My toes are cold!

What a difference a couple weeks makes! A little more than two weeks ago, Lynn and Linda were here treating their sunburns and tonight I look forward to getting my feet under the covers. The evening was spent at the cabana having dinner but eventually it became too chilly to sit still any longer. It might be long pants weather already, at least it is in my case. The low temperatures are in the 60's at night but climb back up to low to mid-80's in the daytime. Danny was not cooking for us tonight as he suddenly went home, sick. Not his teeth this time, I guess it was his stomach. I hope he did not eat something that did not agree with him, like the delicious pasta salad I enjoyed at the cabana.

*

Penny was expected to join me for dinner, as we planned on Wednesday night, but when I tried to call her, the line rang fast busy. Good thing other neighbors were there to take up her slack. It was delightful to share the evening with Betty and her family, plus Gus and Randy later. Penny works for Quigley House and one of their trucks with drivers came to pick up my no longer needed table/desk to sell in their retail store. That back bedroom is getting emptier right along.

*

Earlier in the day I was at Sun Tire getting my oil changed and tires rotated. For some reason it took a long time, but I did get to chit chat with several people in the waiting area, which was nice. When I was done there it was too late to meet Tracy, Cassidy, and MamMa for lunch at La Nop so I headed to the Clay Today office to drop off Kathy R.'s Pampered Chef purchase. Unfortunately she was not in, had to take her dog to the vet, but I did get to meet her coworker with whom I had communicated several times regarding the preschool anniversary. The rest of the day was spent awaiting the arrival of the men for the table/desk.

*

Justin is on his way to Miami to watch a college football game with his friends. He sent me an "I love you" text message from the road and told me he would be here on Monday to work some more on the shuffling of boxes and such before the guys come to install the new floors. I pray for Justin's safety while down there and the traveling forth and back they are doing.

*

Tomorrow morning Suzanne and I head south to Port Orange for the LWMS Rally. I had intended to get gas and a car wash but sitting here waiting for the truck to come delayed me. We are both looking forward to seeing Mark Vance and hear what he has to tell us regarding the mission work in Haiti. We are hoping Dawn, his wife, is there and will likely see his mom there. Our Savior has a new church so we will get our first look at it, as Jennifer P. wants our review. I am sure it is lovely! My new shredder came yesterday and I got it hooked up today but have extensions cords draped across my floors now. Think I had better get another power strip for all these cords, it will certainly make for a more tidy floor.

What a lovely pink sky

As I write, the sun is beginning to set and the sky over the trees in Mandarin, across the river, is pinkish purple. Just glorious! It is good to feel good again, let me tell you. My blogging friend, Jami, is writing in her postings both in the blog and on Facebook, about recognizing and appreciating the simply joys in life. Every day that I do not leak onto my neighbors is a grand day! And when the sky is such a gorgeous color, well, that is also quite grand....

*

One small joy I would like returned is the ability to change the colors of the font I use for this but somehow, some way, that option disappeared. Lynn mentioned that she liked the different colors for different days, which helped to separate the postings but alas, we must now rely on the date alone. We just celebrated Lisa's birthday, me from down here, and on Saturday it will be Alayna's birthday. It would also have been my Grandma Sickles birthday---let's see, (doing the math) she would be 124 this year if she had lived. She would not have liked that very much, I promise you. At nearly 100, she was ready to go home to the Lord.

*

This morning I went to Bible study without my Justin along, as he had to go to work today. His job was to pressure wash the garage floor of his father's new house, which is going to painted tomorrow. So it had to be pressure washed today. Justin is going to Miami for a college football game this weekend so would not have been available to work on Saturday. Judy A. invited me to join them for lunch at Mayport but I declined because it just was not handy for me. If they went at the Town Center or closer to church, yes, I would go. Instead I ran errands and went to buy my new floor materials. That was an in and out task, with Mike being the one to pick it up.

*

After that job was tackled, I drove around and found Mike C. at home so I could drop off some more boxes of items for the Keystone yard sale. For some reason I have a tough time weaving my way around Judy's neighborhood and locating her home, even in the light of day, it seems. Eventually I did find it and got the boxes moved from pillar to post. The last box in my car was for Joanne which I dropped off at her office, but sadly, she was not in. My car is now box-free, as the first box out this a.m. was VBS items left at Victory, bumble bee items.

*

My last stop was the credit union on the Island and then I headed for home. Thinking I was not yet hungry, I had decided to not get anything to eat on my route today but once home, discovered I actually was ready for lunch. My leftovers from Tuesday night's dinner at Cracker Barrel with Judy J. were heated up, meatloaf and mashed potatoes. As I ate at my desk, I waded through yet more papers and such from the back bedroom. So much is just trash, like manuals for things we no longer own or blank floppy discs from the old style of computers. I used to carry those back and forth from the office with selections and such on to work on at home. Now we would be hard pressed to find a computer that would even accept a floppy disc. Out they go!!! My long-lost address book resurfaced too, now quite out of date.

*

I took a few minutes to write a note to Gretchen, my friend from church. She had called me Sunday night in great excitement about the game wining field goal kicked at the Jaguar game, but I couldn't talk to her because of the Board meeting. Then, Tuesday I got a sweet, handwritten card from her expressing her sympathy for the water leak and the damage we are experiencing. She is such a dear lady! So, I sent her a note as well. If she is like Mom, she will love getting mail. Often I will send her a color-printed copy of the church newsletter when it's hot off the press, which she reads and then mails to her sister in CA. Gretchen will bring me her sister's newsletter when it comes in the mail. Cute!

*

Lots of helicopter traffic this evening on the river. I wonder if a squadron has returned or if these are training exercises. Saturday is the LWMS Rally in Port Orange and Suzanne and I are going to attend. The speaker is Mark Vance, our former member who will talk about our Synod's work in Haiti. It seems I may have written this already...hmmmm. Suzanne and I will be putting on a lot of miles between home and that part of the state with the Rally and at the end of the month, a School of Worship session at Palm Coast. We had talked about going to Lakeland for a symphony event but now I am not sure I will go. Linda and Tommy are going to be in St. Pete that same weekend, too. I would love to go down there but just am not sure I am up to it.

*

Sunday night after the Board meeting, Nancy served Ellen and I some drinks and an interesting snack, peanut butter pretzel nuggets. Were they ever delicious! Nancy said she got them at Publix and I did find them there, but the container was quite large. I would certainly have to share the container with someone or they would likely get soggy before I could finish them. Ellen said that she gets hers at Fresh Market but I am sure the Publix ones are just as good. Now it makes me think I should have taken some pretzels when I saw them! I will have some popcorn instead, I guess.

This is a reposting from last year for Lisa's birthday

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2009

A special day in our family

Today marks the 36th anniversary of the birth of my niece, Lisa. Growing up in a family with six girls plus my mom and having my grandma integrated into my life, I knew nothing of what it was like to not have females. When my older sister, Lynn, told us she was going to have a baby, my sister, Lori, and I were in the sewing room of our family's home, jumping up and down with glee. I was a senior in high school at this time. It quickly became a "we" situation because in our family, sharing was important! My memory about exact dates and times is vague but I do know that Lynn could not be at my cousin's wedding because she was in labor. BUT I do remember being among the very first people to hold that little monkey baby when she was born!

*

Lisa was quite dark in color when she was born, hairy as could be, and the most beautiful thing I ever laid my eyes on! My former spouse was my boyfriend at this time and we just could not get enough of her. We went to Copp's the day she was born, when Copp's was still a department store, and bought her outfits and necessary baby items. We bought her a little sweater outfit which is what she wore home from the hospital. I think it was mint in color and with her coloring---gorgeous!

*

Our lives would never be the same, the sun rose and set on that child. When Lynn's husband rejoined the service, going into the Navy, it tore our hearts from our chests to say good-bye to them as they left for Norfolk. They had stopped at my house in Milwaukee, as I was married at this time, on their way to Norfolk, and after they left, I threw myself across the bed and sobbed my heart out.

*

Lori, my former spouse, and I drove out to see them at Easter, enjoying our time spent on the East Coast, seeing them and the sites around Williamsburg, VA, etc. That year at ThanksLiving we girls and Mom chipped together to fly Lynn and Lisa home, and surprised my dad. He was asleep in the chair and we put Lisa on his lap. He opened his eyes, and ta da!, there is our little dolly, Lisa. We had an airport in Manitowoc at the time, prop planes, but sadly, no more. The next January, Roger and Lori borrowed my brother-in-law's truck and drove out to pick up Lynn and Lisa, to bring them home for good. The husband did a Dear John thing, so the family to the rescue!

*

We rallied to help Lynn out with Lisa, by this time I had moved back to Manty from MKE, and could pitch in where I could. Lynn got a job through a temporary service at the area technical school, working in the mail room. She did so well that she was hired permanently and is presently there at LTC about 33 years! Lynn is an administrative assistant and works in public safety training, etc. Lisa was cared for between her aunts and eventually went to day care. Still the most adorable child you would ever want to meet. My brother-in-law, David, asked Lisa once, "What is it like to have people hang on your every word?" I really don't think she had a problem with it!

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During the summers when Lisa was not in school, she would often spend her days with us where she was trained on office etiquette. Lisa loved to play with the typewriter, the big clunky type we used back in those days. Since our building business was run from our home, she had to learn the proper way to answer the phone, take messages, and so on, and did a good job at it. Later should thank me for the training as she would be complimented on her skills, both phone and people ones!

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Where I went, Lisa went and we spent good time together. Memorable for me, if not for her. And memorable for my sisters and Mom who also spent a good deal of time with Lisa. When we would go to the Mall, I would meet and chat with people, much to Lisa's chagrin. After years of enduring this, she asked me, in exasperation, "Do you have to talk to everyone????" Yes, I do! She would cringe when I sang along to the music in the grocery store and would duck down in the seat when I used the windshield cleaner when driving down the street. Yes, Lisa was quirky! And loved every minute of it!

*

Fast forward through her dance recitals, Christmas programs, confirmation and the party (at our house), her cleaning and eventually babysitting for me...She visited us often when we moved to Florida and, then, she was getting married. Oh my! Here it gets tricky (sorry, sweetheart.....) because the same year she was getting married was the same year problems came to light in my marriage. She had always wanted my former spouse, who had been like a daddy to her, to walk her down the aisle, and it was touch and go there for a while whether he would be in the picture or not. He did "give the bride away" at her wedding while I had the privilege of singing for the service.

*

Now Lisa is the mama of two darling boys and the wife of Noah, a wonderful husband and daddy to his boys. She was the only granddaughter/niece for a full twelve years, spoiled beyond measure and loved beyond measure. And today, we celebrate her birthday!!!

Getting back to my version of normal

Look at what came to the top when sorting through stuff from the back office! A CD which Ken had made for us when he redid my wedding photo album for our 25th wedding anniversary. I cannot find the album but I have the photos on a CD for posterity. How fun is this?? (click the photo, if you dare!)

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Yes, it is true. Things are seemingly getting back to normal around here, the dust settling as it were. The insurance companies are working with everyone, as far as I know. Regarding my unit, I am about ready to go select my replacement flooring for Mike to install. Hopefully he has hired someone to replace his brother who recently quit working with him. Andy sure was good with the saw!

*

Today was a busy one with not much being accomplished regarding sorting and repacking or tossing. What I did go through, though, was my bag of paperwork from The Writer's Crew and the conferences I had attended. It was interesting to read the 'critiques' from folks on the portions of my book about Timmy that I submitted to the Crew. It sort of makes me think it is time to work on the book again...now that summer is over. (Oh, I always have an excuse!). Anyway, I decided that not much of the garnered paperwork from the conferences needed to be kept so out it went. Now I have an empty cloth bag to deal with!

*

This a.m. I got to church really early, about 8:15 so I could get a jump on the service folder before having to leave for my luncheon. The only info needing to be plugged into the bulletin yet was the head count for confirmation class which would not be available until tomorrow, so Pastor said to put in N/A. Works for me! The new copier did not like me and no one was there to advise me so I resorted to using the 'old' one. All other things were ready to go for those who staple the bulletin together and do the children's pages which they will do on Friday. Jackie came in before I left, doing a mailing to the shut-ins. It was nice to have a quiet visit with her while she worked.

*

The luncheon was not to begin until 11:30 but they wanted us in our seats by at least 11:15, which Ellen and I did. We sat with non-neighbors, at least we thought so, as it was not until we were walking home that we discovered one of our tablemates is a renter on the 1st floor of The Palace! How in the world did THIS happen? Ellen told Brittany how unusual it was the 'town crier' did not know someone, which really made me laugh. I have seen her come and go when in her car but this our first face-to-face meeting. A new friend! She owns and operates a dance studio and is also part of the ROAR, a Jaguar cheerleader. Nice young lady.

*

The food was good and the fashions extraordinary. Many were amazed that Belk had such high-end garments, some with prices over $1000. More than one person remarked, "Not at the Orange Park store!" Must be The Avenues store providing the attire. We knew several of the models including our neighbor, Judee, who looked absolutely smashing. They had professionals do their hair and make-up, first class all the way. Our lunch was chicken salad on lettuce with some fruit and tiny muffin on the side. It turned out the muffin was banana nut so had to leave it. The chicken had some sort of little seeds mixed in which were good, making it crunchy. I ate about half of it, leaving room for my raspberry sorbet. Ellen and I had a nice time together, with her deciding she needed to buy one of the fake fur vest jackets for her daughter, Maggie. It was a bit pricey, in my opinion, and I said we would have to go shopping on Senior Citizen's Day for the discount. She was going for a mani-pedi in the afternoon so we parted company after the luncheon.

*

This late afternoon I got a phone call from Mary Lew reporting she was indeed coming to Happy Hour and hoped I would be there. Not in my original plans, I felt like I should be there to keep her company, in case she did not know anyone else. See? Back to normal! We sat with one of the ladies who rents on the 2nd floor and her daughter with whom I've enjoyed HH in the past. They are both a delight and Mary Lew had a connection with them from the past. I did not have to worry about her at all, she was fine. The appetizers were quite good---fried brie, lo mein with tufu (I could pick around the tofu) and more fruit. It was a fruity day for me. Several of the neighbors came over to where I was sitting to ask how I am doing and gave hugs of support and comfort for me. They know I have been distressed about my downstairs' neighbor's situation and were glad to see me out today. Again, the assurances really help. Maureen offered to come and help me put all the bins back again, imagine that....

*

Tomorrow is Bible study and lunch with Justin, again a normal thing. This weekend Suzanne and I are attending the LWMS Rally in Port Orange where Mark Vance is going to be the guest speaker regarding our Synod's work in Haiti. I preparation for our road trip, I am getting an oil change and having the tires rotated. Nothing but the finest for Suzanne!

It's nearly sunrise

I am up before the sun, having slept an interrupted night but still getting rest. It will be so nice when my brain can go to sleep and stay that way, if you know what I mean. The insurance companies have been notified and in conversation with each other, and as of yesterday, the insurer for our building was contacted to see if they are able to help with some of the repairs. Much of that language is legal-speak regarding the statutes for the condominium and policies, etc. Sunday night was an emergency Board of Director's meeting at Nancy's condo to discuss the situation, figure out what to do regarding the building's responsibility and to check into hiring forensic plumbers to see if a diagram could be made showing which pipes go where and what controls what. There is still a problem in Gus's unit where he had insulated his bathroom walls and ceiling to lessen the sound of water from above from the bathrooms, as the insulation got wet and now must come out. Butch is helping Gus with that situation since he put the insulation there in the first place.

*

Being assured and reassured that this accident was not my fault helps but does not allay my great sorrow over what's happened to my neighbor's homes. My own home having problems is one thing, but to affect the others so much is hard on my heart. Certainly some day my bounce will come back but for right now I must accept that my light is a bit faded. Doing some of my normal things helps to distract, including doing an abnormal thing of working in the church office yesterday. There was no Bible study as pastor was gone to VA to preach at his first congregation as they celebrated 20 years of spreading the Word. My next scheduled day was Wednesday but Ellen and I are attending a fund raiser at The Club at lunch that day, so I might go in earlier in the day and then later in the day to finish up the service folder. Or, if need be, go after Bible study on Thursday.

*

Sunday night was the emergency BOD meeting which was to start just as the last play of the Jaguar game was being played. Nancy came screaming to the door to let us in (Tommy and me) and made us sit to watch the game winning 59 yard field goal which won the game for the Jags. Whoo hoo!!! This was a franchise record-setting kick and just a fantastic thing to witness. Justin sent me a text message reporting that his voice was gone from yelling at the game and his head pounding. It took them an hour and a half just to get to their car because of the crowds and the shuttle buses being so full. I hope this helps with ticket sales so the next game is not blacked out. It sure would have been awful to miss seeing this fantastic kick and have to listen on the radio instead. Even my family in WI got to see it.

*

After the BOD meeting Nancy asked me to stay to have a glass of wine with Ellen and her and even though I was not really in a social mood, decided it was in my best interest to mingle. Since I do not drink wine, Nancy asked me I drank hard liquor. That sounded so funny to me but before I could reply, Ellen piped up, saying, "Kim likes rum". So, Nancy mixed a rum and diet Coke for me which was enjoyed at her dining room table. We tried not to talk about the disaster but did discuss Ellen being motivated by all this to start packing up Billy's stuff for safe keeping. She had told me this on Saturday when Maggie and she came over, after reading the blog and seeing how I am busily getting my precious memories out of cardboard and into plastic. There is a silver lining! Anyway, Nancy and Ellen were discussing the upcoming holidays and she asked Ellen if she wanted to take a Christmas cruise. After some discussion, they shook hands on it---they are going on a cruise over the holidays!

*

Steve on Fox and Friends just remarked that someone flipped the 'Fall switch' as the temperatures are quite chilly all over the place, including here in north Florida. Only 56 degrees, many area Facebook friends remark how much they are enjoying these cooler temps, but as I drove over to church yesterday, I had my heat on in the car!

*WARNING

Monday afternoon I got busy in the bedrooms, packing and repacking box contents into plastic bins and got things ready for Justin to haul out to the car or trash. One box I grabbed was marked "Timmy's bedding" and instead of waiting for Justin to come for this, I did it all by myself. I grabbed a clear bin, cut the box open and starting to transfer. Right on top was Timmy's little pillow from his bed, a decorative one with a little drool on it, and cat hair! Wrapping some tape around my hand, I removed the cat hair as best I could and then packed it away. The bed pillows were in there, too, which were not going to fit into the plastic bin so I pulled off the pillow cases, folded them, and put the pillows on the side for dry cleaning. This project was nearly complete as I heard Justin coming up the stairs so I grabbed a tissue and mopped up quickly. He asked me, "Are you crying or sweating?" which made me chuckle and I pointed to the bin where he could see what was in it. He knew. Over a half dozen boxes were moved into plastic yesterday with a great deal of sorting going on. The stuffed animals without an immediate attachment were put into a box for the yard sale, some that were yukky-looking went in the trash, and the keepers shrink wrapped in a storage bag inside the bin. They pack better with their air sucked out!

*

I took a box with two booster seats in it to church with me last night for the Ladies' Group meeting. Thinking that perhaps Suzanne could use one or both of them for Daniel, the seats had to go to church either way for the yard sale or for Daniel. When she looked at them, at first it was a go but then upon further scrutiny, decided that the booster might not open wide enough to not squeeze his little legs. Perhaps I will see Mike on Wednesday to transfer more stuff from my car to his truck for the yard sale. It seems more efficient to handle one less time, unloading it at church and then having him load it into his truck. Also, I came upon several items that used to grace the gravesite but had to be gathered up in 2008. They were filthy so I put them twice through the dishwasher and cleaned them up good enough for the yard sale, too. You read that right---I put them in the yard sale box! When it was time to clean off the marker, it was horribly difficult but now, not so much. Time is a healer and being in this 'mode', a blessing!

*

By the way, since my shredder is now stuck in the ON position, I decided to replace it. Office Max offered only the self-contained style while the one I have straddles the wastebasket, allowing for use as a wastebasket and shredder. I went on-line and found out that does this so it is on its way. When I was telling Mike K. about it the other day, he said his does the same thing so he gets his stack of paper ready to shred, plugs it in, and does his thing. Mine at least has an OFF switch but that's a pain to do that way. It already had a crack in the front of it from working so hard and now it is time for a new one, especially with all those other boxes of papers stored in the cabinets in that back bedroom!

WARNING* Some long lost photos come to the top

Talk about a mixed blessing! Having the water disaster in this household has really made it possible, forced my hand, as it were, to go through boxes and bins of papers piled in the various baskets and cardboard boxes in my spare rooms. Some, let me say, most, of the items no longer needed to be kept, in a less-sentimental moment it finds the shredder or wastebasket as its refuge. But some things draw tears and foster extremely fond memories, and some less fond ones, bittersweet at the very least. One such 'find' was a disc of photos marked "Pictures for Kim" with a little peace symbol drawn after it. Hmmmm......who would send me a CD of photos and use a peace symbol? Let's take a look....and brace yourselves...(click on photos to enlarge if you wish...)

Look at Timmy's face as that goofy Tommy models his Packer underwear. And Mom is having a good laugh at the same time!

Here is my yet intact family, minus Justin, enjoying a lovely lunch at Eagle Harbor's Club. Linda must be the photographer.

Timmy seems to be enjoying his dessert, which was strawberry shortcake, if I recall. There are photos elsewhere in my collection of both Tommy and Timmy licking their plates clean---literally, this very same meal!

Here is Timmy laughing about something in his high chair. On his cheek is the remaining blister from a sunburn he got when our family had been in Atlanta at Six Flags. Hey, we didn't notice that we were getting sunburned! Oops.....He is dirty from eating one of his all-time favorites, chocolate pudding!

A quiet moment being enjoyed by Linda and Timmy as they sit together in the family room at Misty Lake Drive. This visit was also the time Linda nearly had to call me at work to find out how to shut off his ride-on train, but at some point he rammed into something and it stopped! They put it away in the laundry room for some peace!! Whoaooo, toot, toot....

Looking a bit subdued, but likely is not, Timmy is carrying yet a different train around the patio area with him, at the Misty Lake house. Or, as he later called it---'the pink house with the red door'.

After Timmy has gone to bed, the rest of us retired to the hot tub for some relaxation. The water looks a little high! Justin is still sporting his share of the sunburn on his cheeks as is his father. It seems I am none the worse for the wear...There is never a dull moment when the Jachimstal's come for a visit!

See? I knew it!!! He was having a good time on the patio after all. He wants everyone to see his train!

Okay, let me explain this one----in 2005, Justin, Martie and I went to New York City for the Freedom Concert, a huge event hosted by Sean Hannity to support the children of the troops who lost their lives in the war. Ollie North started the charity so they work closely on it. Anyway, we found out we had to take the bus to New Jersey to get to the 6 Flags park for the concert, which was a brand, new experience for all of us. On that bus, we met some like-minded folks going the same way and the little guy in the front next to me was quite fond of me for some reason. He worked for the City of New York, the Dept. of Public Works, I think. He was married but traveling alone. There is much more to this story, but it ended up he rather pushed Martie aside so he could sit in the seat next to mine of the ride back to NYC. Justin made friends with the Korean War vet, talking about the war all the way back. What an adventure! Mark gave me his business card which I just came upon in a different box the other day so how funny to find a disc of photos from that trip as well.

*

Hopefully this was an okay trip down memory lane for you, as after I stopped crying, I really enjoyed seeing them, and remembering the good times......

Someone hit the replay button

It is before 5:00 a.m. and I have been awake for a couple hours already, after being slow falling to sleep. Even my sleepy tea did not help much in easing my brain to sleep. Between the comforting words of the Bible study and the soothing massage on Thursday, I slept well that night. Friday night was a different story.

*

After posting my blog yesterday morning I busied myself with more paper sorting, filing, and shredding. The previous night I had put a credit card-type card through the shredder and it sort of jammed. I hit the reverse switch and it popped back up again. Flipped the switch and put it through again just fine, but then, it would not stop running! It seems it is now jammed in the "ON" position so I must switch it off after each piece is put through. There was already a crack in its face but now this, which might require a purchase of new one, as there is a ton more paper to go through in my back bedroom.

*

At 11:30 I was to meet my downstairs neighbors at La Nop, our usual Friday ritual and was surprised that Jeff came with us. We talked some about the flood damage and such, and again they, Tracy mostly, assured me that 'it's all good' and just an 'inconvenience' and an opportunity to redo some of the things she wishes they'd done differently the first time. I breathed a sigh of relief again because it seems like they are handling it okay, might even rent one of the penthouse units while Donna is on tour, so they can stay in the building.

*

In the afternoon I was back at my desk and then it was rest time, even though I had done little heavy lifting. Penny called to arrange for the clothing transfer so we did that around 5:00 pm and then planned to meet again around 6:00 at the cabana. In the meantime, I saw that Gus's car was back in his stall so I took his laundered towels, the photos, and the two books to replace the wet ones down to him. I had to face the music, and perhaps the wrath of Gus. He was so nice, welcomed me, and thanked me wildly for doing that. In essence, he feels badly that it happened to me (the leak) and I feel terrible that it happened to him (the leak). Gus told Butch, "This couldn't have happened to a worse person" which took me aback because it does not sound very good. What he was saying was basically I was the last one this should have happened to, but I knew that. He was telling me his story, about the insurance adjuster being there and the after effects of the leak. Evidently there was more than we could see at first, but it appears it might be cosmetic or a bit of drywall replacement with some paint. Plus replacing his ceiling tiles and several floor tiles that popped up.

*

Parting with hugs, I went out to meet Penny who was waiting alone poolside. It was a cool night, and she was loving it. I was sorry to make her wait for me but she was fine, enjoying the evening. We had our dinners, with me ordering Danny's homemade brats with saurkraut and Penny, the sliders. As we sat and recapped our weeks, she spotted Michelle on the catwalk in my building so I stood up and waved to her. She came down for a while after putting her poodle upstairs. Michelle is hosting a house concert on her 5th floor balcony on the 10th and both Penny and I are planning to attend. Later, our condo president joined us, while walking his dog, and shared some conversations and such stirring within the building and the Board regarding this current mess. Of course, the insurance companies will hopefully settle it and all will be happy, but the water issue, the 'mystery main' and all that needs to be discussed. As much as I like Tommy and all that, I wish he had not sat at our table last night. It caused my heart and brain to be troubled yet again.

*

He had some sad personal news as well as his wife of three years and he are getting divorced. Tommy had been single for 53 years and says he will never say the words "I do" again as long as he lives. Prior to their marriage, his wife was well grounded in her faith and practicing thereof but as soon as they were married, she never got into. He even offered to go to church with her, even though he is Jewish, but she would not do it. "People change" was the mantra both he and Michelle used during that discussion. That is fairly dramatic, though, in so short a time. Everyone is having a battle going on around or inside themselves, it seems.

*

Tommy had had his place listed for sale a while back and said he wishes it had sold then, as had Gus, who expressed the same sentiment about wishing his had sold last year when it was listed. Many of us bought there at the height of the market, paying the prices required at that time, but now when it comes to selling them, well, not so much. Michelle, who is a realtor, has hers listed for sale too and realizes she will not get the improvements made to her place back when she sells. Only a percentage of the improvements can be expected to be made back, like when folks add a pool to their property. It makes it more appealing to the buyer but adds only, I think, 15% to the value. Fortunately, I did not remove any walls or do more dramatic remodeling, mostly redecorating on my part, except for the updating of cabinets and such in the bathrooms. If I would decide to list and sell, Michelle thinks I should be able to get about what I paid for it, as one unit like mine on the 4th floor recently appraised just a bit higher than I paid.

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Well, I think I might try to rest my eyes a bit more before I get up. Judee, my first floor neighbor, may come by to look at a table I am letting go to a good home, or thrift shop, as the case might be, this a.m. If Judee does not want it then Donna wants to see it. If she does not want it either, I will have Mike and Andy haul it to the dumpster on one of their trips when the carpet gets pulled out. Martie is coming this afternoon when she is done working to help go through the art supplies and crafts in the guest room. I might work some in there before she arrives to get us started. But, first, let's try for a nap....