The past two weeks we engaged in limited activities due to the higher-than-normal temperatures for this time of year, accompanied by nasty “Feels Like” (dew point) humidity levels. Still, there is some news to report.
I finished gathering local trees for firewood. Rounds are now stacked and waiting for me to fire up the splitter and do some further processing. Then the question arises: How to transport the wood to New York? In the long term, I would like to purchase an enclosed trailer, both to transport wood and to use as additional storage for some of my “Big Boy” toys. I have begun looking at Facebook Marketplace and Craig’s List to see what is available. As part of this plan I will be selling my open 16-foot equipment trailer.
In other news, I had my colonoscopy on Thursday, September 3rd. The results, I am sad to say, were not good. I had 13 polyps removed. The tissues are being sent to a lab to see if they are benign or cancerous. The physician told me I had a strong probability of developing colon cancer and recommended annual tests for that condition.
The after-process report included black-and-white photos taken inside my large intestine. I didn’t really need to see those. Oh, and I had one hemorrhoid removed. Isn’t life fun?
The doctor inserted clips to close some of the spots where the polyps were removed. I now have a card to show at airport screenings or MRI scans proving the metal in my body is there for medical reasons. I tucked the card into my billfold along with my other insurance cards. The fun just keeps on coming.
I mentioned the weather for September, and so far we have been above historical averages. This is from the KTTC TV (Rochester, MN) weather desk:
Instead of temperatures occasionally reaching the low 80s or even the upper 70s, we’ve been reaching the mid-80s, about ten degrees warmer than the 30-year climate average.
Temperatures have climbed into the upper 80s, while dew point values have surged into the 70s, creating a noticeably muggy feel across the region.
Some outside activities were accomplished. I was able to grab some black dirt from the city’s stash and fill in some low spots around the yard. The new grass is coming in pretty well. (The city had cleaned out some ditches and dumped the dirt near the compost site. I had asked for, and received, permission to hijack some of this for lawn repair.)
One of the spots to get some dirt was the area to the right of the sidewalk leading to the catio:
A bit of news on the Gilson tractor project: I have ordered a new hydraulic cylinder to replace the leaking original. The replacement is a generic unit and I will have to modify one end to fit properly, but that should not be a big deal.
We received our new homeowner’s insurance, and it is up a couple hundred from last year. The billing came with an insert noting that tariffs and climate change were the main factors behind the premium increase. Not much we can do except grit our teeth and pay the bill.
In family news, Pam’s sister Becky sold her house in Greene and has relocated to St. Paul, MN. The duplex where she now lives will get an interior refresh, both levels, and life will begin to settle down for her. Becky’s daughter + partner will live in the other unit.
Felicity is now between jobs due to a re-alignment of her publishing company, adding more stress to her life, and is looking for other employment. She did get a good severance package but still…
I have scheduled a trip to look at a house near Mt. Pleasant, Iowa (SE corner of the state) for next week. On the surface, the house looks like a good match for us. It overlooks a pond, has a two-car garage, is .5 wooded acres, and is not far from Mt. Pleasant and all the services we would need.
On the down side, the house in question is heated with electricity (expensive) and there are restrictions prohibiting the construction of a stand alone garage / workshop. No main level bedroom. Given we would like to avoid stairs as much as possible in the future, stairs present a challenge.
The house is in our targeted price range and is in an incorporated area that provides water (private septic, though) and road maintenance. We know from past experience that an in-person visit will reveal things that listing photos ignore or don’t show, so an in-person visit is the way to go. However, our wish list is long and complex, and it’s unlikely any house in our price range will check off every box. On what do we want to compromise?
This is the link to the listing on Zillow. (The link will opening a new tab.)
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/5007-Oak-Ln-Mount-Pleasant-IA-52641/86963594_zpid
I will have a report of the visit in my next post.
That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!
Pam’s Penny
When I picked Himself up at the clinic after his procedure, he handed me the discharge paperwork to look through. As I flipped to page 2, I saw the aforementioned graphic photos of the inside of his colon. OMG. WTF? TMI! For me personally, the written description and the line drawing of the colon [with trouble spots “x’ed”] were quite sufficient, thank you very much.
It was a medical week. Grayce developed some mystery condition where she started vomiting, stopped eating, had low energy and diarrhea. Off to the vet for meds. As that situation started to swing back to normal, Grayce’s face blew up like a football and her ears developed a very itchy rash. I’m thinking there were two separate issues with Grayce – something she ate for the first and something that stung her for the second. Whatever, with meds and special diets being the norm for humans and pets, it was indeed a medical week.
Due to doggies (still) on meds and higher than average heat indices, the dogs and I will not be accompanying Himself to the house viewing this week.
Rock on.
Today’s Humor:
