Hope We Keep Our Power

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 10:52 pm

So far OK here. Lots of intermittent rain started around nightfall.
There are tornadoes out there in the dark.
We might get some Tropical Storm force winds.
I'm hoping the power stays on.
But if it goes out, can't tell when I'd be back online.
Also, I hope to read the new messges tonight here but if I have to bail out, see you Monday or Tuesday.
(I start in the Privy and work from the bottom up).

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 7:09 pm

Power stayed on! So far!
Now it's freezing outside! We went from 82 degrees to 62 since early this morning.

I had to shut the water off at the street overnight, and after all the rain, when I reached in the hole to turn the water back on, the water table was 8" higher than yesterday!
I had to reach into all that water, in a hole, to get at the valve.
Within about 2 hours, the water had receded about 2", so that's good.
I'd say that hole collected about 12" of water from the storm, but I realize it's not how rainfall totals are measured, but I still was pretty surprised!

FairhavenGuy · Post by **FairhavenGuy** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 8:04 pm

Kat @ Mon Oct 24, 2005 8:09 pm wrote: Now it's freezing outside! We went from 82 degrees to 62 since early this morning.

(Oh, BRRRrrrrr! The people up north snicker just a bit.)

Glad to hear you made it through all right. We're supposed to be getting some rain from it sometime tomorrow, I think. It's been getting a little too chilly up here for tropical storms to keep up much strength, though.

Gramma · Post by **Gramma** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 10:10 pm

Hang onto your snuggies, 'cause they say you are in for forties tomorrow. I'd be sympathetic but the heavy wet snow they are warning us about may dampen it a bit.

Gramma

Audrey · Post by **Audrey** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 10:27 pm

I keep telling you to come stay in my enchanted cottage.....

I will even send Joey down there to entertain you with his karaoke machine...

Imagine if you will.. MY son (blond hunk-in-training) belting out 'Danke Shoen' for all he is worth.... Did I mention that this is my biological son?

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 2:05 am

Thanks you guys.
I deserve some sympathy.
A Hurricane, a water leak, and my furnace is not working and the temperature dropped in like 5 hours.
So, no heat and no water.
(Well, I get water when I turn the main valve on, but I have to get down on my knees, and BOW to my house everytime I turn the water on or off).

Kashesan · Post by **Kashesan** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:33 am

Best of luck Kat. Keep an eye on Stef, in case she gets an urge to go wind-surfing ;0)

k

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 11:09 am

Wow, sounds like you have your hands full, Kat! I'm sorry. Whats leaking? We've been having really crappy weather out here, gray and cold and rainy.

Kashesan · Post by **Kashesan** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 1:00 pm

By the way-Thanks for sending Wilma to help our Nor'easter....

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 10:31 pm

You are getting Wilma AND Alpha!
Jeesh!
Sorry.

I just heard on the weather that the reason our cold snap is so surprising to us it because it's not been this low a temperature since March 19th.
That's 7 whole months folks!

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 10:35 pm

The A/C broke, the furnace broke and my water line under my foundation slab is leaking. Then the effects of the hurricane were tropical storm force here.
Everything went within 3 weeks.
They are replumbing tomorrow and Thursday for $3,500.
My poor cats are going to freak.
I feel bad for them- they don't know what's going to happen in the A.M.

Kashesan · Post by **Kashesan** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 6:43 am

Thats terrible Kat! My best wishes are being sent to you and the kitties!!

kash

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 10:58 am

Ugh, you do have your hands full, Kat, all three things going at the same time! My thoughts are with you if that helps any. I remember those concrete slab homes in Arizona, disliked them for that reason. At least out here, if a home doesn't have a full basement, it will have a crawl space under it. Tho' it would probably cost the same to fix as most repair people don't like to go in those crawl spaces, can't blame 'em. Do you have a safe space for the kitties to be during that time?

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 2:08 pm

There is no safe place for the kitties- these men are crawling all over the house except for 3 rooms. The kitties are hiding in the special room I put them in. They are so freaked!

Thanks for your concern. You are sweet!

The guys are wondering why I'm not freaked!
I am too exhausted!

Here is my bathroom today before lunch- multiply this by 3.

Nancie · Post by **Nancie** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 4:16 pm

hang in there kat and kitties, hope all well.

Allen · Post by **Allen** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 4:26 pm

I'm really sorry that you had to be put through all of that Kat. I really hope you are able to get things back in order soon. Your kitties will probably be just as happy as you are when things are finally back to normal.

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 7:17 pm

WHEW!
That crew was great!
They really earn their money!
Tomorrow, another bunch comes over to patch up the walls.
My poor poor kitties.
I am fine- they are just beginning to come out of hiding.
But tonight they will get comfortable and tomorrow they will freak again!

I told Harry I found Ah-So under this really really LOW piece of furniture. To get her to come out I spoke so sweetly to her and gave lots of attention to her sister. So Ah-So - to get out from under this bookcase, which she barely fit under- she had to back out, shimmying! It really was funny!
Harry wondered at how cats do that- do they flatten their bones out or something to fit under really tight places?

I am too tired to be needing sympathy anymore.
I do so appreciate all your good wishes!

To those of you who I owe e-mails, please hang in there- sorry for the delay.

I have no extra of this wallpaper. Any ideas as to how to cover the replastering job due Thursday?

PS: It's really interesting to see inside the walls!

BTW: Remember when we were discussing whether or not Andrew Borden removed water pipes in his bedroom walls which had once been a kitchen, story says, because he was a real pinch-penny?
My copper pipes which were in proximity were removed so one of the young men could recycle it- sell it, actually.
And that reminded me that I had asked Len about that story of Andrew having pipes removed. He said he had seen the holes in the walls where there no longer were pipes but which had once been there. So some pipes actually were removed in Andrew's bedroom- but who removed them is still in question. It's possible, I guess, because city water was only available after Andrew moved in and had already converted his room, maybe he sold the pipes because he couldn't pump water to the second floor, or to the attic.
It may have been drain pipes from his "sink room."
Or- the pipes may have been removed and sold for re-cyclying at some other time, by some other owner.
I forgot to tell you all I had asked about that.

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 8:02 pm

Oh, I thought that they were going to have to break up your slab to get at the pipes, walls are much better! Hmmm, no idea on how to fix that area of wallpaper, do you have any extra lying around by chance? I asked my twin and he suggested trying to soak the pieces that are left on those plaster cutouts and try to reapply them back over the spots, there might be enough give and you can stretch it to fill up to the edges of the cut. Hope that helps. Is it metallic? My boss and I were just discussing this the other day about that 70s style metallic wallpaper, enough time has gone by that its back in style again. Though you probably don't want to get into it, maybe its time for a bathroom redo, you could make a Lizzie room. Glad to hear that the kitties are doing fine, hope YOU get to relax and recharge soon.

theebmonique · Post by **theebmonique** » Wed Oct 26, 2005 8:30 pm

Can you put some decorative shelves over the holes ? Would that work ?

Tracy...

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 8:35 am

The plasterers are here now- just read your notes and I asked!
Nope, and nope.

The backing of the paper is still on the wall after he peeled off more. He has to remove that backing before he can drywall that area. The wallpaper is shredded and no good. I don't have any extra that I know of.
I have more of the other bathroom paper but that room did not get damaged- they came in from outside!

The shelves seemed like a good idea until the guy came today and took off more paper so the gunk they spread on will have a flat surface to adhere to.
So the area is twice as bereft of paper this minute as in the photo.
That means the shelves would have to extend down to where the back of a *sitting* person's head would be.

No good. But good ideas nonetheless! Thanks!

I next have to get my oil tank serviced and then fuel delivered so no bathroon reno for a while!
Jeesh!
My cats are STILL freaked!

Angel · Post by **Angel** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 9:29 am

Kat, I had that same problem once. I went to a home improvement store, got chair rail wood, nailed it just above the damage (which looks like the bottom half of the room) all the way around the room, and then took wallpaper that was a solid color (matching one of the colors in the old existing wallpaper) and repapered the bottom under the chair rails. That way you still have some of your your old wallpaper look and it looks quite pretty.

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:14 am

Oh! That might work! It would be about shoulder height tho.
It's better than taking that whole section around the toilet and shower wall down completely tho!
Hmmm...

Angel · Post by **Angel** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 2:43 pm

You could use the one color wallpaper to cover the entire wall by the sink so that the rest of the room wouldn't have to be shoulder height.

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Thu Oct 27, 2005 4:46 pm

Sorry- I've confused you. I never mentioned that the sink photo shows an area which is normally covered by a full length mirror (sideways, like 6' long). That went back up today after they filled the hole.
It's that big area above the toilet and it goes over to the adjacent wall- and that is bigger now too- which is my problem. When I say it is bigger, I mean they cut away MORE wallpaper so they would have a better area to take hold of the repair plaster- hence it is higher up the wall than the photo- it is about chest high now.
The guy didn't like the *chair-rail* idea because there is a built-in magazine rack with molding around it on the next wall. He said it would clash and look too busy.
I think he thinks I should just go ahead and do it right.
Then I find out he is normally a reno man and has been working on a $100,000 bathroom for a customer!!!

Look at the new size of this!