Number One son flew into the Big City early this afternoon and took an airport shuttle to our town where I picked him up at the bus stop drop off. A few mintues after we arrived home he said he wanted to get a hair cut and he thought he would just run to the hair salon because it was such a nice day (40 degrees and sunny). The hair salon is basically a 1.75 miles round trip, straight down the street that intersects ours, in a strip mall. One and three-quarters of a mile,...remember that. It takes me about twenty mintues to walk each way, or at least it did when I last walked it years ago. I guessed I had about a half hour or more to get a few things done before he arrrived back home if he didn't have to wait at the salon. I figured mid afternoon would probably be pretty slow there. He wore blue jeans and a t-shirt and took off with his long strided jog. He stands well over six feet. THIRTEEN MINUTES later I look out the front door glass storm door and see him jogging up our sidewalk ...and I can see his hair has been cut or rather shaved in his case. He wears a very short military type cut. He did run cross-country in high school, but never even made varsity team. I said, "You only left THIRTEEN MINUTES ago!" He just chuckled and said,"Well, I just ran into the salon and she took out the hedge trimmers, cut my hair, I paid, and ran back home. But now what do I do?"
Gee, I don't know, why don't you negotiate World Peace in the next fifteen minutes.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
Friday Favorites
I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance almost two years ago. My body is taking a long time to heal from a lifetime of abuse from putting what it considers a poison into it. I get really tired of having to take so many supplements to heal it. I often forget to take several of them, so my New Year's Resolution is to make a chart with what I'm supposed to take. One of the ones I "forget" is EFAs because I dislike the taste of flax oil, hemp oil and fish oils.
I want to share my new favorite nutrient supplement. I think I'm addicted.
Barlean's Omega Swirl Lemon Zest flavor, an Omeqa-3 Fish Oil supplement, made with pharmaceutical grade cod liver oil. I bought it by mistake as I was looking for a flax seed oil supplement and this was positioned in the middle of a long line of flax oil supplements. It claims to taste like a smoothie. I think it taste like some of the best lemon meringue pie filling I ever had, in liquid form. It is very thick and rich and I could easily overdose by drinking the whole 16 oz bottle at once, but
A. I don't know if you can overdose on it, but I'd rather not chance it and
B. it costs about $24 a bottle at the place I buy it
Anyway, my diet is so restricted that it is like dessert to me. I LOVE it.
And because I know people will wonder, no I'm not receiving any compensation from Barlean's. They don't even know I exist.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Past, Present and Future
Number Three Son...this 18 year old child of mine...some days, next Fall when he goes off to college cannot come soon enough...he argues against or puts down EVERY single thing I say and according to him, every reason I have for doing something is beyond STUPID. He has always been the child who talked to me the most, shared the events of his day with me... and nowadays is so contentious that I don't want to try to converse with him because I know it is going to stress me, something I really don't need with my health issues. It just makes things worse. But I miss the young boy who was easy to please and thought I was smart and capable.
Last week, he slipped up when he asked me for some information and I replied that I did not know (it was something along the lines of how many hours HE worked last year or some other activity where I was not present, information he needed for filling out a scholarship application). Anyway, I said, "How could you expect *me* to know that information, *I* wasn't there, you were." BTW, I was sitting at this computer in one room, and he was in his bedroom. And I heard him answer quietly, "Because you're a genius." I'm sure he didn't think I could hear him since he always accuses me of being deaf. I said, "WHAT did you say?" "Nothing, nothing." LOL
Somedays, it takes all my self control not to grab the iron skillet and whack him upside the head as hard as I can. But then there is his fun-loving side that he shows everyday, such as this. He is obsessed with the movie and character of Forrest Gump. He walks around the house quoting all the different kinds of shrimp in his best Forrest immitation. It drives us nuts and my DH and I end up shouting "Shut UP!" He has worn a crew cut hairstyle since second grade and has worn it extra high and tight lately, resembling the Forrest Gump hairstyle.
And yesterday,...he came home for lunch and changed clothes. He put on his Bubba Gump Shrimp Company baseball cap and dressed in white slacks, an old short sleeve plaid shirt of his dad's, a belt, and running shoes...
and went back to his fourth block class...AP Calculus.
Forrest Gump in Calculus class. LOL
He said his teacher, Mr Z, just looked at him and couldn't stop laughing.
I will miss him terribly when he leaves home. And sigh with relief.
Last week, he slipped up when he asked me for some information and I replied that I did not know (it was something along the lines of how many hours HE worked last year or some other activity where I was not present, information he needed for filling out a scholarship application). Anyway, I said, "How could you expect *me* to know that information, *I* wasn't there, you were." BTW, I was sitting at this computer in one room, and he was in his bedroom. And I heard him answer quietly, "Because you're a genius." I'm sure he didn't think I could hear him since he always accuses me of being deaf. I said, "WHAT did you say?" "Nothing, nothing." LOL
Somedays, it takes all my self control not to grab the iron skillet and whack him upside the head as hard as I can. But then there is his fun-loving side that he shows everyday, such as this. He is obsessed with the movie and character of Forrest Gump. He walks around the house quoting all the different kinds of shrimp in his best Forrest immitation. It drives us nuts and my DH and I end up shouting "Shut UP!" He has worn a crew cut hairstyle since second grade and has worn it extra high and tight lately, resembling the Forrest Gump hairstyle.
And yesterday,...he came home for lunch and changed clothes. He put on his Bubba Gump Shrimp Company baseball cap and dressed in white slacks, an old short sleeve plaid shirt of his dad's, a belt, and running shoes...
and went back to his fourth block class...AP Calculus.
Forrest Gump in Calculus class. LOL
He said his teacher, Mr Z, just looked at him and couldn't stop laughing.
I will miss him terribly when he leaves home. And sigh with relief.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
GF Ginger Cookies
I heart gingerbread cookies. They are one of my favorite holiday foods. I actually made a Candyland game with gingerbread a few years ago. The house, the markers all made out of gingerbread.
I have a GF recipe for gingersnaps that I have played around with several times. All are very delish. This is made in a food processor so it is quick and easy.
I have cut the amount of sugar in half from the original recipe, trying to reduce the sugar to a minimum. You may want to add more.
Measure and add the first four ingredients to the food processor in this order and process. Measuring and emptying the olive oil before the molasses allows the molasses to just slide right out of the cup.
1/4 c. brown or maple sugar
1/4 c. EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
1/4 c. molasses
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix together in small bowl:
3/4 c. flour (amaranth, sorghum or brown rice)
1/2 c. arrowroot powder or tapioca flour
1/4 c. one of flours above not already used
1 tsp. xanthum gum
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Add to the wet ingredients in several batches, processing between each addition.
Add 2 T water(if needed). Oil baking sheet or use parchment paper. Make dough into 1" balls. Flatten. Bake at 325 degrees F. for 10-12 minutes if you like a crispy cookie outside and soft inside. Bake a few minutes longer if you like hard gingersnaps. Ler cool on the cookie sheet for a couple minutes before removing.
I have a GF recipe for gingersnaps that I have played around with several times. All are very delish. This is made in a food processor so it is quick and easy.
I have cut the amount of sugar in half from the original recipe, trying to reduce the sugar to a minimum. You may want to add more.
Measure and add the first four ingredients to the food processor in this order and process. Measuring and emptying the olive oil before the molasses allows the molasses to just slide right out of the cup.
1/4 c. brown or maple sugar
1/4 c. EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
1/4 c. molasses
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix together in small bowl:
3/4 c. flour (amaranth, sorghum or brown rice)
1/2 c. arrowroot powder or tapioca flour
1/4 c. one of flours above not already used
1 tsp. xanthum gum
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Add to the wet ingredients in several batches, processing between each addition.
Add 2 T water(if needed). Oil baking sheet or use parchment paper. Make dough into 1" balls. Flatten. Bake at 325 degrees F. for 10-12 minutes if you like a crispy cookie outside and soft inside. Bake a few minutes longer if you like hard gingersnaps. Ler cool on the cookie sheet for a couple minutes before removing.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
I am in mourning for one of my favorite actresses who died. Five years ago. Only I just found out last week. Hope Lange. She was only 72 years old when she died on 17 Dec 2003.
I first saw her in "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" TV series, which to this day is the most romantic series I've ever seen. It ran for two seasons, 1968 - 1970 and Hope Lange won two Emmy's for her portryal of Mrs. Muir. It was the ultimate "we can never be together story line"...a living woman and a dead man's ghost. I fell in love with both the Captain and Carolyn Muir. Mostly their voices. And they had some great dialogue. Feisty and funny. I loved their chemistry together.
I was a teenager when the series ran, straddled between childhood and adulthood, with all the conflicting emotions and desires a teen feels. Carolyn Muir was a strong woman, a widow with two children, a boy about 7 and a girl, 9 years old. She supported herself as a writer, (though logic would suggest that she had a good size inheritance also, as she employed a full time housekeeper/cook, Martha Grant).
I was drawn to the Carolyn Muir character on several levels. On the one hand, she was the kind of mother I wanted, but didn't have. Strong, healthy, energetic, happy even in the face of adversity, spirited, able to stand on her own ... a wonderful role model. (This is not to disrespect my mom, who had many wonderful qualities.) And she had a career as a writer. Something I wanted to be but never voiced. Then there was the teenage girl in me who wanted boys to like her, be attracted to her and looked forward to being in love. The captain was so male, so handsome and so interesting to be around and converse with, and had such a sexy male voice. How could any female not fall in love with him? So I wanted to BE Carolyn Muir as well. To be the object of Captain Gregg's intense fascination.
Of course I have searched the internet for all the information I could find about the cast of the show. Edward Mulhare, the actor who played Captain Daniel Gregg is dead also (1997). So is that like dying twice? But I was fortunate enough to find some Wave files with dialogue from the shows which I loaded onto my iTunes...where I can click on Repeat and the clip will be played over and over and over...when I'm alone, lest I drive my sons crazy. How wonderful it is to hear their voices again. Be still my heart.
I first saw her in "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" TV series, which to this day is the most romantic series I've ever seen. It ran for two seasons, 1968 - 1970 and Hope Lange won two Emmy's for her portryal of Mrs. Muir. It was the ultimate "we can never be together story line"...a living woman and a dead man's ghost. I fell in love with both the Captain and Carolyn Muir. Mostly their voices. And they had some great dialogue. Feisty and funny. I loved their chemistry together.
I was a teenager when the series ran, straddled between childhood and adulthood, with all the conflicting emotions and desires a teen feels. Carolyn Muir was a strong woman, a widow with two children, a boy about 7 and a girl, 9 years old. She supported herself as a writer, (though logic would suggest that she had a good size inheritance also, as she employed a full time housekeeper/cook, Martha Grant).
I was drawn to the Carolyn Muir character on several levels. On the one hand, she was the kind of mother I wanted, but didn't have. Strong, healthy, energetic, happy even in the face of adversity, spirited, able to stand on her own ... a wonderful role model. (This is not to disrespect my mom, who had many wonderful qualities.) And she had a career as a writer. Something I wanted to be but never voiced. Then there was the teenage girl in me who wanted boys to like her, be attracted to her and looked forward to being in love. The captain was so male, so handsome and so interesting to be around and converse with, and had such a sexy male voice. How could any female not fall in love with him? So I wanted to BE Carolyn Muir as well. To be the object of Captain Gregg's intense fascination.
Of course I have searched the internet for all the information I could find about the cast of the show. Edward Mulhare, the actor who played Captain Daniel Gregg is dead also (1997). So is that like dying twice? But I was fortunate enough to find some Wave files with dialogue from the shows which I loaded onto my iTunes...where I can click on Repeat and the clip will be played over and over and over...when I'm alone, lest I drive my sons crazy. How wonderful it is to hear their voices again. Be still my heart.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
GF DF Krispy Sugar Wafers
The Characters
1 Tablespoon GF vegan margarine
4 Tablespoons powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon GF vanilla powder
2 rice crisp breads
Forget about calories with this one. Chances are you don't need to worry about weight if you are gluten and dairy intolerant..., you don’t indulge in the readymade sugary temptations that abound on the grocery store shelves, that pile on the pounds, because they contain gluten and/or some other food you are sensitive to. Every GF cookie I’ve seen in stores has some ingredient I’m sensitive to. When I first bit into this plain crispy rice wafer, the texture reminded me of the neopolitan sugar wafers that come in vanilla, chocolate and strawberry flavors and I knew I had to make a gluten free version. This one is vanilla flavored. It is quick, easy and delicious with some fresh fruit.
Try adding cocoa powder if you prefer chocolate. Powdered flavorings won’t thin the filling.
First, measure one T. vegan margarine and melt in microwave, approximately 15 seconds. Just get it melted, it doesn’t have boil.
Add the powdered sugar and powdered vanilla to the margarine. Blend with a fork until it’s nice and creamy.
1 Tablespoon GF vegan margarine
4 Tablespoons powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon GF vanilla powder
2 rice crisp breads
Forget about calories with this one. Chances are you don't need to worry about weight if you are gluten and dairy intolerant..., you don’t indulge in the readymade sugary temptations that abound on the grocery store shelves, that pile on the pounds, because they contain gluten and/or some other food you are sensitive to. Every GF cookie I’ve seen in stores has some ingredient I’m sensitive to. When I first bit into this plain crispy rice wafer, the texture reminded me of the neopolitan sugar wafers that come in vanilla, chocolate and strawberry flavors and I knew I had to make a gluten free version. This one is vanilla flavored. It is quick, easy and delicious with some fresh fruit.
Try adding cocoa powder if you prefer chocolate. Powdered flavorings won’t thin the filling.
First, measure one T. vegan margarine and melt in microwave, approximately 15 seconds. Just get it melted, it doesn’t have boil.
Add the powdered sugar and powdered vanilla to the margarine. Blend with a fork until it’s nice and creamy.
Now pile the yummy, sugary filling onto the rice crisp bread as thick as you like it. For me that is ¼ inch, Top with another rice crisp bread and enjoy.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
GF Amaranth Pancakes
This is my favorite breakfast in the world. Amaranth pancakes with as much vegan margarine as will stay on top of the pancake, topped with powdered sugar and finally organic blueberries. My tongue would love to taste this every single morning. But I must restrain myself and only fix it only once a week or I will weigh 300 pounds within a year.
The recipe is modified from the one on the back of the package of Bob's Red Mill Amaranth Flour. I substitute arrowroot flour for tapioca flour. You could also substitute potato flour for the tapioca.
1/4 cup Apple juice or Milk (I use Almond Milk if I'm using milk)
1 tsp Oil
1/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Amaranth Flour
1/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour
3 Tbsp Arrowroot Starch (since I substitute Tapioca flour with arrowroot above, I measure 1.5 Tbsp of arrowroot and 1.5 Tbsp amaranth for the 3 Tbsp Arrowroot here)
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Baking Powder
1/8 tsp Sea Salt
BEAT egg then beat in juice and oil. ADD remaining ingredients to egg mixture one by one and BEAT after each addition. Heat griddle to medium high and COOK until bubbly; turn and cook until done. Makes 8-10, 3" pancakes or about 5, 4" pancakes.
Monday, October 8, 2007
I'll Just Pretend I'm Not Here
Every year one of our local TV stations sponsors a Health Fair in my town, a two week statewide event. It offers free and low-cost exams to anyone 18 and older. I go every year because we only carry what I call catastrophic insurance, with deductibles so high that I never go to a medical doctor for routine maintenance since the entire fee would come out of my pocket. So while I'm waiting to get my blood drawn, the gal next to me mentions that she picked this site because they are offering pap smears. They are? That is new to my city's health fair this year...maybe I should get one. I cannot remember the year I last had one...must have been 10 years ago or so. So as soon as the vampire lady, strike that, the phlebotomist, draws my blood, I go see about the breast exam and pap smear. Turns out it's free. Okay, I'll get one. Well, the fair is open for another 90 minutes and they already have all the alotted time slots filled, but I am able to get my name on a waiting list in case some people decide not to wait around. I go have a couple other exams, checking back intermittently. Five minutes before the closing of the health fair, the sign-up lady says that the three or four of us left will be seen before the hospital crew comes to take down the tables and load them up. I am the next to the last person. By now, all the other stations are cleaning up and the firemen that sit on call in the large room where all the blood is drawn (in case anyone faints from the sight of their own blood I guess) are taking pictures of the volunteer phlebotomists.
Oh, and did I mention that the site for the health fair this day is a church, ... but not my church.
The breast exam/pap smear is held in what must be the kindergarten Sunday school room. How I know this is because there is a wipe-off board low on the wall where kids have signed their name when they've lost their first tooth. There is a privacy screen off to a side of the room for changing and the exam table is almost directly in front of the doorway. Great position. Right outside the room there is a large portable chalkboard that blocks the view in case the door is opened by an idiot during an exam. So I undress. I cannot believe I am stripping naked in a kid's Sunday school room, for crying out loud. When I woke up this morning this was not in The Plan. I put on my paper vest (open at the front), wrap the paper sheet around my lower half and climb up on the exam table. The midwife does breast the exam and starts the pap smear exam.
And she can't find my c-e-r-v-i-x! How long have you been doing this lady? What do you mean you can't find my c-e-r-v-i-x? It's hiding she says. Yes, she really said that. That's probably because we are in a CHURCH, in a little kid's Sunday school room, for heavens sake. It knows this is like a sin or something. I feel like God and all the saints are watching. This goes on for several minutes and she keeps apologizing...it's an equipment problem she says ( the cheap little disposable clear plastic thingies they shove inside you keeps slipping). So she has her assistant elevate my one thigh a little higher by putting her arm underneath and supporting the weight. "Just relax, hon, I'm strong enough to hold the weight of your leg." Relax? Are you kidding..this is the weirdest pap smear I have ever had in my life. How can I relax? This maneuver doesn't work and she still can't find the dang c-e-r-v-i-x. I am thinking at this rate I'm still going to be naked on this table when the little kids come marching in here on Sunday morning, so I ask, "Should I maybe elevate my other leg?" "Yes, go ahead", she answers. So I stick my other leg up and now both feet are aimed at the ceiling, like week old roadkill. And then ...the unthinkable happens...
A man just opens the door and starts to walk in. HEY! WE ARE TRYING TO HAVE A GYNO-CO-LOGICAL EXAM HERE, MISTER. DO YOU MIND? Apparently, the clean up crew has not been notified that this room is still being used. At least I do not hear anything like "My eyes! My eyes!" I never actually saw the guy, which is a good thing, because if I had, I would have been too embarrased to walk out of the room, knowing which guy saw me bare-butt naked, and maybe recognizing each other. I can only hope it wasn't the fireman photographer.
Anyhow, the man is shoo-ed out and the mid-wife finds the missing c-e-r-v-i-x and finally completes the exam. And I live to tell about it. When the DH gets home he asks me how it went at the health fair. And when I tell him, he shakes his head, saying "I am so embarrassed, I am so embarrassed, I am never going to the health fair again." And I'm saying, "what are you talking about, YOU'LL never have to get a pap smear." Men!
Oh, and did I mention that the site for the health fair this day is a church, ... but not my church.
The breast exam/pap smear is held in what must be the kindergarten Sunday school room. How I know this is because there is a wipe-off board low on the wall where kids have signed their name when they've lost their first tooth. There is a privacy screen off to a side of the room for changing and the exam table is almost directly in front of the doorway. Great position. Right outside the room there is a large portable chalkboard that blocks the view in case the door is opened by an idiot during an exam. So I undress. I cannot believe I am stripping naked in a kid's Sunday school room, for crying out loud. When I woke up this morning this was not in The Plan. I put on my paper vest (open at the front), wrap the paper sheet around my lower half and climb up on the exam table. The midwife does breast the exam and starts the pap smear exam.
And she can't find my c-e-r-v-i-x! How long have you been doing this lady? What do you mean you can't find my c-e-r-v-i-x? It's hiding she says. Yes, she really said that. That's probably because we are in a CHURCH, in a little kid's Sunday school room, for heavens sake. It knows this is like a sin or something. I feel like God and all the saints are watching. This goes on for several minutes and she keeps apologizing...it's an equipment problem she says ( the cheap little disposable clear plastic thingies they shove inside you keeps slipping). So she has her assistant elevate my one thigh a little higher by putting her arm underneath and supporting the weight. "Just relax, hon, I'm strong enough to hold the weight of your leg." Relax? Are you kidding..this is the weirdest pap smear I have ever had in my life. How can I relax? This maneuver doesn't work and she still can't find the dang c-e-r-v-i-x. I am thinking at this rate I'm still going to be naked on this table when the little kids come marching in here on Sunday morning, so I ask, "Should I maybe elevate my other leg?" "Yes, go ahead", she answers. So I stick my other leg up and now both feet are aimed at the ceiling, like week old roadkill. And then ...the unthinkable happens...
A man just opens the door and starts to walk in. HEY! WE ARE TRYING TO HAVE A GYNO-CO-LOGICAL EXAM HERE, MISTER. DO YOU MIND? Apparently, the clean up crew has not been notified that this room is still being used. At least I do not hear anything like "My eyes! My eyes!" I never actually saw the guy, which is a good thing, because if I had, I would have been too embarrased to walk out of the room, knowing which guy saw me bare-butt naked, and maybe recognizing each other. I can only hope it wasn't the fireman photographer.
Anyhow, the man is shoo-ed out and the mid-wife finds the missing c-e-r-v-i-x and finally completes the exam. And I live to tell about it. When the DH gets home he asks me how it went at the health fair. And when I tell him, he shakes his head, saying "I am so embarrassed, I am so embarrassed, I am never going to the health fair again." And I'm saying, "what are you talking about, YOU'LL never have to get a pap smear." Men!
Monday, October 1, 2007
I Am Married to "Tim the Toolman"
When will I ever learn? If it doesn't involve cars (with which he is a mechanical Genius) or cooking, make sure my husband, Mr Fix-it, has explicit instructions and knows he must follow them. Our roof is only five years old, but we had some shingles curling around one of the vents on the roof. Fixing the shingles is on the weekend's agenda. So Mr Fix-it drives to the hobby store for some paint and also stops at the hardware store to pick up some roofing tar to repair the roof. He comes home with a CAN of roofing tar.
Before I know it, he is knocking on the back door for me to come hold the ladder while he climbs up on the roof. Now this is the six foot wooden step ladder I bought for $2 at a garage sale fifteen or so years ago. Somehow we have just never had a spare $100 or so dollars lying around that begged to go buy a nice 24 foot ladder. Middle Son is already on the roof, having climbed up the wobbley ladder the way he always does, then using the heavy trellis work over the patio to brace himself and climb onto the roof.
Mr Fix-it tries to do this, but after several tries, gives up. I remind him that he is over fifty years old, to Middle Son's nineteen, and tell him to go borrow a ladder from the next door neighbors. Thankfully, he does. He and Middle Son get busy repairing the roof and I go to the back fence to pick raspberries. They are done in just a few minutes and Mr Fix-it asks me to take a look.
I do and I can't believe it. Our previously beautiful roof, that had nothing but a few shingles with curled edges, now has an area that could serve for military target practice. He put BLACK tar under and ON TOP of the CREAM COLORED shingles, so there's not a chance a single raindrop will ever make it's way into the attic. That two foot area is sealed as tight as Noah's Ark.
"How does it look?", he asks. He masked off the area he tarred, so it is a neat square, and he is proud of it... but I cannot tell a lie. And I have to use the "C" word. "It looks like crap!" He is greatly offended. I have insulted his male pride, (for which I have apologized), but for the love of pete, how unsightly does this look? He clearly did not think this through. I ask him what he would have done if there were many problem areas on the roof. Put squares of black tar all over our roof? Like a giant checkerboard? I don't know where he got this repair idea, but it couldn't have been from asking someone at the Helpful Ace Hardware store where he shopped. I found instructions on the Internet afterwards. It says to buy a CAULKING tube of roofing tar, and apply to the under edge of the shingle, as I logically assumed Mr. Fix-it would do, and weight the shingle down with a brick while it dries. But could he just look up instructions for something he knew nothing about? Noooooooooo, he had to wing it. And speaking of wings, I'm going to pray that birds use the Big Black Spot for target practice when they fly over...camoflauge the Spot, so to speak.
I want it fixed correctly!
But I am fighting an uphill battle, people...Mr Fix-it thinks it looks fine and both sons say, "Who looks at the roof?"
How about you? Do have any stories of repair jobs gone awry? Tell me I'm not alone.
Before I know it, he is knocking on the back door for me to come hold the ladder while he climbs up on the roof. Now this is the six foot wooden step ladder I bought for $2 at a garage sale fifteen or so years ago. Somehow we have just never had a spare $100 or so dollars lying around that begged to go buy a nice 24 foot ladder. Middle Son is already on the roof, having climbed up the wobbley ladder the way he always does, then using the heavy trellis work over the patio to brace himself and climb onto the roof.
Mr Fix-it tries to do this, but after several tries, gives up. I remind him that he is over fifty years old, to Middle Son's nineteen, and tell him to go borrow a ladder from the next door neighbors. Thankfully, he does. He and Middle Son get busy repairing the roof and I go to the back fence to pick raspberries. They are done in just a few minutes and Mr Fix-it asks me to take a look.
I do and I can't believe it. Our previously beautiful roof, that had nothing but a few shingles with curled edges, now has an area that could serve for military target practice. He put BLACK tar under and ON TOP of the CREAM COLORED shingles, so there's not a chance a single raindrop will ever make it's way into the attic. That two foot area is sealed as tight as Noah's Ark.
"How does it look?", he asks. He masked off the area he tarred, so it is a neat square, and he is proud of it... but I cannot tell a lie. And I have to use the "C" word. "It looks like crap!" He is greatly offended. I have insulted his male pride, (for which I have apologized), but for the love of pete, how unsightly does this look? He clearly did not think this through. I ask him what he would have done if there were many problem areas on the roof. Put squares of black tar all over our roof? Like a giant checkerboard? I don't know where he got this repair idea, but it couldn't have been from asking someone at the Helpful Ace Hardware store where he shopped. I found instructions on the Internet afterwards. It says to buy a CAULKING tube of roofing tar, and apply to the under edge of the shingle, as I logically assumed Mr. Fix-it would do, and weight the shingle down with a brick while it dries. But could he just look up instructions for something he knew nothing about? Noooooooooo, he had to wing it. And speaking of wings, I'm going to pray that birds use the Big Black Spot for target practice when they fly over...camoflauge the Spot, so to speak.
I want it fixed correctly!
But I am fighting an uphill battle, people...Mr Fix-it thinks it looks fine and both sons say, "Who looks at the roof?"
How about you? Do have any stories of repair jobs gone awry? Tell me I'm not alone.
Welcome to my blog
My name is DeniseClaire. A little about me...I have an artistic nature and many interests. Photography, quilting, gardening, reading and writing are my main pursuits. Someday I will break out all the scrapbooking supplies I have purchased and put them to use also. I have a husband and three sons who keep me from spending too much time with those activities. They are also artists.
I hope you'll stop by often to see what we are up to.
I hope you'll stop by often to see what we are up to.
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