We had a cold snap last week, but now the temperature is rising above freezing during the day. It won’t be long now before the outdoor projects come into focus for this year.
Before we get into gardening mode, there are a few projects in the house that need attention. Attila is working on the wiring today, he is adding a dedicated electrical outlet to the garage. The existing outlet in the garage is shared by the garage, the refrigerator, and the outlet we use on the back porch. This has been really restrictive, as Attila cannot work on projects in the garage while we are using the electrical outlet on the back porch for our outdoor kitchen. These outlets need to be discrete.
Any project in the basement, where our electrical panel resides, is challenging, because the basement is our main storage area. A large number of items have to be moved out of the way along the path of the wiring project. And when the wiring has been fed through, all of these items need to go back where they came from. This moving things around takes up more time than the actual task at hand. Attila is patient. A bonus is that he finds things we had forgotten about since we moved here.
Before we moved here we stripped the paint from the wood siding, and repainted the house. It was a huge job. Now the paint is peeling in spots, and touch up job is called for.
This house was built from spare parts. The wall studs are 2x4s, no longer acceptable in our building code, but grandfathered in as an existing structure. Over the studs are previously used wood boards, some painted, different colours, some unpainted. Over the wood boards is a layer of Insulbrick. Over the Insulbrick is wood siding. The wood siding is old, and it is still seeping sap on the south wall, right through every paint job over the years, including ours.
Ideally we would replace the old siding. First we would strip the exterior walls down to the boards that are nailed to the studs. Then we would install sheets of plywood to stabilize the walls, and cover that with weatherproof (and bug proof!!) sheathing. We would then apply strapping and metal siding. That would mean no further maintenance for us, better insulation, and better sound proofing. But that is an expensive project, and not a top priority. A new metal roof is our next expensive project, and we won’t be doing that any time soon.
So, this summer the exterior siding will get some touch up paint.
As Attila tackles new projects, I continue with the routine projects, milling flour, making Switchel, cooking our meals from scratch, baking bread, baking muffins and other baked goods, cleaning, paying bills, learning new skills, filing, etc. The more we do for ourselves, the more time it takes. Fortunately I enjoy all of these tasks, well, except for filing, I don’t like it much. I haven’t sewn anything since I completed my new apron, so today I am starting with some mending, Attila’s pants, the knees have worn through. Attila will wear these pants for gardening and working on our home projects, so the mending doesn’t have to look good, it just has to keep the pants from falling apart.
In the last year or so I have been referred to three specialists. One for a PVD (Ophthalmologist for a posterior vitreous detachment), one for an aneurysm (Vascular Surgeon to monitor my condition, and hopefully perform my surgery), and one for lipid management (an Endocrinologist to control my blood lipids, which do not respond to dietary or lifestyle changes). All have been excellent, although the Ophthalmologist students who examined me did not answer my questions with helpful answers, saying only they were erring on the side of caution, but caution for what, they would not say, one wonders. The Endocrinologist has prescribed me an additional medication, which I seem to be tolerating, and we shall see the results in the summer months. The Vascular Surgeon has increased the frequency of my scans from 12-months-between to 6-months-between. I feel I am receiving good care.
The wait time to see the Ophthalmologist appointment was less than twelve hours, as they needed to determine if it was a retinal detachment, a very serious condition requiring immediate surgery. The wait time for the Vascular Surgeon was around three months, and for the Endocrinologist appointment around five months (a new clinic opened so being on the waiting list I was offered an appointment, I did not have to wait two years quoted, just lucky!).
This getting old business if time consuming!
Worldly
Weather
Updated on Sun, Mar 3 at 1:47 PM
8 °C
FEELS LIKE 7
Overcast
Wind 7 E km/h
Humidity 87 %
Visibility 22 km
Sunrise 6:40 AM
Wind gust 11 km/h
Pressure 102.4 kPa
Ceiling 300 m
Sunset 5:58 PM
Quote
“Reality is nothing but a collective hunch.”
Jane Wagner
Hi, Maggie. We’ve been lucky to only have about one and a half cold days this last week. Most of our temps have been seesawing between 50F/10C and freezing. Even at night, most of the time we haven’t been much below freezing.
I’m not sure if I told you but we finally got a doctor! Her office is about an hour away but on Thursdays she does a clinic that’s only about 20 minutes away, so even better. Now, I’m just waiting for the new dentistry for seniors to kick in. I’ve always been scared of the dentist but after not seeing one for years due to covid and moving, I can really appreciate being able to get an appointment shortly.
Hello Teri. The cold snap here was short too, thank goodness. I don’t spend a lot of time out of doors when the weather is very cold, particularly if the surfaces underfoot are icy or snowy. But the snow here is gone now, and it must also be gone where you live!
Congratulations on finding a doctor! I would prefer a doctor to the Nurse Practitioner, more thorough training I feel. But we feel lucky to have the Nurse Practitioner, compared to the years we were without any primary care professional.
It is great that the new dentistry for seniors has arrived, what a relief. Since we will have no benefits after Attila retires, the dentistry coverage will be a real blessing. I am hoping Pharmacare for all kicks in soon too, but I am not hopeful on that.
Hopefully Canadian health care will take a turn for the better soon!
Maggie, we’re glad for any kind of pharmacare here, so the Ontario ODB co-payment plan definitely helps us. But if they ever get better with supplying medicines, all the better!
Teri, the ODB plan is certainly something to be grateful for. Attila won’t quality for quite some time, so we will have to pay cash for any prescriptions, hoping for good health!!