Good morning All. Coffees on.

[Zelaire]

Just wanted to pop in and say I'm sorry to read about the struggles everyone is having. It sounds, though, like each of you has also found some optimism or a positive star to follow. I'm grateful to hear that. Positive thoughts coming to you from MA.

[Davie]

51 minutes ago, Zelaire said:

Positive thoughts coming to you from MA.

Thanks everyone for the Positive thoughts. My anxiety has been peaking out at 11 without reason. Anyway . . . saw a doc and feel better. And met with landlord and all and things look good for a great move in this Sat. Deep breath.

cheers, Davie  

[Willow]

Good afternoon 

 

sorry to hear about your wild temperatures and late blizzards.  We are sitting in our cockpit with a shade down enjoying our weather.  It is supposed to change tomorrow.  Rain coming.

 

saw a small gator about 30 inches long.  The saw a tiny turtle.  For those old enough to remember it was about the same size as the one you could but in the pet department at Woolworths. For the rest of you youngings it was about 3 inches.  This swamp is a great place if you are a nature lover.

 

Kymmie has a huge coffee table with unlimited seating and any brand you like. Alway ready for you to drop in.  Talk about anything going on or comment on something someone else said.

 

I'm glad some of you enjoy my sailboat stories, others like the sponsor humor and hopefully you enjoy my advice, even if you don’t agree.  I’ll do my best.  

Willow

 

[KymmieL]

@Jackie C. I do too. He just turned 80 last week. I know if the worst happens I will be knocking on your door, for moral support. He lives in Waterford, 59 and Cass lake.

 

@Willow not more stories about the one that got away. LOL. My mom told me one that one day her dog was going nuts barking in the back yard. come to find out a little baby alligator was out there. said it was about a foot long. but she is a mile or so from the nearest water. Then again it is Florida.

 

 

hugs

 

Kymmie

[Jackie C.]

6 minutes ago, KymmieL said:

I do too. He just turned 80 last week. I know if the worst happens I will be knocking on your door, for moral support. He lives in Waterford, 59 and Cass lake.

 

I was just out that way at the Packard proving ground for Mexican cultural appreciation day with some friends. That's not far... well, it's KINDA far, but it's not that far... at all.

 

Hugs!

[Elizabeth Star]

Hey everyone. I'm still here, just super busy and tired.

 

I had a customer blatantly check me out the other day. I was wearing one of my mini-dresses. It has roses and skulls on it. Any ways, I opened the door for him. He politely greeted me and then gave me a full visual once-over. When his eyes finally returned to my face I just smiled and asked how I could help. He was there to pick up a part but also wouldn't enter until I invited him. so, I invited him in, escorted him in back to our parts manager and made some small talk along the way. I ended up leaving with the manager but it got me thinking that if I'm going to continue being the best dressed person at the office maybe I need to take my manners up a level.  And, despite the fact some of my outfits are a little on the wild side I do like the feeling I get from acting a bit more refined regardless of how I'm dressed.

 

Argh! My dog's barking at something and I can't think.........

 

 

[Mmindy]

18 minutes ago, Elizabeth Star said:

I ended up leaving with the manager but it got me thinking that if I'm going to continue being the best dressed person at the office maybe I need to take my manners up a level.  And, despite the fact some of my outfits are a little on the wild side I do like the feeling I get from acting a bit more refined regardless of how I'm dressed.

 

Good evening Lizzy,

 

It’s good to have flexibility and diversity in your clothing. You can also be the trend setter, without giving up your refined nature. 
 

Hug the dog,

 

Mindy🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋

[Willow]

Just as I was getting ready for bed our dog decided it was a good time to go out.  In our old house she went to a certain door and waited.  If she was in our bedroom there was a bell she rang.  Once she was out she would let herself back in.  Lever door handles and doors that opened in.  On the boat she goes to the top of the companion way ladder and waits.  It’s going to be very different in the new place.  She’ll have to be walked on a leash.  No more going outside by herself.  
 

tomorrow we have to meet the delivery people sometime between 8:30 and 12:30. And we need to redirect them to our storage unit, which they have to drive right past.  Our new refrigerator is being delivered.  Obviously, while there we’ll check the latest updates.  
 

@Elizabeth Star sounds like you are getting lots of good attention.  I’m happy for you.

 

Willow

[Mmindy]

Good morning everyone,

 

It's forecast to be a stormy Spring day here in Central Indiana. I have a busy day building another training prop, and my reasons to be outside are limited. The Coffee has just finished brewing, the cats are trying to lay on the keyboard, or chase the cursor as it moves along the screen. I wouldn't mind this but the tend to double press key tabs that cause unwanted program commands by stepping on the Function Keys at the top of the keyboard.

 

@WillowYour dog proves that our canine pets are so smart, and trainable. I'm sure your new routing won't take long for her to adapt to. So who's going to move and install, all of your heavy appliances from storage once your condominium is complete? It must really suck that the build is behind schedule.

 

Best wishes, stay positive,

 

Mindy🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋

[Willow]

Good morning

 

So here we sit at Starbucks.  Two minutes or less from the storage unit or the condo.  One thing that is a plus or not is that we can walk to quite a number of restaurants, shopping, ride our bikes, swim, or lounge in the spa.  
 

@Mmindy moving out of the storage into the condo is entirely up to me. Wife wants todo it slowly so it won’t be that bad.  First things first, a bed and the refrigerator.  That is the only appliance to be moved. Most everything else was packed to be manageable.

 

I’ve had dogs before this one, they never got it.  But Sweetie is smart as a whip.  Very sociable,  has learned everything we tried to teach her with one exception.  She wants to be face level with you, so she will jump up and put her fore paws  on you to stand up and kiss you.  I can’t break her of that.

 

She is so determined not to pee inside, she won’t pee on the boat.  We got her an artificial grass spot that she won’t use.  She insists on land. She is a tracker. She tracks the well she is seven now and they say you can’t tech an old dog new tricks.  

Raccoon trails around the marina. Her sister is a herder, not as smart.  But it’s fun when they get together.

 

well the delivery window is officially open.  Since we are ready, we will be last.  If we weren’t ready it would be here already.

 

hugs

 

Willow

 

[Artpetal]

Several days ago some very nice photos of flowers were posted. While I don't keep flowers at home, and I can't see myself keeping them, the photographer has a good eye.

[Mmindy]

Good morning everyone,

 

It's a cool sunny day here in Central Indiana, nothing like the Blizzard they're having in the upper mid west.

 

Working in the shop today. My customers just don't seem to think I'm trying to slow down and fully retire.

 

Hugs,

 

Mindy🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋

[Jackie C.]

12 minutes ago, Mmindy said:

It's a cool sunny day here in Central Indiana, nothing like the Blizzard they're having in the upper mid west.

 

It's not a blizzard. It's just cold, wet rain with stupid high winds.

 

Hugs!

[Willow]

 Good morning coffee friends

 

we spent several hours waiting on a refrigerator to be delivered only to find that they wouldn’t deliver it to our storage unit, it had to be delivered to a home.  Argh 😠!  

 

After that we had a nice lunch and did some shopping.  My wife’s birthday is Sunday so she picked out some clothes.

 

now we need to decide how to deal with the refrigerator.  Do we cancel then try to purchase it again later hen it can be installed?  Do we call and try to get it delivered to the storage unit?  Tough questions.

 

Other than that, we had a nice day. 

 

My coffee sponsor yesterday was St__bu_ks.  We have one in walking distance to the condo.

 

Speaking of which, nothing has been done to my unit in weeks.  Frustration abounds.

 

I am considering using a Linux free program on my PC to run my boat instruments.  It was written for the Raspberry Pi but is ported to a PC. As open source goes, its very thorough and so far it keeps getting updates.  There are a few adaptors required, gps puck, nema 0183 to USB, AIS interface, and if i can find one a tachometer that works off the alternator, last but not least engine warning lights interface.

 

However, all that depends upon if we keep the boat.  I’m considering selling it after we are in the condo.  But I suppose that is because I’m tired of living on it.  I’ll take your opinions on that.

 

I need to get serious with my coffee cup.

 

Later gator

 

Willow

[Elizabeth Star]

Oh, the joys of home ownership. A little before midnight my alarm went off. Since we just had a lot of rain I knew what it was. My basement was flooding. Occasionally thee water comes in faster then the pump can get it out so I didn't freak out too much. Still I had to go down and check. Son of a..... There was an inch of water. My sump pump straight up failed and to add to my misery the battery on the backup pump failed. At this point I actually started to panic but my hands were tied. I didn't want to spend the money on a plumber especially since I can replace the pump myself but it was also after midnight and there's nowhere to get a new pump at that hour. So I started bailing it out until I could think of a solution. I just needed a 12v battery to get the backup pump running again. After 20 minutes or so I occurred to me that I might have one in my work car. It turns out I did. It was small, only an 8Ah battery, (backup battery for security systems) and it had been in my trunk for a year but whatever. The situation wouldn't change if it was dead. Thankfully it wasn't. I rigged it up and passed out a few hour. I awoke to find 2 inches of water. I knew it would happen but now it was 4:30 and Home depot doesn't open until 6. All I needed was another battery. My riding mower has electric start and a 12v battery. So like a thief in the night I stole it from my mower and hooked it up. It worked for about 45 minutes before it KO'ed but it was all I needed, HD would be open soon.

 

At HD, while sleepily looking at the pumps an associate came by to help me. Weird usually you have to chase them down if you ever see one. What I found interesting was that he took it upon himself to fetch me a buggy and all the additional parts I would need to replace it without me asking. There's no way I would have gotten that kind of assistance before. At the register another associate came by, asked if my pump had died and then proceeded to try to mansplain what I needed and how to replace it. I almost did something I told myself I would never do. I could feel the words at the tip of my tongue. I almost told him I know what I'm doing I used to be a guy but there are many, many very capable women out there and I would have also outed myself at my local HD.

 

Within 20 minuted of getting home I had the new pump installed and running. All that happened and I didn't even so much as chip a nail. I did notice a few this with how the pump is setup that I need to work on but I'll circle back to those  in the next week or two.

 

Have a great day everyone. I'm getting some sleep.

[stveee]

Started my weekly Trans group Tuesday, I think just what I need at this point. Think I was the oldest there among 10, mostly other trans girls, which most have been out for awhile, one that just came out at work and an enby and a questioning. I kinda assumed this because they all had boobs, IDK if that's a barometer lol.

But I immediately introduced myself and my situation and felt I got some feedback, especially on the career front. Even though my current gig pays, I just don't feel I am going anywhere.

So I felt like I definitely needed to get out and make friends if possible and it helps to get another perspective on my own path. I was amazed how deep the convo went between us all in an hour sesh. 

Also met with the attorney consult for name change last night. It's all pretty real and emotional RN. 

As far as any struggles, I'm choosing to not struggle with the struggles.

[Jackie C.]

2 minutes ago, Elizabeth Star said:

I could feel the words at the tip of my tongue. I almost told him I know what I'm doing I used to be a guy but there are many, many very capable women out there and I would have also outed myself at my local HD.

 

I mean something that I probably wouldn't do... because I AM a helpless girl... though I was a pretty helpless guy too. Fix your PC? No problem. Change a tire? HELP!

 

I'm glad you got it straightened out though. Flooded basements SUCK.

 

Hugs!

[Jamie68]

1 hour ago, Elizabeth Star said:

Oh, the joys of home ownership. A little before midnight my alarm went off. Since we just had a lot of rain I knew what it was. My basement was flooding. Occasionally thee water comes in faster then the pump can get it out so I didn't freak out too much. Still I had to go down and check. Son of a..... There was an inch of water. My sump pump straight up failed and to add to my misery the battery on the backup pump failed. At this point I actually started to panic but my hands were tied. I didn't want to spend the money on a plumber especially since I can replace the pump myself but it was also after midnight and there's nowhere to get a new pump at that hour. So I started bailing it out until I could think of a solution. I just needed a 12v battery to get the backup pump running again. After 20 minutes or so I occurred to me that I might have one in my work car. It turns out I did. It was small, only an 8Ah battery, (backup battery for security systems) and it had been in my trunk for a year but whatever. The situation wouldn't change if it was dead. Thankfully it wasn't. I rigged it up and passed out a few hour. I awoke to find 2 inches of water. I knew it would happen but now it was 4:30 and Home depot doesn't open until 6. All I needed was another battery. My riding mower has electric start and a 12v battery. So like a thief in the night I stole it from my mower and hooked it up. It worked for about 45 minutes before it KO'ed but it was all I needed, HD would be open soon.

 

At HD, while sleepily looking at the pumps an associate came by to help me. Weird usually you have to chase them down if you ever see one. What I found interesting was that he took it upon himself to fetch me a buggy and all the additional parts I would need to replace it without me asking. There's no way I would have gotten that kind of assistance before. At the register another associate came by, asked if my pump had died and then proceeded to try to mansplain what I needed and how to replace it. I almost did something I told myself I would never do. I could feel the words at the tip of my tongue. I almost told him I know what I'm doing I used to be a guy but there are many, many very capable women out there and I would have also outed myself at my local HD.

 

Within 20 minuted of getting home I had the new pump installed and running. All that happened and I didn't even so much as chip a nail. I did notice a few this with how the pump is setup that I need to work on but I'll circle back to those  in the next week or two.

 

Have a great day everyone. I'm getting some sleep.

Sounds like a busy time. Hope it all goes well.

My house is in a 500 year flood area. I've seen 3 , 500 year floods at my house. The last one came 5 feet from my foundation. I had 2 pumps running. One never shut off and the other cycled on every 30 seconds. When I moved in, there was a water line 3 feet up the wall. Sump pumps always fail eventually. I've had to wade through water almost a foot deep to fix my pump before. Now, I just buy a new pump every few years.

[Willow]

Hi, at least you don’t have the mess of a sewage ejector.  I had a house that had a basement bathroom, well if you want to call it a bathroom.  It was in the corner of the laundry room.  But I digress.  One day I noticed it as smelly I ran some water, nothing.  Checked out the pump, wouldn’t turn on. Bought a replacement $500 later, the pump worked.  Turned out the pressure switch had failed.  After cleaning it thoroughly I repaired the pressure switch. Then I had two working pumps u could switch out when needed.  The big deal was it had a 2” discharge and emptied into the sanitary sewer.

 

then my daughter bought a house that was designed for a finished basement, including a bath.  Well here again it was several feet below the sewer.  Another sewage ejector to deal with.  Thought I was done with them.  Being as they have the 2” discharge they move a lot of water fast.  Maybe a higher rated pump next time?but you will have to upgrade the hose diameter too.  

[Ivy]

3 hours ago, stveee said:

I'm choosing to not struggle with the struggles.

An excellent plan.

[Heather Nicole]

3 hours ago, Willow said:

My coffee sponsor yesterday was St__bu_ks.

 

Whoa! Careful with the dirty words there! 😁

[KathyLauren]

4 hours ago, Elizabeth Star said:

Since we just had a lot of rain I knew what it was. My basement was flooding. Occasionally thee water comes in faster then the pump can get it out so I didn't freak out too much. Still I had to go down and check.

 

Our house was legendary in the neighbourhood for its flooding basement with the original owners.  They said that they couldn't go away in wet weather because someone had to tend the generator for the sump pump if the power went out.

 

The people who bought it from them spent $5000 digging a perimeter drain inside the basement.  It connected to the sump!  So, although it kept the basement dry, the pump still had to do that work.  In a few heavy rainstorms, after we bought the place, the pump was running 20 seconds out of every 30!

 

We spent another $5000 getting the problem fixed properly.  They dug down outside the basement and located the drainage tile.  They inserted a camera with a tracker and pushed it along the pipe until it came to a blockage.  They dug down at that location, and ... the pipe just stopped!!  The lazy SOBs who built the place ran out of pipe or energy or something and didn't finish digging the trench!  No wonder the basement flooded regularly for over 20 years.  The water had nowhere to go!

 

Our crew finished digging the trench, extended the pipe to where it could drain freely, and filled everything back in again.  Now, in the heaviest rain storms, the pump might run one or two cycles in the entire storm.

[Willow]

Just a short evening update.

 

My wife and I got double boosted today at our doctors office.  I figure it can’t hurt and she is very concerned about getting Covid due to being at high risk if she should get it.  
 

I put the air conditioner in the boat today.  I suppose now that it’s available it will turn cold again.  I do need to install/hook up the marine air conditioner I put it in the boat last fall but that’s as far as it went. Now I need to supply air to be cooled to the unit.  Install a duct to distribute the cooled air.  Supply water for the cooling and hook up the controls.  It’s a lot to do however the only things to buy are two registers and a short amount of duct   Maybe I’ll start work on it next week.

 

@Heather Nicole I don’t like using proper business names.  Besides, I think that company has been in the news in a negative light hasn’t it?  Maybe I’m confusing it with a certain chicken sandwich company.  Anyway all in all not a bad day.

 

hugs. 
 

Willow

[Heather Nicole]

4 hours ago, Willow said:

My wife and I got double boosted today at our doctors office.  I figure it can’t hurt and she is very concerned about getting Covid due to being at high risk if she should get it.  

 

Good for you both!!

 

I'm still single boosted, and from what I've been able to suss out from the news, it sounds like I'm not in the right category for a second booster...I guess?? I don't know...?

 

Ever since delta hit (and then omicron and BA.2) I still mask up, largely because I have two nieces still too young for the vaccine, and also a very close uncle who's double-boosted, but severely immuno-compromised (cancer survivor). I keep wishing I'd hear something about the fabled "omicron-specific" vaccine people used to hypothesize about...

 

[rolls sleeve] "Shoot me up, Scotty!"

 

5 hours ago, Willow said:

@Heather Nicole I don’t like using proper business names.  Besides, I think that company has been in the news in a negative light hasn’t it?  Maybe I’m confusing it with a certain chicken sandwich company.  Anyway all in all not a bad day.

 

I've been avoiding certain sources of chicken sandwiches and waffle fries, too...(Really kinda genuinely disturbs me their drive-through lines I still see around here though 😭)  But I always did think their sandwiches were overpriced for what you got, and I recently learned of another source of waffle fries!...(Ugh...if only I could remember where it was!!...)

[KymmieL]

Well surprise, surprise. I will be spending most of the weekend alone, again. My wife and youngest are going to visit our middle son and family. Saturday and stay over till Sunday to do an Easter egg hunt with our grandsons. 

 

I am going to start getting used to the solitude on the weekends.

 

Kymmie