Poetry

I found a poem I wrote for mom when I was maybe eight years old:

You are worth more than heaps of silver,

You are worth more than heaps of gold,

You are worth more than heaps of diamonds,

And peanut butter sandwiches.

(Some memories are well worth digging up)

The never ending Argh

So.

The insurance on dad's house is due. Oh yay. The money is evaporating.

Taxes due soon. Dad always owed.

The demolition guys left the furnace off with the pilot light out, and the gas on. Way to blow up the house, guys. Larry couldn't turn it back on anyway, they broke some of the wiring. AAA will have an HVAC guy out Monday.

They took off the face plates on the switches and outlets and let the live wires hang, tripping a breaker.

The house key is in Salt Lake.

Larry had wood and repair supplies set in the carport, next to the headboard. The king size headboard which matched my dresser. The clean up crew took it all, even the big uncut sheet back in the backyard.

Someone stole his blue handtruck out of the shed. Fricken thieves.

We still need to paint (?), repair the plaster walls, rip up the carpet and clean. And pay the bills.

Marvin had peed in bottles and hid them in the backyard. WTF?! Dude, use the damn toilet.

This will pass. This must pass.

Take any offer, just get rid of the place.

New Year

This is inauspicious. Ringing in the new year with cough syrup. My sinuses had been acting up, and I had a low cough, but after yesterday's exertions on the short hikes in Snow Canyon, I have a full blown snotty, puke-y, wretched cold. That sucks.

Snow Canyon does not suck. Very mellow, very beautiful, very accessible. Love Snow Canyon.

http://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/snow-canyon

slice of life

Sitting in a hot tub, third story balcony, au naturelle, with a cold drink. The breeze across my face is cold and brisk, about 30 degrees. The water, warm. The view: snow capped mountains to my right, not far away, red rock bluffs and cliffs covered in snow, like a rainbow. Or bacon. Nice. Very nice.

Ghosts

I am learning about my parents, their lives before I was born, dad’s friends in the Navy, through old bills and letters and photos. I learned dad’s Navy buddy named his son after him. This stuff had been in the house a long time, but mom said leave things alone, as did dad, and as an obedient child, I did not rummage. So now I am looking at old photos of people who were dear to my folks, and I don’t know a thing about them. Who is that family in front of a Christmas tree without a mom in the photo? Whose 40s wedding? The sailor with the tattoos in Japan? The dancing lady in the pasties and a scarf? Those handsome dogs? The men in the Japanese jazz bar?

Label the past. Talk to your parents.

I found the ornaments which are in my childhood pictures. More importantly, in Wayne's childhood portraits, which mean they are a good ten years older than I am. so glad I bothered to sort and save. I nearly just let them go.

Progress?

Well, the lights are on at dad's after the mysterious "electrical" problem. Really just a random switch in the kitchen which turns off half the basement lights. Larry found the little gaskets for the shower, so that seems to be fixed; we won't know until we get the water back on. I am reluctant to do that if he isn't standing there. Since he's usually only home on Saturdays, that will be tricky. No use to stress over it until he's back from Omaha in a couple weeks.

Got the last of the big items except for the two beds out of the house. That's a relief. One single bed will head to the dump, the other is a craftmatic without a mattress. I hope I can sell or give it away, but I doubt it. May small items like chairs and a couple tables, sewing desk and so on. Still a metric buttload of trash though. And the scary, scary prospect of trying to salvage what is in the back bedroom where the cardboard boxes are rotting into the carpet. Ick. That's hazardous. I will need a respirator. Burning Man gear to the rescue yet again.

I was up ay dad's house for just over an hour last night, and I got tight in the lungs fast this time. I'd been into the pantry and stepped into the back room briefly. I am up at four in the morning with an asthma attack. Oh, I am not wheezing, but I am definitely not breathing right, feels as though y airways have been lined with cotton. Aching, stabby cotton. Do Not Like. Trying a littl eherbal tea, although I really should have my breathing meter out.

Autumn, where are you?

October was unusually warm in Utah until yesterday. I hid from the rain and wind all day and did nothing but play games and mope.

This morning began with the sound of hail pounding on the chimney cap and gutters, waking me at 5:15. I stayed awake!

I went outside an did some winterizing chores, moved the garden solar lights, the water globes, the gnome, put up the new bird feeder. Brought in some stuff which could freeze. Used a hooked branch to get my Halloween streamers down where they'd blown up in the gutters. Got a faceful of cold, dirty water and wet leaves. Joy. Moved the skeletal flamingos out to the front with the rest of the decorations. I had one more gnome to move, he's holding a mushroom like a cup. I flipped him over on his side to drain and saw some very cold but still alive yellow jackets clinging to the underside of the mushroom. I just left him, and them, be. Yikes if I'd grabbed them!

Just as I finished, there was a snow flurry. Snow?! I still need to have Larry mulch the roses and button up the rest of the yard. Oh yeah, the big maple still is full of green leaves, she hasn't even turned red yet! A big snow storm will break her branches that way.

Now I have to change my clothes, I always feel "tickly" after I've been walking around insects. Comes from a wasp crawling up my pants leg when I was a teen. No, no sting, but a severe and lingering fear of creeping flying things.