62 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 9-24-16”

  4. Unfortunately Lulabelle woke me a little after 5 needing to go outside. I tried to go back to sleep but couldn’t so Lou, Amos, and Moe (the cat) have all been outside for their morning constitutionals. Coffee is made, text from agent selling my listing, emailed her the requested docs, and came to check in with all of you.
    It isn’t cold by any stretch of the imagination, but it is cooler here in the mornings and I love leaving the bad door open for just a little while.

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  5. Why is it the sound of waves crashing on shore, a rippling brook, a rushing river, and rain are all soothing sounds; but the drip, drip, dripping of water is an irritant?

    Inquiring minds want to know.

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  6. I’ve been up since a little after 6, to babysit Little Guy.

    The ace bandage around his half-cast/splint keeps coming untucked at the top of it. After my tucking in efforts kept failing, I finally thought to tape it around with bandage tape. (Not sure what that’s really called, but it’s white & about an inch & a half wide.) Seems to be working.

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  8. Kim- It might be what causes the sound. If it’s a sink, it is metal or ceramic that the drop hits. And it’s only one drop at a time. However, the sound of water dripping form the roof in a gentle rain can be soothing because it is hitting the ground outside.

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  9. I’ve been up since 6:30, which is sleeping in for me. On weekdays, I leave the house around that time.

    Today is hopefully the last blast of summer heat. I hope to finish putting up a prefab shed so I can get everything form our old garage in it and out of the carport. I’m tied of removing the tarp every time I want something.

    Later we hope to go to D1’s house to celebrate D3’s birthday. Son will be there. D2 and hubby will be there also, but D3 doesn’t know that yet.

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  11. KIm’s question. The answer is the cause of the noise. The southing sounds are supposed to be there and it means everything is good. The dripping is an irritant because it is a reminder that you need to do something.
    The sound of wind and rain are soothing only up to a point, then it can change to concern and terror. Same for waves.
    It[‘s the subliminal messages they send. That applies to many things. The sounds your car makes, your spouse breathing while asleep. Many thing.

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  13. After not sleeping well all week, I took a hot Epson bath with lavender scent around 8 o’clock and then got into bed. I didn’t even open my book, I was asleep.

    I’m feeling like a normal person this morning–woke at 5:20, stayed in bed until 6 and now am at the computer to hopefully write some blogs.

    It’s supposed to be miserably hot here through Monday–even a heat advisory on Sunday. I got the short straw and am taking the Adorable grandson to a soccer game at 1:15. I’ll bring a book, too . . .

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  14. I was up, but always have a prayer/bible time before getting to this site. I also am on fb first to check on the grands. Today I was blessed with a nice picture showing the youngest batting at a toy duck that squeaks. Blessed my heart. Then I have email to clean up.

    I agree with Chas about the sounds. More and more my mind turns to all the things that need doing. That is when I break out the scripture memorized, of course. Still…so difficult to control that thinking!

    One sound, that can still keep me awake and yet is a comfort, is my husband’s snoring. So glad he is still here! I am happy when he is not snoring, however, as I know he is sleeping better.

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  15. I keep a bucket in my bathtub to collect the steady drips there for my yard (faucet in there has dripped for some time but was not fixable due to tub wall liner and ancient fixtures that would probably break and … Well, long story. But it’ll all get fixed at some point now.

    So my sink has shipped! (Aren’t I hilarious on Saturday mornings, huh?) I received an email that it’s on its way (much faster than anticipated when I ordered it). Toilet also is on its way and the toilet seat, which had to be ordered separately, arrived yesterday. Too much information, I know, but I’m a little surprised that things are coming so quickly. Initially it looked like I wouldn’t get some of these things until Oct/November time frame.

    I’m off to Hollywood today to get Carol to the library to return some books. I’m trying to think of something fun we can do as well but it’s getting harder as she’s much less mobile now than she was even only a year ago. So unless it’s something we can easily park for and doesn’t require hardly any walking (and that leaves out most things), it’s a challenge. A drive through the hills or wherever seems to be the easiest way so she can at least feel she’s gotten “out” of the facility she’s in.

    A couple weeks ago she found a “Bible museum” that was nearby (found via her smartphone) in Los Feliz. So we finally found it (it’s clearly a little oddity in that area) after driving up and down all the narrow, hilly streets, but when we went by, it appeared to be an outdoor thing that was in someone’s yard, located in what looked like a bowl-shaped grassy field-like area that just wasn’t going to be very accessible (and there was only street parking, all of which was taken up). She was disappointed, but i told her it looked impossible to get to with the steep hillside, total lack of any parking and then walking on what would be a lot of natural terrain, up and down hill, with her walker. She’d never be able to do that.

    I was thinking of taking her once to the Hollywood & Highland mall where we could go on a tour of the Academy Awards theater (it’s inside the mall and I’ve seen the tours gathering, but have never been on it). But that again would be a lot of walking for her and it could involve stairs or other barriers once we were inside.

    Life gets hard, even ‘simple’ things are just not doable for so many people as disabilities set in. And simple outings with her now require a lot of thinking ahead — where can we park, will it be next to a curb so she can get back into the car easily (she can’t make it into the Jeep from a flat surface now); if we’re going somewhere new to eat, are there going to be tables that are accessible (a couple times we’ve stopped to eat at places she wanted to go to, only to find very tall tables with high stools).

    We never did make it inside the main library in downtown LA a couple months ago due to a complete lack of handicapped friendly entrances that didn’t involve a lot of walking (on cobblestone walkways, impossible for her wheeled walker, really). I did discover, belatedly, that there might be a way to drop her off on a side street (at a red curb) to reach a closer side entrance, but with all the one-way streets and heavy traffic, we decided to skip it on that particular trip.

    And she always “thinks” she can do more than she can. She actually wanted to try getting up the many front stairs at the downtown library that day we were there. They were shallow steps, but there were several sets of them (the long entry is terraced back from the sidewalk and street) and there’s absolutely no way she could have maneuvered up and down those things.

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  17. And I understand that many places simply can’t be made accessible.

    But I was surprised that the main library in downtown LA (though it’s a historic building, which creates issues) wasn’t set up for an easy handicapped entrance. We parked in a parking structure right next door and I guess I assumed that the elevator would let us off at a library door or even inside the library itself — instead, we wound up on the busy sidewalk out front, with the library building set way, way back on the property. I had to run around finding employees to see if somehow I had missed seeing the handicapped entrance, but there didn’t seem to be one (other than the side entry where there was technically no street parking and Carol didn’t feel that she could walk the distance around the corner to get there).

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  18. I’d love to take Carol to Olvera Street, but, again, lots of parking and walking issues. And for some reason she was denied one of those handicapped placards which would make life a little easier for us when I’m taking her out and about.

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  19. Or the Hollywood Bowl. I researched that a while back and they do have handicapped seating, but the venue itself — which is outdoors and built into a hillside, a historic landmark around here — would simply require a good deal of walking anyway, just to get to a seat. Maybe it’s something where they’d have wheelchairs available, not sure.

    But I’ve sure become aware of how difficult it is to do things for those with disabilities and limited mobility since I’ve been taking Carol around.

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  20. Same problem with the Griffith Park Observatory or, of course, the zoo which also is in that same park. Doesn’t help, probably, that all these sites are jam packed with people on weekends (and even weekdays during the summer).

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  21. Philipe’s for french dipped sandwiches IF there is a sidewalk door in the front. 1001 N Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 There used to be parking right next door.

    Union Station across the street.

    Tommy’s Hamburgers. Los Angeles 2575 W. Beverly Blvd. 213.389.9060

    All places to people watch.

    Handicapped Parking Placard? Ask again! Better yet, have a nurse or receptionist ask.

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  23. Husband and I just harvested some beautifully patinated boards for his art studio – they are in the shop drying out and then I will lightly sand them, cut them to size and polyurethane with a matte finish so that they’re easy to dust/clean. I love living on an old homestead.

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  24. DJ – Could you or she buy an inexpensive wheelchair (if there is such a thing as an inexpensive one) to keep in your Jeep?

    Hubby’s pick-up was too high for me to easily get in, so he kept a step-stool in the back for me.

    With the arthritis in his knees bothering him more, his current work truck is harder to get into (& he has to get into & out of it several times a day as he delivers). He is thinking of getting a step-stool, drilling a hole in it, & putting a rope through it. That way, he can use it to get into his truck, then draw it up with the rope.

    This is the kind of step-stool I mean, not the kind with more than one step. . .

    http://www.rubbermaid.com/en-US/shop-products/cleaning—utility/step-stools/step-stool

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  25. I was up around 6:30 and began doing laundry. I figure I need to do laundry right before Art gets his shower so everything can be fresh from the dryer and clean as possible. I was surprised by wound care. It is antibacterial soap in the shower without anything else except clean clothes. That means I can’t dump my basket or even use the basket for getting things from the dryer. Miss Bosley loves to “help” with laundry, but I can’t let her near Art’s towel, shirt, etc. Our dryer is outside in the utility room so what should be relatively easy becomes more of a challenge. As he finished his shower, I was standing in the bathroom holding his warm towel and clothes. It’s what a wife does😃 But I forgot to say, “My pleasure!”

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  26. Son has been at a conference for several days where he had to present a paper. We finally got to talk to him for a few minutes last night, the first time since Art’s surgery. It is great that things are going well for him, but difficult that he is so busy. I am glad this surgery did not have to interrupt what all he had planned for this time.

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  30. Good looking quackery on the header! It would be nice to be by the water right now. I have stocked up on more movies from the library to continue in our air chair travels. We don’t even need to board Miss Bosley! I am easily and inexpensively entertained!

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  32. So now we’re getting a darker shade. Looks nice. The lighter orange was beginning to remind me of orange sherbet.

    It’;s a hot one here. 91°! We hardly had any hot days over the summer, but now we’re getting them. A friend and I were building a shed but stopped around 3 since we both were feeling the heat. Now we’re going to D1’s house an hour and a half away. Glad the minivan has good a/c.

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  33. Notre Dame just scored a touchdown. Art is watching football. Miss Bosley has not scratched on the television screen since we got back home. It’s like she knows not to aggravate Art right now as he is recuperating. Maybe it’s just because he is here and giving her plenty of attention.

    We just went outside and walked on the driveway. Art has been cutting back on his pain relief med so it hurts when he breathes in and again when he breathes out. I told him it might be better to take a bit more med so he feels like walking more. He walked better in the hospital, but that was not outside in the heat and humidity. I told him maybe going up and down the stairs inside might be better with the A/C on for his comfort.

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  35. Karen, we tried the step stool several months ago, I bought one online (wide, steel with rubber, one step) but she had trouble with that. Her legs are very weak and wobbly — finding a curb seems to work best.

    Ironically, she’d probably have more access to places if she were in a wheelchair.

    Today we went to the Autry museum where there’s pretty easy parking. Unfortunately, the lower level (most interesting part) was closed as they’re working on it, so we just got to see half of it (paintings mostly), but they reduced the admission fee from $6 each to $3 each because of that. We ate at the cafe there on the premises.

    About a year ago, she’d asked the doctor who visits their facility if she could get the handicapped placard, I believe she went through DMV (as is required) and they told her she needed the signature of a “specialist.” I urged her to call one of her recent docs to get it, and I can’t remember now if she did and it still didn’t go through or what. Maybe I’ll do some checking on my own, if anyone qualifies it should be her.

    My aunt eventually got one and brought it with her every time we went somewhere and it really made a big difference.

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  37. It’s hot here, too, 92 in Hollywood, maybe a few degrees cooler at my house which is more coastal — but the house was pretty toasty when i got home at 4. I will have to go to the dog park to get cold.

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  38. And thanks for the parking idea for Union Station. Last few times I’ve been there I’ve just gone in by subway from the Valley with my friend who lives up that way. Then we also walked over to Olvera Street. Easy peasy. But that would be too far for Carol, I’m afraid.

    Parking in downtown LA is, generally, nearly impossible, if you want to be near a particular destination for easy access.

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  39. My daughter said that she went with her son to Lassen National Park this week and they got some snow. Had to miss one trail as the snow was blowing sideways and they couldn’t see. He is in a charter school that does expeditionary learning.

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  40. Mr P has the handicap placard. I have an extra one in my truck. It came in handy once when I took My Own Personal WWII Veteran to the closing of his house. I do no abuse the privilege. Earlier this week when I drove his truck I parked at the end of the parking lot. I had an aunt who was paralyzed from the waist down.

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  41. My mom used my dad’s handicap placard even after he died. (He only had one because as he was dying of cancer, & had an arm amputated, he couldn’t walk as far as he used to. The cancer had spread to his lungs, which of course caused him to get out of breath easily.) She eventually needed it herself anyway.

    But what I thought was funny was, for a time, she would use the handicap placard (I’m using the word you used – not sure what we called it) when parking, but at other times she would lament that she really needed to walk more. 🙂

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  42. My mom commented once that the handicapped spaces are nice for getting into and out of the store, and not bad to get into . . . but backing out of spaces right next to the store isn’t easy to do, and they should take that into consideration in the design!

    In Nashville I was a volunteer driver taking seniors to medical appointments. I had one lady I drove frequently, and she had a handicapped tag. Usually she didn’t need it where we were going, but occasionally she thought it would be helpful and she brought it along. We just had to remember to have her collect it when she got back out of my car!

    Remembering her reminded me . . . before she told me how she was doing, she always asked about me, remembering things from my life and asking me about the man I was seeing, or my roommate’s cold, or whatever. And she loved to ask me about Misten. So one time in good weather when I was just taking her to get a shot or pick up paperwork or something like that (something where we’d be in and out) I surprised her by bringing Misten along and having her in the backseat. She was so pleased to get to meet her, and Misten was happy too. 🙂 In fact, Misten always rode super well in the car, usually just lying down on the backseat and staying in place the whole trip, even if it was several hours. Sometimes she’d sit up if she heard a semi in the next lane and she wanted to see it, but usually she just lay down. But that day she had a hard time lying and being quiet (although she did manage it), because she had a brand-new friend in the front seat, and she didn’t think they’d had nearly a long enough greeting!

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  43. Went to church and then came home before it began. I got the offering baskets out and then found someone else to collect them. I am feeling fine now, but was glad that I was able to walk home. When I began to feel better, I got out my computer and listened to the service. I heard an older friend, whom I have been praying for, give his testimony. He has been stuck here for several weeks due to vehicle problems. But he again proclaimed that God is on His throne. He is older and specifically comes each year to go out to his language group to promote scripture use and to sell mega voices, which have the entire New Testament on them in his language group.

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  44. I noticed on my twitter feed that Donna posted a story in her newspaper about the flooding in the Midwest. My wife’s niece lives in the flood plain in Cedar Rapids and has had to move all her things out of the house, including the water heater and furnace, along with appliances, etc. She is also very pregnant. They moved everything out because they were flooded a few years ago and had to get new stuff then. They don’t want to replace it all again.

    Mrs L also has a cousin who owns a muffler shop 3 blocks from the Cedar River and has had to close it down and get it ready for the flood. He lost a lot of equipment in the flood a few years back.

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  46. I like this color better than the last one. (The last one to me is the one that was up yesterday morning. If there was one between that one & this one, I didn’t see it.)

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  47. I really like this color, too.

    Having second thoughts on the sink I ordered, although i still think it’s the right one (size-wise). I went with the “petite” version, would have preferred the regular sized pedestal sink in the same style — but from the measurements, I’m afraid the top of it would span about the same distance across and deep as my oversized (for the space) vanity that’s in there now and hovers into the bathtub space.

    Tiny, tiny bathroom, it really does make all of this a challenge.

    Meanwhile, I took the 2 bead board samples I received in the mail last week (different materials, different companies) to the dog park where a cabinet maker and another guy who recently redid his bathroom in his 1920s home with wood bead board both agreed on one over the other. And I think it’s the less expensive option, but I will have to recheck.

    One is MDF the other is made of something else, but the cabinet maker declared initially that it ‘was wood” before he examined it more carefully. The thing is, it needs to be moisture resistant being in the bathroom with all that water and humidity (even though it won’t be used in the tub/shower area, only on the walls outside of that).

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  48. kim, maybe your designer friend(s) have recommendations on the best bead board material to use in a bathroom (that looks good, not plastic-y/cheap, but also is moister resistant) ?

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  51. I have a vanity/sink now and could have gone much “smaller” vanity — but decided to do a pedestal sink instead (both to be in keeping with the 1923 look I wanted but also to provide more room in there where I could). So storage will be an issue, though I’m looking at small corner cabinets (freestanding) and some wall options for some storage. Once the room itself is “done,” I’ll have a better idea about some of that.

    The current vanity, done as part of what appears to have been a 1960s-’70s remodel, actually had to be molded onto the top/side of the tub because it was too wide. The entire bathroom is 6.5 feet wide by 8 feet long. Everything’s just jammed in there along the one wall — toilet, vanity/sink/tub (tub/shower runs crossways to the other wall, at the end of the room).

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  52. I got an interesting insight in today’s sermon.
    In Galatians 2:17, Paul says, “I bear the marks of Jesus in my body.” I has always assumed, without much thought, that Paul was talking about persecution.
    Pastor Pat pointed out that Paul carried the brand of Jesus. Much as cars and foods have brands. Some guys walk around with NIKE written on their shirts, but they aren’t branded. Cattle are branded to show that they belong to the owner.
    Makes lots of sense. I hadn’t considered that before.

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  53. A week or so ago, I mentioned that Ezekiel and Daniel were contemporary. Both captives of the Babylonians. We speculated about them knowing each other.
    I see in Ezekiel, Ch. 14, God mentions Noah, Daniel and Job as being righteous men. So. That answers the question. We don’t know if Daniel knew Ezekiel, but the elders of Israel came to him (Ch 14).

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  54. I am glad you are liking the sermons in your new church, Chas.

    Mumsee, so sorry to hear about a potential arsonist. That is frightening. And sorry it meant you had to miss church.

    I missed church because I was too tired last night to make spaghetti for our lunch today, and I wanted to be at home with Art, too. My brother planned to drop by after church to return Art’s computer and I had promised him lunch.

    Miss Bosley was on good behavior while we enjoyed a pleasant lunch of meat sauce, angel hair pasta, organic cauliflower, and apples. My brother is working here on his resume this afternoon.

    I made the meat sauce with ground turkey, and turkey always makes me sleepy. I would like a nap, but have reading to do.

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  55. I notice that several on this blog are professional musicians. I observed something today that, after I though about it, seemed curious.
    Our church pianist was out today. We had a substitute. When the pianist finished and came to sit in the congregation, I noticed that it was a man. I immediately though, “It seemed like the pianist was playing aggressively today.”
    Question: Is that so? Can a person play a piece of music more aggressively than someone else? Same piano, same notes, more aggressive. Is that possible?

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  56. Chas, I don’t play an instrument, so I am definitely not a professional musician, but it is definitely true that different players have a different touch. My younger daughter has a very natural feel for the piano, and she plays with a very light touch. Our church rotates musicians, and they’re behind us and above, so we don’t see the musician, but I can easily tell the difference between my daughter’s light touch and the playing of the woman who is more an organist than a pianist.

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  57. Dj, your bathroom is 2 1/2 feet wider than mine. The one here is 8 feet long by 4 feet wide with the door on the side. You’re right everything just lines up. No tub, though these showers have a deep tray on the bottom that some use for a tub for children. No way I will ever remodel this one.

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  58. By the way, these four flats were originally built with bathrooms in the hallway between them. One bathroom had a tub and sink and the other one had a toilet and sink. I feel very blessed to have my own bathroom. In Australia at Christmas I will be looking for one of those freestanding toilet paper holders for my neighbor, shhh, don’t tell her. They remodeled the bathroom in the flat next to me and put the toilet next to my wall with the toilet paper mounted on the wall. The holders we have here are noisy and I have been awakened by the noise it makes.

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  59. Wow, my bathroom feels big now. 🙂

    the remodel is forced due to leaks and old gaping tub-surround liner, beyond time to get it in better shape.

    Long day at church, stayed for SS and then chatted with a few people — then I had to make a stop at the store on the way home to gather up lunch items for the week.

    I noticed a crack at the bottom of my windshield, watching it to see if it grows — not sure its fixable, I think the chips in windshields are easier to fix than actual line cracks.

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  60. Church friend divulged that she once threw a tomato at (then Gov.) Ronald Reagan. She was at a fundraiser for him with a family member (she was a teen at the time) and he was defending the decision to close some of the mental institutions where this gal’s schizophrenic brother was staying at the time.

    She opened her sandwich, pulled out the tomato and lobbed it in Reagan’s direction — whereby she was promptly hauled out of the home and questioned by authorities at some length. She suspects it’s still on her record somewhere.

    She’s conservative these days, but has a cousin who’s one of the leaders of Code Pink, says she’s always seeing her on TV in boats or chained to something or other.

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  61. Oh, Mumsee 😦 Praying.

    Chas, absolutely. I can tell the difference between two different recording of the exact same piece played by two different musicians. That is why there can be multiple world famous pianists, or tenors, or conductors, or choirs, etc. Each one has something different to bring to a performance. My youngest sibling and I both studied both piano and violin, and for a few years, we were pretty close in the level of music we were playing. My mother could tell which one was practicing by the touch. She said I was gentler, while my sister was more energetic. That was true even when we played duets. I had to learn to play louder and my sister had to learn to tone it down so we could blend with each other.

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