A leak in the kitchen

 A leak.  Not what anyone wants to hear.  Or I should say see.  Actually, Randa stepped in water on the kitchen floor in front of the sink.  Stray water is never a good thing.   

   Toweled up the water and got the flashlight.  Got on the floor, emptied the sink cabinet.  {There are quite a bit of items down there.)  Shining the light showed nothing.  Hmm..  Must be the dishwasher which is to the right.  Dry as a bone under there too.  Again, Hmm.. I'm going to have to think about this.

   Next day after running the dishwasher, more water in front of the sink.  Hmm,,  Removed the furnace vent that is along the floor on the front of the sink cabinet.  Peeked in there.  Damp pressed wood subfloor.  Hmm..  But how is it getting there? So I had Randa run some water in the sink and laid on the floor and peeked through the vent opening.  Bingo, water poured out from the drain pipe going under the house!  Well that's weird!  Must be plugged.

   Rented a portable rooter machine.  Good for 30 feet.  Operated it for about an hour.  Thought I did well.  had Randa some more water, carefully.  Water still came out around that drain pipe.   I knew what to do next.  Called a plumber/rooter.

   He came in about an hour.  Went under the house.  Checked under the sink.  Bad news.  The main drain pipe for the sink and dishwasher is broken.  Very unusual.  the drain line from the sink is also clogged.  Somewhere under the house.  $$$  

     The plumbing will be fixed on Friday, with a new drain pipe from the sink to the drain line.  The clog will be fixed next Monday.  Until then we wash the dishes in the laundry
room sink.  Another interesting day.

Furnace Filter

 I changed the furnace filter yesterday.  I put a new one in on September 14, 2020 which was during the time when Oregon was covered with smoke from many fires burning throughout the state.  It had not been too long since the last change but with the polluted skies we had, it was necessary.  

    Yesterday, so some reason, I thought about changing the filter again.  So the bottom filter had been installed Sept 14 so roughly 1 1/2 months.  As you can see, from the comparison to the new one, it did it's job.

Thanksgiving Dinner

 

Even though we were by ourselves, Randa went all out.  Nice dishes, cloth napkins, candles.  Instead of turkey we had Cornish Game Hens, but otherwise it was a traditional Thanksgiving fare.  

The bird. Mashed potatoes and gravy.   Scalloped Corn.  Yam-Yums (Sweet potatoes, apple slices, brown sugar).  Fresh baked rolls.  Carrots, tomatoes, cut peppers, olives, and, of course, Jello.

Happy Thanksgiving

 This is a note to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.  This is another unusual holiday in 2020.  The important thing to remember is to be thankful for what we have.  I am truly thankful for Randa.  I am soo happy that for winter quarter 1967, I signed up for an elective phy ed course; Bowling.  Across the ball return from my lane was this cute girl.  She was a lousy bowler but fun to talk to.  Fun to kid with.  She was someone that I wanted to know better.  Well, I have known her for more that 50 years and I am still excited to be with her on this holiday, and every other day.  

   We are having Cornish Game Hens instead of turkey.  Otherwise, it will be mashed potatoes, stuffig, salad, vegies, and pie for desert.  

   I hope that you are able to enjoy your Thanksgiving meal with someone special.  

Wall-e's last day

 Here he is doing what greyhounds are really good at.

We will be leaving in about a half hour to meet Aubrey for the transfer.

Good Bye,  Sweet Boy

Wall-e s Last Days

 Today, 11/19/2020 was Wall-e's birthday.  He is now two years old.  And still growing.  Randa and I believe that he has grown in the two and a half months he has been at our house.  He has also "grown" on us.  We will dearly miss him.  

    Today Aubrey and her family "borrowed him" for a walk in the sunshine.  He loved the attention.  After they left he was a bit confused, so we paid a lot of attention to him for the rest of the day.  Saturday we take another stool sample and drop it off at the vet.  There we will meet Aubrey and do the permanent transfer.  We are taking our boys with us so that they can see him leave us.  We think that will make the separation easier for them.  I'm not so sure about us.

   Tomorrow I have an appointment at the VA Hospital to get my pacemaker adjusted.  I have been told that the manufacture  representative will be there to offer advice.   It should be interesting.

Wednesday

 Wednesday was a busy day for Wall-e.  I dropped him off at Southgate Veterinary at 8am.  He had not eaten since supper on the night before.  I walked the three boys together in the morning and then loaded him into the car as Randa took the other two into the house for breakfast.  As I waited in the car for the vet tech to come and get Wally, I thought about a week from Saturday the 20th when we will hand Wall-e's  leash to Aubrey for his new life. It will be difficult.

   At 6pm Randa and I were back at Southgate to pick up the boy.  The vet tech brought him out to the car like a farmer carrying his sheep.  He was groggy so he immediately lay down and did not move during our ride home.  I carried into the house and he walked slowly around the house to get his bearings. Then to sleep.

   It is now Friday morning and his recovery is moving along.  Our chief goal is to keep him from running, jumping, and over exerting until his stitches and wound heal.  7-10 days  When the doctor called yesterday to check up on him, I mentioned that he is full of zip so she told us to give him some meds to help him "relax".  It worked.  One last night.  Another this morning.  Sleep is what he needs.

Leaf

More of Nature's beauty.

 

Shower Drains and other fun places

 The other night as I taking my shower I realized the water was not draining properly.  Hmm.  Another project to address.  Yesterday I pried the plastic drain cover off and discovered the reason for the slowness.  I won't gross you out with a graphic description but we have lived in this house for 6 years and have never opened that drain cover.  Rubber gloves, a hook created from a coat hanger. many paper towels and sprays of cleaner and a plastic bag for the debris and the job is done.     

   But as long as I was in the mood, I tackled the P traps in the rest of the house. The kitchen  Two sinks in our bathroom, one in the hall bathroom, and one in the laundry room. I don't know about your house but the area under the sink contains a plethora of items.  Extra toothpaste, Band Aids, bars of soap not mention jars of "who knows what".  So, to get access to the P trap, all those items need to be moved or removed.  Experience has told me the best plan is to totally empty the area.  I will explain as we go.     

    Let me set the stage.   The cabinets have been emptied.  If you are organized, it in a box neatly stacked.  I'm not so they are scattered around on the floor nearby.  You are down on your knees looking at your quarry.  The black plastic P-trap is very obvious right there under the sink.  There is a tightened nuts on each end.  All your have to do is loosen each one, take the P-trap off, clean it, and reattach.  Piece of cake.  In theory.  Those nuts have been "hand tightened".  Yah right!  I had to get a leather glove to improve my grip and actually got a Pipe Wrench (don't freak out ! I used a rag to protect the pipe, but I needed the leverage.) for the nut under the laundry room sink.  

     After much kneeling, grunting, a few expletive's, much rinsing, and a full plastic bag, all the drains in the house are squeaky clean.  I feel so free !!