The toll

I have mentioned in some past post that I have fibromyalgia. There is always some part of me that hurts, and all the current medications that help with that hurting... well, I get every side effect known and just can't take them. And I won't take narcotics because I don't want to be a basket case that can't function. So I put up with it.

But some of the hallmarks of FMS (FibroMyalgia Syndrome) are the tiredness and also trouble sleeping. And I have both to varying degrees on any given day. I am finding it difficult to sometimes get done what needs to be done.

Like when I have to work (say the evening shift which starts at 3:30 p.m.), and there is housework or yardwork that needs to be done. Plus I have to walk the dog, make my lunch for work, iron my uniform... all things that most people don't think twice about. I can get one of those things done, along with walking the dog and going to work. Because the dog comes first. So I can do some laundry or cut the grass or do the dishes. And walk the dog, get ready for work and then head off to work. But not more than that. It is not that I couldn't force myself to do all those things... I have on occasion done just that when the need has arisen. But then I am so tired and unmotivated the next day.

So, with the renovations that I am doing on the house, plus all the other stuff in life, I am thinking that having a dog is adding a bit too much to my plate. Because everything else will go by the wayside so that he gets his walks every day (he dislikes using the yard as a toilet, and I can't blame him, really). I haven't gotten back to sanding the drywall and it just sits there. I need to get it done. There are things that need doing that I just don't have the get up and go to do.

So I am coming to the realization that I may need to take him back to the rescue place I got him from and see if we can find him another good home. In all reality he would be best suited to one or two retired people who are experienced with dogs that have anxiety issues. Because he certainly does. (That is another issue: his terror of thunderstorms has actually caused me to miss work: if it is at night and I am supposed to work the next day but I spend most of the night trying to keep him from going absolutely nuts, I can't function and actually feel ill if I don't get enough sleep and so have called in sick a few times.) Today, someone started their car on the street and the fan belt started squealing... and Teak got freaked out for a little while. Any loud sharp noise and he has a meltdown. Not to mention the thunder and fireworks. I bought one of those thundershirts but don't think it does much. I also picked up some tablets with valerian root that make him pretty sleepy, although not while it is thundering, but he settles quickly afterwards.

So, as much as I love him, I may need to rehome him. I have some long and hard thinking to do on this. It is not going to be an easy decision.

Disruptions

The new furnace and air conditioner are being installed as I type, and so the cats are safely ensconced in the front bedroom, with food, water and litter box near their cat tree (which is in front of the window), so they are all set for the day. They also have the portable a/c unit in there, so at least they are cool and comfy. The dog and I are on the warm and sticky side. At 10:30 a.m. it already feels like 31C out there. I think that is about 88F. It is overcast and there is the chance of afternoon thunderstorms, so that "feels like" temp may climb up to around 37C/98F. Like I said... sticky.

But, by the end of the day, there will be a brand spankin' new a/c unit cooling the house. I am getting the smallest one installed and it is actually huge for this size of house (624 sq. ft.). Doing his calculations, the mechanical guy said I would need a 28,000 BTU unit and the smallest they have is 40,000... so I could probably make the house into a walk-in cooler if I so chose! I think not... just comfortably cool works just fine for me, thanks.

And speaking of endings, the beginnings of things with that new guy are now over. I just wasn't what he wanted/needed and although we had a great time for the past few weeks, it was time to move on. I found him very intriguing and I know there was definitely mutual attraction and connection, but in the end, it has to 'feel' right for both parties involved and for him, it just wasn't quite there. So we talked a lot about everything and it's all okay. It would have been nice because he is an artist/teacher/musician and we had a lot of things in common.

I guess that leaves more time for me to get on with the taping and mudding of the drywall in the basement. I really do want to get that done this summer some time! I am very good at procrastinating sometimes...

Lila developed a bladder infection the other evening so it was a trip to the vet yesterday. She isn't the most compliant of customers, so she growled and hissed her way through the exam and antibiotic injection. Luckily she didn't try to bite, so everyone escaped the ordeal unscathed. Well, except the cat. I opted for the shot as I could easily see her becoming more skittish and hard to handle if I had to stuff a pill down her throat twice a day. Hopefully the shot does the trick. The vet said it is probably a bladder infection but could possibly be (1) bladder stones, which means the shot will help but the infection keeps coming back, or (2) stressed induced cystitis (inflammation of the lining of the bladder) in which the antibiotics do absolutely nothing, because there is no infection. The treatment for that scenario involved environment enrichment and behaviour modification. Considering Lila gets stressed just by the moving of the vacuum or a power cord... it better be a real infection. She is already noticably better, so I will stick with that one.

Bullets

Not as in a gun, but as in a style of listing things. So here goes:

• The drywall is up in the basement. Have not gotten to the taping and mudding part yet but that will come soon. And I need to frame in under the stairs to build a couple of fixed shelves for long term storage of bulky items like the cooler and sleeping bags. But that's not bad for doing it all on my own... I have a few scrapes and bruises to attest to that.
  
• I had estimates on a new furnace and air conditioner. Have set the date for install on July 23rd. Price tag comes in at just under $8K for both so it qualifies for the hydro loan so it gets tacked on to my monthly gas and electric bill. No out of pocket $$! Yay! My pockets don't have any $$ these days.
  
• Teak survived the Canada Day fireworks at my bedside, when I should have been asleep. They started at 10:45 pm and went on for a full 30 minutes. The beginning bangs saw him trying to get under my bed. A 60 lbs dog just does not fit. So I spent that whole 30 minutes and then some leaning over the bed, playing music on my phone, singing away and rubbing his ears, trying to drown out the fireworks. It didn't work very well but was probably better than doing nothing. I had hoped he would go into the basement to his hidey spot (which is much quieter than upstairs) but no. He had to stay with me... and be beside himself with fear. *sigh*
  
• I have suspended my television cable service for the summer. (I know... crazy eh!!) I want to get more done around the house and tv is too alluring at times when I am feeling lazy. The only thing I have really done is started watching "Orange is the New Black" on netflix. So far 3 episodes starting at Season 1 Episode 1. Give me a year or two and I might actually make it to the current season! LoL
  
• I ventured back online again a while back. You know... the dating game. So few people responded to flirts and emails, it was getting quite discouraging. One guy (my view counter said he had looked 16 times) finally messaged back saying the site does weird things to make you think someone is looking lots. I don't see why. And there are only a few that seemed to look many times. But whatever. I chatted a number of times with a man who lives about 2 hours away. I told him right off the hop that I was pretty skeptical about the distance but we met for a coffee anyway. Turns out he is really into alternative healing methods (energy grids, reiki, crystals, etc) and felt he had to turn me into a 'believer'. Well, no surprise.. I balked at that right off. I am very solidly science based, thankyouverymuch, so did not really like him pushing me to agree with what he believes. I know lots of people put stock into this but I have never had someone prove to me in a repeatable observable way that it actually works. So... no. And besides, he lives too far away, and was shorter than he put on his profile (being 5'9" means I am a bit of a stickler about being able to look someone in the eye at the very least).
  
• Shortly after that meeting, I met someone else on the same site. He is very close to my age, and a few inches taller (always good!). We have started seeing each other and have been really enjoying getting to know one another. He is educated, witty, creative, caring, compassionate and really fun to be with. As with everything, I am going with the flow and seeing what develops. We've had a number of pretty indepth talks and it's all been good. I am going to be hopefully optimistic. So far there's been no scary things creeping out of the closet. LoL So keep your fingers crossed and wish me luck.
  

And for your viewing delight, I bring you a few photos I have snapped in the past little while. All with my cell phone camera.

Lila's "Einstein" hair
I did not photoshop this at all
The effect is the flash ~ she was only about 2 feet from the wall

The smoke from the forest fires out west made for some crazy sun
This was taken at about 6:00 a.m. last Saturday

A beautiful hibiscus in someone's front yard
These become indoor plants for the winter or they
freeze solid and die

A dragonfly on the wall of a building
Seeing lots of these right now which is great
because they eat mosquitoes!!!

Eh?

It's CANADA DAY!!!!

Have some cake. We are 148 today.

Yeah, I know. Still wet behind the ears.

But hey! We are polite, fun loving and will

be throwing one helluva party in

two years!!

Come join us!!!

Welcome to my dungeon

My basement is rapidly becoming a windowless dungeon.

Okay, maybe not a dungeon, but definitely windowless!

My tiny little house,which I am certain is based on this Sears kit home, had such tiny windows in the basement foundation that only a 10 year old boy could fit through one. Plus the two that were in the rec room had steel mesh bolted on the outside to protect the glass from the gravel lane. That, of course, made it impossible to use them as an emergency exit! There is one other, in the laundry room, that the dryer vent and plumbing for the outside tap run through. Same size.

So. As I have been working in the basement, I have been formulating a plan on what to do with these things. One would have water dripping inside when it rained. The last thing I need is more leaking in the basement!!! (I fixed that already... and it still holding nicely, thankyouverymuch.)

The way these things were built is like this: single pane wooden framed window on the outside, set in a wooden frame that is set in the concrete foundation; dead space the thickness of the foundation (8" ~ completely lined with wood); second single pane wooden frame window inside on the rec room wall, but set back because the basement has been framed, insulated and drywalled.

Here in Central Canadia, in the Land of Ice and Snow (and cold, for a up to 6 months of the year), single panes of glass are as useless as putting a layer of plastic food wrap over the opening.

This is what has become of those useless things. Well, the two in the rec room, at least. I still have the laundry room one to do. I unbolted the metal screens from the windows. You can see that these things are literally at ground level. Which is idiotic. But it is what it is.

I then removed the window. Using pressure treated plywood, which you can use to make a wooden basement if you so desire (and people do ~ and they work well), I covered the opening. It is glued in place with construction adhesive and secured with screws. Nice snug fit.

I have wood preservative rated for below grade wood that will be applied to these pieces of plywood (and the wooden frames) once I have them all in place. I was told I could put several coats on to make sure it soaks in well, and then once it is well dried, the plywood can be painted. I will get some light grey to match the concrete as best possible.

On the inside of this piece of plywood, I glued 1" thick rigid styrofoam insulation. I then caulked completely around the styrofoam to make sure it is well sealed. In the rec room where the inside window pane had been, I glued and screwed a piece of plywood and also glued styrofoam to the inside of this surface. That space between outside and inside windows is now a completely sealed unit.

The area between the former windows and the front edge of the wall framing will be filled with pink insulation, covered in plastic, and then drywalled over like it had never existed. I have lots of adjustable lighting in the rec room (part of the electrical upgrade that Old Fish and I did during the winter) so no worries about it being too dark. Those windows didn't really add any lights anyway!

I work this week and then have 2 weeks' staycation, during which I plan on finishing the windows completely, and the drywall in the basement, and build a couple of storage shelves under the stairs, and make a lattice cover for one side of the stairs where I have put the cats' litter box. The rec room side of the stairs will be drywalled. The other side is in the furnace room. I will make the cats a little opening ~ that the dog can't fit his head through ~ in the lattice. It will be on hinges so I can pull the box out to clean it.

I'll let you know how much I actually get done.