Sigh

It has been a difficult couple of months.  We had two different offers on the old house, but they fell through because of incompetent inspections.  We finally paid for our own inspection, but the summer season was over.  We have had lots of people viewing the house, but no offers.  I feel like our life is on hold until we can get that finished.  And it is expensive to keep maintaining both houses.  Thank heaven I got a little work and we got some extra money to pay for some of the stuff that we had to do.  Now it is just sit and wait.

In the meantime, both Bob and I really like our new house.  It is smaller and easier to take care of.  I am still getting used to some things - like the smaller bathroom space or the smaller sinks.  I had a hard time finding some of the winter stuff.  I still have not found my really warm winter hat.  I had a challenge when it came time to reset the clocks and had to get out the directions for the heating system and the coffee pot.  But it is feeling like home.

We still have not put up the mezzuzah.  I was waiting until we sold the old house.  But we are getting very settled here and I think it is time.  Bob and I have decided that we will put it up while my sister is here, even if we have not sold the other house.

We still don't know for sure what we are going to do for this winter.  Bob is already starting to feel the effects of the damp weather.  It is not cold here, but it is damp and he has a head sniffle - not really a cold.  We will see.  With any kind of luck we will sell the old hosue and be able to go to Phoenix.  If not, we will figure something out.

With all of the worry about the sale of the old hosue, I have not been doing as well on the weight.  I have been putting on a pound here and there.  I have been exercising pretty regularly, and now I have to do some portion control or it will get out of hand and be much harder.

Other than that, things are going well.  I have gotten used to using public transportation and really like it.  In fact, last week, I drove to the school district offices and had to come back during rush hour.  I think it took longer than it would have if I had taken MAX.

Sigh.  It will get resolved sooner or later.  I just wish it would be sooner.

It is all starting to come together.  We have enough of the house done so that we can live in it.  We accepted an offer to sell the old house.  Our new sofa gets delivered tomorrow.  Soon we should have the venetian blinds for the dinig room and the bedrooms.  Then we can start working on making bob's shop what it should be.  It is happening so quickly.

I haven't blogged for a long time.  In that time Bob and I bought a new house and moved into it.  The house is much smaller than the old one.  The living space is pretty nice, but there is much less storage.  So, I had to get rid of a lot of stuff - and so I did.  The good news is that a friend was having a yard sale for charity so I donated all the good stuff to her.  Then the big stuff was picked up by Salvation Army.  Then after we moved I realized that I still had too much stuff so we made a few trips to Goodwill.  When we tried to move the garage and the shop there was so much stuff.  We took two trips to the dump.  It does feel good to have less stuff - but there was a lot that we had to do before we could move in.  We bought a Tuff Shed and had it built in the back for Bob to use as a shop.  We built a pantry in the basement.  We extended the deck so that it is large enough for our outdoor furniture.  We bought an IKEA island for the middle of the kitchen and put it together - that was a real challenge.  We had to put on a shower door.  We had to put together and install cupboards for the bathroom.  Then we had to put together a lot of IKEA bookcases and a couple of IKEA chairs, and an IKEA cupboard for over the washer.  We are becoming IKEA experts.

We now have enough stuff in and unpacked so that we are starting doing things like putting up the curtains.  Putting up pictures will be a real challenge because I don't know where they should go.  One thing at a time.

Our new neighborhood is much more city.  The area that we lived in before had been part of the county until 1986.  There are no sidewalks and things are pretty far away.  This area has sidewalks that are stamped 1914.  There is lots of stuff that is walkable and lots of stuff that is very close.  There is a very busy street two blocks away, but I don't notice it most of the time.  I was worried about crime, but it does feel pretty safe.

We have very nice neighbors who have already been a help in getting stuff done around here. 

The big surprise for me this morning was that I was sitting eating breakfast and saw the streetwashers come by.  I have lived in Portland for over 30 years and have never seen the streetwashers in my neighborhood.  Nice.

The best part about our new house is that it is only 3 miles from my daughter, son-in-law, and grandson.  They can drive here in 10-15 minutes.  On the fourth they biked here.  (It took less time to bike than to drive to our old house.)  More Nice. 

Getting tired and settling in.  Looking forward to being comfortable in the neighborhood and the house.  (Also looking forward to selling the old house.)

We are moving

I haven't blogged for a long time.  In that time Bob and I bought a new house and moved into it.  The house is much smaller than the old one.  The living space is pretty nice, but there is much less storage.  So, I had to get rid of a lot of stuff - and so I did.  The good news is that a friend was having a yard sale for charity so I donated all the good stuff to her.  Then the big stuff was picked up by Salvation Army.  Then after we moved I realized that I still had too much stuff so we made a few trips to Goodwill.  When we tried to move the garage and the shop there was so much stuff.  We took two trips to the dump.  It does feel good to have less stuff - but there was a lot that we had to do before we could move in.  We bought a Tuff Shed and had it built in the back for Bob to use as a shop.  We built a pantry in the basement.  We extended the deck so that it is large enough for our outdoor furniture.  We bought an IKEA island for the middle of the kitchen and put it together - that was a real challenge.  We had to put on a shower door.  We had to put together and install cupboards for the bathroom.  Then we had to put together a lot of IKEA bookcases and a couple of IKEA chairs, and an IKEA cupboard for over the washer.  We are becoming IKEA experts.

We now have enough stuff in and unpacked so that we are starting doing things like putting up the curtains.  Putting up pictures will be a real challenge because I don't know where they should go.  One thing at a time.

Our new neighborhood is much more city.  The area that we lived in before had been part of the county until 1986.  There are no sidewalks and things are pretty far away.  This area has sidewalks that are stamped 1914.  There is lots of stuff that is walkable and lots of stuff that is very close.  There is a very busy street two blocks away, but I don't notice it most of the time.  I was worried about crime, but it does feel pretty safe.

We have very nice neighbors who have already been a help in getting stuff done around here. 

The big surprise for me this morning was that I was sitting eating breakfast and saw the streetwashers come by.  I have lived in Portland for over 30 years and have never seen the streetwashers in my neighborhood.  Nice.

The best part about our new house is that it is only 3 miles from my daughter, son-in-law, and grandson.  They can drive here in 10-15 minutes.  On the fourth they biked here.  (It took less time to bike than to drive to our old house.)  More Nice. 

Getting tired and settling in.  Looking forward to being comfortable in the neighborhood and the house.  (Also looking forward to selling the old house.)

I am a size 8

We are definitely settled in.  It has been a while since I posted.  At first I did not think that there was anything to write about.  But things have been happening.  My sis was here for a week.  She is in some great pain and tried not to show it.  But I could tell that almost everything that we did was hard for her.  We did do some fun stuff.  We went to an local art show on the streets of Scottsdale.  We went to an olive oil mill.  We went to shopping a lot.  We also sat here.  We watched dvds.  We started a jigsaw puzzle.  We sat by the pool.  I did go and exercise every day almost.  she went the first two days and then they told her that the free pass did not work if she did not have an Arizona driver's license.  Bob was angry, but I understood.  So sis used the bike here one day.  We ate out a lot.  that was a problem because she is trying to lose weight for the biggest loser set up at her office.  (she did lose a few pounds here, but not much.)

After she left I went for a walk with a neighbor here in the park.  We walked to the shopping center a mike away because they advertised a Farmers Market.  Not like any farmers market I had ever seen.  No fruits or vegetable.  It was all salsa, olive oil, etc.  I did get a free massage.  We then walked through the shopping center and stopped in one of my favorite stores - Coldwater Creek.  I told the clerk that I had lost some weight and was looking for some casual pants.  She found some and asked my size.  I told her that I did not have a clue so I took in size 10 and 8.  I tried on the 10 and thought that they looked good.  The clerk suggested that I was really an 8.  So, to make her happy (we are fuuny making clerks happy aren't we?), I tried on the 8.  It looked great.  Wow.  It feels really good.  I am still trying to lose a little more so I will not buy much more, but it is nice to have some pants that do not hang on me.


Yesterday I walked with the neighbor again and just had a great time talking and walking. I do miss that when I am here. 

Tonight we are going to meet nephew and niece for a nice dinner for niece's birthday.  It will be a nice day.  and a nice week. 

Nothing much happening

We are definitely into a routine now.  Slow starting in the morning.  It is chilly and it takes a while to get the coffee made.  Then I walk to the clubhouse and get the paper, make breakfast, read the paper, read my email, do the dishes, and get dressed to go to the health club.  I am meeting a lot of the people in the classes.  It is a great way to make friends.  there is one woman in my classes who always has to sit down during the class.  she looks pale.  Reminded me of when I would get low blood pressure.  So I finally got up the nerve and told her that she might be experiencing low blood pressure.  She already does have low blood pressure and never thought about this.  the instructors told her she wasn't breathing right and her doctors thought it might be a heart issue.  I told her to drink coffe or cola before she came to class and that it would raise her pressure enough if she has the same problem that I do.  Once she started thinking about it she agreed that it probably was the problem, so she will try it.  Interesting. 

Then back to the rv.  Bob and I did our exercises, I showered, we ate lunch and then off to the audiologist to check Bob's hearing aids.  He is doing really well with them.  They are much better than the ones that he had before.  He can hear me in a restaurant and in groups of people.  He also does not feel completely stopped up all the time.  That is in addition to being able to talk on the phone.  The audiologist did a few adjustments that made them even better for Bob.  Then stopped on the way home for groceries.  We do have to be very careful.  It is so easy to buy more than can fit into my refrigerator or freezer.  We stuff it in though. 

Then I called Verizon and complained that my modem is not working.  I have tried everything and said that it was time for them to take this one back and send me a replacement.  All of the other folks around here who have Verizon modems do not have the problems that we do.  The replacement is supposed to come tomorrow.  I certainly hope that it works better.  (Although this one seems to be working okay now.) 

Then time to go into the sun and finish my novel.  Not a bad life. 

He can hear

So today Bob and I went to pick up his new hearing aids.  They are much newer technology and are better able to do things like allow him to talk on the phone and they can tell which direction a sound is coming from - and they can discriminate some of the background noise.  So far so good.  He seems to like them.  The problem is that his left aid has not worked for the last three years, so his left ear is not used tog etting any noise.  He is having a hard time with all of the noise that is now coming in and it is tiring him.  The audiologist warned us about his and said that it will take a few days for him to get used to this.  If he does, this will be wonderful.  He can hear so much better now.  We talked about how he couldn't participate in conversations and that made him feel really old and disabled.  Now that he can hear better, he can participate in conversations and be young agin - well almost young. 

The other news is that my nephew is in the hospital.  He and his wife met us yesterday to go on a hike,  We had barely started and he said that he couldn't keep going - he had had a headache for a week and it was just terrible.  So he and Bob went back to the car - we had come in two cars.  The pain got so bad that Bob drove him to our rv and strongly suggested that he go to a hospital.  He tried to see if it got better if he slept a little.  It didn't - and he started vomiting.  this morning he finally went to the doc and got a CAT scan.  It turns out that he has bilateral subdural hematomas.  They are going to do another CAT scan tomorrow and decide if they can just let the blood dissolve or if they need to drill holes to let it vent.  Send good thoughts his way.

Other than those two bits of news, all is about the same here.  Betsy is great.  The weather is getting warmer.  I am really enjoying the classes at the health club that I joined.  We are doing a lot of reading.  And we are really looking forward to my sister's visit in less than two weeks. 

Retirement is wonderful.

spent a nice day yesterday

Things are getting into a routine here.  I exercise almost every morning.  The weather is mild - not hot.  We spend most of the relaxing and reading or walking.  Bob has finally recovered from the long ride and is doing very well.  Yesterday Cathie and Ira invited us to join them at the Phoenix Art Museum for a couple of exhibits.  One of them was the Frank Lloyd Wright exhibit.  Very enjoyable.  The funny part of the day was getting there.  We have a gps and I have spent some time learning how to use it.  But Bob never has.  I was driving and Bob was using it and telling me how to get there.  He really couldn't figure out how to use it.  So we got lost and I finally had to call Ira and ask directions.  We were almost there.  One thing that I am now realizing is how big Phoenix is.  It was many miles from where we are to downtown and yet we are staying within the city limits of Phoenix. 

Another thing that is taking some getting used to is how fast everyone drives even within the city.  The speed limit of 65 is just considered a suggestion and most people ignore the suggestion.  I am used to going 50 or 55 within the city and so everyone is passing me like I ws standing still.  I don't want to change.

After the exhibit we all went out to dinner at a nice steak house.  I had some great fish. 

I woke up this morning with a headache and it was 38 degrees.  It took a while to warm up and to get over my headache.  But I am feeling better now.  I took a long 2 hour walk and that always makes me feel better.  Bob is currently making stew.  When he is done I will do some cleaning - the bathroom especially needs it.  then maybe I will pull out my jigsaw puzzle.  Work is never done - huh?

The weather is better here.

It has been cool and a little rainy here.  (Much better than home where I understand that it is snowing.)  The low was 42 this morning, but it warms up quickly.  It is now 11 am and 66 degrees outside.  We are slowly getting settled.  I have joined a health club.  It is LA Fitness and is a big one.  They have all of the classes that I want and a pool and everything.  I went yesterday for an assessment.  The trainer was arrogant and talked so fast that I could hardly understand him.  We worked together a little and I could feel my blood pressure start to plummet.  No idea why.  I had to lay down until it recovered.  Yuck.  I went back today to a step class and I was fine and the class was great. 

Bob has taken a long time to recover from driving down here.  He keeps postponing doing anything and tells me that he is still tired.  It worries me.  He is feeling better in terms of his congestion.  That has gone.  But he is tired.  We went on a short bike ride around the park yesterday and it tired him out.

Also his hearing aids have gone kaput.  we went online to see if there was a dealer here.  There were.  The biggest was Mayo Clinic.  So we called.  I cannot begin to describe to you the beaurocracy that we encountered.  After a full day of trying to get through what they call registration, we gave up.  This morning we called a different place.  They tell us that Bob's 6 year old hearing aids are pretty old and that the manufacturer may not have parts for them any more.  That is pretty amazing for such expensive hearing aids.  But what can you do.  We have an appointment to go see them on Friday morning.  Hopefully they are repairable.  Otherwise we will have to get him new ones. 

That's about all for now. 

We are here.

We are here!  We made it here one day sooner than expected because Bob just couldn't stop driving.  The traffic was easy.  We timed things pretty well in terms of missing rush hours in the few major cities that we passed.  The weather was pretty good too.  The only issue was that it was a little windy.  That can be a problem for a large target like a Class C Motorhome.  It was the biggest problem when large semis passed us and blocked the wind for a few minutes and then didn't.  It took a while for Bob to figure out how to adjust for that. 

We had cold nights while we were on the way here.  (It made cooming to the warmth all the better.)  That was fine except for the morning that the heater did not work.  But we got the instruction manual out - which said if it doesn't work, keep trying.  If that fails calls the repair man.  So we kept trying and it finally worked. 

Other than that it was nice traveling in a motorhome.  We never had to leave excpt to fill the gas tank.  We spent every night at rest areas and had all our food ready to go.  We ate off paper plates so that we did not have to wash dishes.  So the only cost we had driving here was the cost of gas.  We were able to find Flying J stations with their lower cost of gas, so that was a big help.

The biggest discomfort was that I did not take a shower or wash my hair for four days.  When we got here and got set up I couldn't wait to take a shower.  Yeah clean!!!

We have a very nice spot for Betsy.  It is the same spot as we had last year.  Just far enough from the bathrooms to avoid the noise, but close enough so that it is not a long walk.  (I use them to shower even though I could shower in the rv.  The resort's showers are bigger and we don't have to pay for propane to heat the water in them.)  Also we have good neighbors who have been very nice already. 

The ride down was interesting becase we had planned to do 250-300miles per day.  But we found that even going 55 mph, we would make it to our destination way too early to stop.  So one night we kept going, but Bob got so tired that we decided that was not a good idea.  So the next night we just stopped at 2 pm and stayed there.  It was much better. If we do this again next year we will plan on 300-350 miles per day.  Also, we have decided that we will take long lunch stops.  On this trip we stopped for lunch only long enough to eat, then took off again.  But it would be a better idea to stop for an hour or so and really rest.  Then we will not get to the rest area so early or so tired. 

Last night my nephew and his wife really surprised us.  They brought dinner to our rv so that we could just rest once we set up and did not have to do dinner.  It was a great dinner and great company and they even cleaned up before they left.  What a treat!!!!

We haven't explored the area yet.  That is still to come.  Lots to see and do.  Today Bob and I are both tired. We may take a walk, but other than that we will probably just rest.

today is the day

The last three days have been difficult.  I think that the travel gods are very angry with us.  first, on Monday we planned to go to Verizon and turn on our modem.  I looked everywhere for the modem.  I last used it in July.  I couldn't find it.  so we decided to buy a new one.  Well, they don't make them like the one we had.  We had to upgrade - very spendy.  Urgh.  then I couldn't get it to work and spent two hours with the verizon rep until it work.  It still does not work as well as the old one.  I hate upgrades.

Then when I went to the eye doctor he confirmede that I have gluacoma in one eye and probably both.  He gave me a prescription and reassured me that all would be well.  The prescription was also very spendy.  Urgh.

Then yesterday Bob and I went to breakfast with Stef.  During breakfast I started to feel nauseous.  the nausea passed and I started to feel better.  By the time we got home, Bob was feeling nauseous.  We took turns all day being nauseous.  but we got stuff done and at about 3 pm decided to move out the car and hook us the trailer that tows the car.  In order to do so we had to unhook the electricity.  When we hooked the electric back up, three outlets wouldn't work.  Bob spent hours trying to figure out what was wrong.  He also noticed that the battery was not working.  Urgh.  Finally, he went to take out the outlet and noticed that it was a gfa outlet and he pressed the button and it all worked fine.  the battery was a different problem, just as easily solved by pushing one button.  By 6 pm we were tired and irritated, but all seemed to be well.  I planned to watch the Biggest Loser in the rv because we had no tv reception in the house without cable.  But it wouldn't work.  It has worked earlier yesterday but not at 8 pm last night.  Didn't know why.  Didn't care.  Too tired.

Last night Bob did not sleep well.  He had had some peanut butter for lunch yesterday and ti did not agree with him so he was up most of the night.  He is now napping.  When he wakes we will get started.  Hopefully the travel gods have taken all of their sacrifices and all will go smoothly for the rest of the day.