoning. She does not take these things lightly.

Back at the mill, the weather is COOL! And the mold pollution is health threatening. Recent rains seem to have exacerbated the problem. I am in process of considering how to cope. All doors open - it just blows through the whole place. That wall is essential. For now: stay in sun room - OK. Put plastic back up to block ... not going to work, too much wind. Darn! Need to go work on this, Bye!

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 12:18 PM

At least the DE is feed grade, not for pool filters (a contaminated version of DE). But I agree, don't inhale it.

This morning while tea brewed I folded some laundry. The sheets from last week got folded before being needed on the bed again this weekend. Too often I simply pull them out of the clean laundry basket and put them back on the bed. :-/

My goal with my eBay listings this month is to raise enough to pay the cell phone bill through PayPal. Giving myself a goal like that makes it easier to keep stuff listed. I have a couple of hundred dollars worth of stuff listed now, but it may not all sell, or not all this week. There are a few watchers and a fair number of views on some of them, and I have a stack to draw from to add more things to my listings.

The fridge is a much friendlier place this morning, without overripe peppers and cucumbers glaring at me from bags and bins. There are still a couple of unhappy cantaloupes in there, but I'll finish cutting those up tonight. :)

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Dorothy Parshall
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 09:10 AM

For heavens sake, Susan, do not breathe in that stuff!

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Dorothy Parshall
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 09:09 AM

To quote one of Allan Fraser's wonderful songs (dance hall girls), I'm a week behind - or is it ... Anyway, life moves on so quickly. Fall is definitely in Quebec. Tons of rain and cool breezes.

Time for another wall in that so-called living space - maybe next week. I thought it would happen this week and covered everything with plastic on Tuesday. Today, I am going down and will uncover and keep moving to keep warm.

Dentist yesterday and a good chat with her wonderful self, ascertaining that any more work will be removal of a tooth if it gives me trouble - sometime in the future. Great relief as I had not understood her the previous visit (December) and was so confused I did not go back.

Good news is that R has finally reached the saturation point and agrees we need a designated "get rid of" area. fortunately there is lots of room at the mill for this. The auction on Monday netted two truckloads and a car load of "90% junk". The auctioneer just gets tired and says, "R will take it"!! or some such comment. Some good stuff, some very useful stuff and 90% yard sale or just plain junk. Next summer, on suitable days, I can put my portable wheel out front and a "YARD SALE" sign and try to re-coup some of what he spent but, more importantly, find homes for stuff that can be someone else's treasures.

We now have a beautiful bamboo vanity and linen cabinet and flooring for the bathroom. Of course there is still the huge hole in the room and no window! But there is a skylight and patio doors to go in, when B has the time for us ---- AFTER the wall between living space and the rest of the building so I can put in an air cleaner. Also a small wood stove for the LR.

I am leaving the city shortly for the country, hoping to meet with a prospective pottery student. Also hoping to get potting as I now have several orders to complete. And the writers support group at 5 pm.

Gotta go. Just stopped in to say, "hello, I'm still here!"

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: wysiwyg
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 08:03 AM

The whole downstairs is now coated in DE. While it sits for about a week I will now sort the crap I didn't purge, and purge some more. Then I'll vacuum-dust. Then I'll re-stage all the horizontal surfaces and finish-dust as I go while Hardi wields the long-handled picture-duster. The kittens are great motivators for SRSLY keeping surfaces only sparsely occupied! :-)

~S~
PS main puder off line till MIL leaves in late September-- fone posting.

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 01:14 AM

Michelle,
You're doing the work of several people. You'll be well prepared for the winter, just as my little squirrel, who is also racing around, will be.

SRS,
At least the peppers won't be wasted, they'll make great compost and go back into the growing cycle.

Before I left home this morning I managed to wash and bleach some bird feeders etc. that have been empty for several weeks and to put out food for the squirrel and migrating sparrows. That's the extent of my accomplishments for the day, at home.

A morning meeting for board members at my seniors' centre forced me to get up from my foamy on the floor three hours after I went to bed. The AGM will be even earlier on Friday. I'm finding that I no longer run well on only 3 hours sleep a night, several nights in a row, but I've been a night person so long that I'm unable to make myself go to bed earlier. I was so tired by 4 p.m. today that I dragged my foamy out to the living room, put it on the floor beside the open (but screened) sliding door and had a wonderful peaceful sleep in the fresh air for over four hours. Ahhhhhhhh. That was so good! I guess that brought me up to seven hours sleep in 24 hours?

rags

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 05 Sep 13 - 12:29 AM

What a day you've had! I feel like I was working in slow motion during the day and got moving this evening.

This evening I found myself pulling out all sorts of little containers from the fridge. I tackled the produce items from the garden that were too old to use - they're now in the little compost bin beside the side door or on the big compost pile out back. I'll be picking during the fall and try to keep up with the rest of the peppers (most of what got dumped).

Also cleared out this evening are lots of little custard cups of grease from cooking. The dishwasher is full. Trash day tomorrow - that's why all of this fridge activity tonight.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: LilyFestre
Date: 04 Sep 13 - 09:35 PM

I have no idea where the energy streak is coming from but I am enjoying it immensely! Today I ran 4 hours worth of errands, canned 13 more quarts of peaches, cleaned up most of the kitchen (still have 2 large pots to clean but they are cooling outside on the porch at the moment) and have had a shower. (All this on 3 hours of decent sleep....allergies making it hard to sleep).

Tomorrow is crazy busy so I'm hoping to get some decent sleep tonight. I gave in and took the Benedryl early (last night I didn't take it until about 3:00am). My schedule looks like this for tomorrow: Up early, Jeremiah to school, then to a town 30 miles away for a haircut, home, off to the pear orchards (this is prime picking time...expected to be over by next week), then an hour away to pick up two new oreo piggies, back to get Jeremiah, back to the orchards and home. Whew. I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it. Seems that everything is going on at once right now. I also have a half bushel of cucumbers to pickle, a quarter of a bushel of peaches to dehydrate....yeah....I can do...yes I can..I can, I can, I can.   And oh yeah...I CAN (as in I have been canning) LOL Don't mind me. I'm punchy.

I. Am. Done.

Michelle

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 04 Sep 13 - 06:53 PM

Thanks. That worked. I found information about the school. I don't recognize any names there. i think they are all people who are currently involved with the school.

It's okay. I will be meeting the people who were interested in attending the reunion when I go there. There are about 65 names on the list. That leaves about 190 unaccounted for.

As none of the people I spent time with will be there, perhaps I can convince a few who are there that we were good buddies and they've just forgotten? I've been looking at their pictures in our Grad yearbook so I'll recognize them. They shouldn't have changed much in 50 years, should they? I know that I haven't, (wink, wink).

rags

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 04 Sep 13 - 01:27 AM

Try just the name of your school - fewer search terms may get you in the ballpark and you can zero in on your target from there.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: ragdall
Date: 04 Sep 13 - 01:09 AM

Michelle,
The amount that you and others here accomplish in a day astounds me. I find it a challenge just to get showered and dressed before 3 pm.

SRS,
Good work with the shelves.

Thanks for explaining how you search for people. When I put in the school name and the city I got, "No results found for your query." The result was the same when I added the class year. The popular outgoing people will likely be at the reunion, so there is no need to look for them. Others, such as myself, are not likely to bother with social media.   

rags

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 04 Sep 13 - 12:54 AM

Jelly and jam out of the way. Don't mind those small second and third degree burns on my arm, the jam was feeling a bit frisky. And the spots should wash out of my shirt.

More work on the new shelves this evening. There seems to be a lot of duplicate stuff in here so I'll take a batch out to the greenhouse tomorrow and keep a single set of the basics in this location.

SRS

Subject: RE: Autumn Leaves Decluttered Spaces 2013
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Sep 13 - 01:46 PM

Great news on the canning and freezing, Michelle. I have to finish making jelly and jam tonight. That'll clear out more space in the fridge.

SRS