what are you doing right now?

[countrygirl2]

I'm watching a weird show about creatures they have found and are protecting, supposedly human kind, pretty neat fictional show.

Kitty and I are sitting here watching it, of course, he is curled up and asleep. Sadly I have to put Tigger in his room when hubs goes to bed or he just keeps rattling his door. I wish he would stop, so he could stay out all evening too. Smoke will go in when I go to bed.

I'm also looking for some more colorful area rugs on Wayfair. These two I have are very nice, wool and good quality. But I'm tired of the dark colors, had them for over 10 years at least.. So I'm looking for a blue and white or creme one for the office area and perhaps one with some muted green in it for the dining room, that will go with my curtains. And maybe a new one to match for the front hallway. I keep this stuff for years, but it's time for a change I think.

Not sure if I can stay up much longer, I'm tired. I just ate a bit of green beans and noodles for dinner. A couple hours ago had 2 toaster waffles and a glass of hot cocoa. I have eaten very lightly tonight. Now I'm drinking a glass of water to help replenish fluids lost last night and rubbing a little kitty's feet.

Well Smokey is doing better with hubs since being home. He hasn't tried to scratch him even once and is even letting him pet him, so that's good. But he still jumped at the renter's hand and growled when he came in. But he didn't scratch him, still I picked him up and put him in the bedroom. Tigger let him pet him and was nice, didn't do anything but rub on his leg, so one of them is doing much better. Maybe another stay at the vet will help them more.

Not far from going to bed, won't make it much longer.

[busymom]

We took down the Christmas tree (DH did the lion's share of that job), and I've been doing some prep just in case that snowstorm heading our way is a big one.  Of course, they're still guessing whether it'll be an "inconvenience", or if it'll be the "shut down the schools" type of storm.  Time will tell...

[finnime]

Good morning, indomitable invisipeeps, refusing to let the bad win. Welcome to the first Monday of 2023, which is a holiday for many. I hope your day is pleasing and productive as you like.

We had a fine time celebrating New Year's Eve and morning with DSis. I did not go to the beach yesterday morning because when I got up at 4:00 it was raining, then later on they were staging the area for the polar bear plunge.

I did get there late afternoon with Franklin the Dog. We saw this:

[daisylu]

Determined to enjoy my last day off. DH will be smoking a large deer tenderloin today, along with beans and some kicking collard greens that I mostly cooked yesterday. I think I may have gotten the greens a little too spicy.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Blah.  Work and school start again tomorrow with an ice storm coming tonight and I'm STILL not over my intestinal issues after 7 days.   This is going to be fun.  Going to try and convince DS to spend the night at his dad's tonight so he's off the hill for his first day at work.  I'm guessing he won't be agreeable to that though...

and right now I'm logged into work doing my normal Monday stuff so I don't have to do both Monday and Tuesday reports tomorrow.

[Deleted]

Jan 1, 2023 21:10:53 GMT -5 toomuchreality said:

I'm glad you have heat again!
Did the codes give you any ideas on how to get it working again, or are they just tech codes?

They were explained as follows:

Combustion air inducer motor amp draw too high
Low pressure switch failed open

I'm sure that's useful information for the tech and if I were industrious I could look these codes up, figure out what to tweak and what widget to buy and find a YouTube video showing me how- but I'm not. I'm gonna stay right here and let the experts handle it. Furnace is still working and is now displaying some metric that indicates how much air it's blowing or something. The unit is 7 years old so I'm hoping it's something minor.

Nothing planned for today, not even going out of the house. I see the stock market is closed for the day so probably most businesses will be. I have a list of things I need to get started in January (e.g. getting estimates on window replacements, re-scheduling a breast MRI since they never responded to my voicemail 2 weeks ago) and wanted to wait till the second business day of the new year since nothing is an emergency. Guess I'll have to wait some more.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 2, 2023 8:32:29 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

Combustion air inducer motor amp draw too high
Low pressure switch failed open

Check your vent pipe going outdoors for something blocking it.  Mine you can just pull off from the top of the furnace and put a shop vac on it.  Last time I suspected that issues I pulled it off and there was a wasp nest sitting right on the top of the furnace blocking the vent.

[giramomma]

Jan 1, 2023 22:04:35 GMT -5 toomuchreality said:

Jan 1, 2023 21:50:12 GMT -5 giramomma said:

I'm ready to paint tomorrow.

8pm tonight, DD1 tells me she's decided  she wants to have friends over tuesday.

And what was your answer?

Yes. As long as she and DH do most of the lifting. Can't clean a house if I'm not even in it for 8 hours today.

[giramomma]

Jan 2, 2023 7:57:52 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Blah.  Work and school start again tomorrow with an ice storm coming tonight and I'm STILL not over my intestinal issues after 7 days.   This is going to be fun.  Going to try and convince DS to spend the night at his dad's tonight so he's off the hill for his first day at work.  I'm guessing he won't be agreeable to that though...

and right now I'm logged into work doing my normal Monday stuff so I don't have to do both Monday and Tuesday reports tomorrow.

I have to get a bunch of work done today, too. Technically, we're observing new years day.

I am two hours late already this morning. I shouldn't be saying stuff like that when it's not even 8am yet

[lurkyloo]

Couldn’t sleep on NYE, after being dumb enough to stay up and watch the ball dropmissed field goal.  So woke up with major migraine yesterday and spent most of the day basically catatonic...poor DH.  We did go to the garden of lights yesterday since that was the only remaining day with tickets available before 8 pm...very nice weather, but the model train setup was changed to daytime only and yesterday was the last day 

Quite enjoying the kiwico crate subscription.  The second one was pasta themed and came with a ravioli maker, which was completely awesome.  Today I think we are going to look at the ice cream kit (separate purchase).

[Deleted]

Jan 2, 2023 8:39:52 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Jan 2, 2023 8:32:29 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

Check your vent pipe going outdoors for something blocking it.  Mine you can just pull off from the top of the furnace and put a shop vac on it.  Last time I suspected that issues I pulled it off and there was a wasp nest sitting right on the top of the furnace blocking the vent.

Thanks- I'll make sure they do that.  I had the system shut down a couple of years ago- on the coldest weekend of the year, of course.  Two days in a row.     The first time he reamed out one of the vent pipes on the outside of the house.  It was clogged with ice.  The second time another tech added an extension onto it so it wouldn't collect vapor from the other vent (forget which was the intake and which was the outgo) and I haven't had any problems since.  Temperatures have been above freezing for days so they're not clogged with ice but it could be something else.

[chiver78]

I'm up, somewhat functional. laundry is in progress, and coffee is halfway gone. I need to run up to the Y this morning and check out that membership deal. NHL Winter Classic is at Fenway this year, and the puck drops at 2. I will be watching that, for sure. M may or may not head up with her friend S that's in from out of state for the week. I'd bet no, but S was interested yesterday. so who knows.

[Deleted]

Two furnace techs arrived this morning- I have bird remains in an outdoor vent pipe.  They're clearing it out.  It will cost me about $300- FAR less than the nightmare scenarios of replacing a motor or the whole unit.  Yeah, I know that's a lot. This firm is not known for their low prices but they're competent and, form what I can tell, honest. It occurred to me that I could have screens placed over the vent pipes but then if vapor condensed and froze they'd have to break the screen to clear it out.

Big sigh of relief.  It could have been worse.

[Artemis Windsong]

Organizing. The tree is down. The box stands upright in the top of the closet to add shelf room there. The temporary free-standing air cooler is being readied for closet storage.

Every little bit helps.

[giramomma]

Jan 2, 2023 9:01:34 GMT -5 lurkyloo said:

Couldn’t sleep on NYE, after being dumb enough to stay up and watch the ball dropmissed field goal.  So woke up with major migraine yesterday and spent most of the day basically catatonic...poor DH.  We did go to the garden of lights yesterday since that was the only remaining day with tickets available before 8 pm...very nice weather, but the model train setup was changed to daytime only and yesterday was the last day 

Quite enjoying the kiwico crate subscription.  The second one was pasta themed and came with a ravioli maker, which was completely awesome.  Today I think we are going to look at the ice cream kit (separate purchase).

The peanut loves the kiwico subscriptions. She and my MIL do them as bonding time.

[giramomma]

Resting. Half the room has been primed. I probably didn't need to, but I feel better doing it.

Then we do the great family room pick up of 2023.

[cooper88]

Something woke me up at 5:15 this morning and it took forever to get back to sleep. I ended up sleeping in late and fell like crap because of it. In retrospect, I should have just stayed up. Not much on the agenda today really, other than some regular housework. I started binging Great British Baking Show yesterday and will probably get back to that at some point this afternoon.

[TheOtherMe]

Mom would have been 99 years old today.  I miss her and her wisdom.  

I also miss what NIL calls "her not being Iowa nice".  She always let you know exactly how she felt about something.   It was very hard to manipulate her.  It was near impossible to try to get her to see something she disagreed with your way.  Given facts, you could change her mind.

I still applaud her acceptance of my gay cousin.  It was hard for her when she realized they were a couple.  She told me she didn't know what to think.  I asked her how she felt about him before she knew this.  She said she adored him and he was one of her favorites.  I asked her what had changed.  She thought about it and finally said nothing and all was right in her world again.

Sadly many of her siblings did not react the same way.

I still get a kick of how she would say she voted for Obama because he was the best candidate "even if he was Black and he and Michelle touched each other too much"

[seriousthistime]

There's an 'Iowa nice'? 

I've heard of 'Minnesota nice,' but not 'Iowa nice.'  

Are there other states that are known to be nice? 

[countrygirl2]

Hubs took down the outside lights, not that much really. Mostly nets and 2 spotlights. I'm getting more nets next year, have 2 ordered. Most everything is put away decoration wise in the house. I have to take the box downstairs and some standup decorations. I told hubs I like the tree up, he said leave it up for awhile if I want. I think I will, just really enjoy the lights. I have all the red towels, sheets, throwrugs and things to wash and put away, will take a couple of days. It's going to be 60 out but it's really foggy and damp, tomorrow 65 so hope it's better. Would like to clear the remaining stuff out of the garden. LOL!

I ordered a furniture restorer stuff and going to go over cabinets and items. Hope it helps the nicks and things.

I just had a sweet, little damp kitty come in and curl up on my lap for a bit. He is purring hard, so got kisses and hugs. And off he goes again. 

Got to get busy and put on makeup and clothes to run to town.

[Deleted]

Jan 2, 2023 11:01:36 GMT -5 countrygirl2 said:

Hubs took down the outside lights, not that much really. Mostly nets and 2 spotlights. I'm getting more nets next year, have 2 ordered. Most everything is put away decoration wise in the house. I have to take the box downstairs and some standup decorations. I told hubs I like the tree up, he said leave it up for awhile if I want. I think I will, just really enjoy the lights. I have all the red towels, sheets, throwrugs and things to wash and put away, will take a couple of days. It's going to be 60 out but it's really foggy and damp, tomorrow 65 so hope it's better. Would like to clear the remaining stuff out of the garden. LOL!

I ordered a furniture restorer stuff and going to go over cabinets and items. Hope it helps the nicks and things.

I just had a sweet, little damp kitty come in and curl up on my lap for a bit. He is purring hard, so got kisses and hugs. And off he goes again. 

Got to get busy and put on makeup and clothes to run to town.

We leave ours up for a couple more weeks-it's just white birch with tiny lights, no ornaments.  It's pretty to sit with in the evenings with coffee and conversation.

[Deleted]

I had an exceptionally wakeful night despite my melatonin which I attributed to sinus congestion. But this morning I decided to check what type of espresso DH served at 9 last night. Yup, fully leaded, not decaffeinated. Of course, he denied it but I fished the used pods out of the container and shoved them under his nose.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Had a brief panic moment when the school emailed a reminder about getting field trip forms in immediately. I was thinking it was this week and I'd have to add helping Carrot pack to the list of things to do (it's a 3 day field trip).  Thankfully, it's not until the 18th.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Jan 2, 2023 9:59:13 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

Two furnace techs arrived this morning- I have bird remains in an outdoor vent pipe.  They're clearing it out.  It will cost me about $300- FAR less than the nightmare scenarios of replacing a motor or the whole unit.  Yeah, I know that's a lot. This firm is not known for their low prices but they're competent and, form what I can tell, honest. It occurred to me that I could have screens placed over the vent pipes but then if vapor condensed and froze they'd have to break the screen to clear it out.

Big sigh of relief.  It could have been worse.

I missed my calling.  Should have gone into HVAC. 

When you mentioned there was a problem with the pressure sensor switch and the fan had to work too hard I immediately thought vent pipe.  

[andi9899]

I've been such a slug today. I am going to the gym tonight, so that makes it a wash, right?

[stillmovingforward]

Thinking about scheduling some time in Alaska for this summer.

Also deluttered two shelves in my kitchen today so that's a win, right?

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Another sea day, we are off the coast of Mexico, just a little south of Acapulco.  TD has got his camera and binoculars out, looking for sealife, but right now we are being accompanied by a lot of boobies.  Apparent, the ship brings up fish for them, so they’re feeding.

Did laundry this morning, so we are good for awhile.  Apparently everyone else decided today was a good day for laundry, and I lucked out and got in and out before it got nuts.

[chiver78]

time to relax with some hockey! I'm waiting on the curtains in the dryer to be done with laundry, everything else is folded and put away. Instant Pot has been started with some BSCB for the pups, and I've poured a glass of wine for the game. M and S will be here by the start of the 2nd period, and we are going out for sushi later.

oh, and I signed up for the Y. 1st month free, waived the sign-on fee, and no contract just a 30 day notice. $35/mo for individuals, like I thought. works for me. they have a whole bunch of classes, but I think I have a little work ahead of me before I jump in on one of those.

[busymom]

I would've preferred to keep our tree up a bit longer, but we'd gotten a real tree this year, and our garbage service is only picking up trees on a limited number of days.  I guess next year we'd better make an effort to buy our tree earlier in the holiday season.  I've still got some other Christmas decorations up around the house.

[taz157]

I’m working from home tomorrow so I need to get my home office straightened up. It was a ground for “later” and now it’s “later”. DH and DD2 are napping while DD1 is painting in her craft room. I’ve started another load of laundry so might as well clean up my office while DD2 is napping.