May 31, 2013

3pm
Another month gone ... the year is half-way done.

Just finished getting some meat marinating to make jerky tomorrow. Going to get some more kefir and yogurt started in a bit, too. Also, ground up another batch of eggshells in the blender.

When I got home and went to my work website to enter the store I serviced I noticed I have a new store added! It is just down the street from me. A WalMart Neighborhood Market. It is inside our local mall. I noticed it going in there a while back, so I expected to get it. I can walk to the store, it is so close.

Paid a bill and did a bit of shopping after I finished my store. Then went to the farm for 2 gallons of milk.

7:15pm
Nikky likes kefir! I'm having my last pint. Need to make more. Didn't get to it earlier. So, will have to in the morning. It is soooo good. If I never perfect the yogurt, I will still be happy with my kefir. Good every time! So far, I've only flavored with vanilla and maple syrup. I'll start experimenting with other flavors soon.

I've been listening to the Weather Channel the past couple of hours. Can't believe Moore, OK. got hit again! And, the Weather Channel's storm-chasers got hit. Demolished one of their vans, but the reporters survived. Lucky.

9pm
Sheree is my brave little girl. She slipped and slid, but she crossed the kitchen floor to the carpet. Robin will not touch the floor! Every time I put her on it, she jumps right back in the cage!

You can see how she holds her front left leg up slightly - that is her bad leg. Same side as the wound on her hip, so they may have happened at the same time. Her hair is covering the wound on her hip, but it is funky from the coconut oil. She needs another bath from that. Probably tomorrow.
Ezra is supervising her exercise time!

May 30, 2013

5:45pm
I have pretty much done nothing today ... at least it feels that way ...
I paid a bill online. Washed a load of laundry and hung on the line to dry. Washed the floor around the bunny cage (they both tend to pee out the bars ...) Foraged wild lettuce for the bunnies. Mailed winnings from 3 Listia auctions (walked to the mailbox.) Got my file ready for work tomorrow. And, moved files from one hard drive to another trying to balance out the GB ... and listened to some podcasts. It was already getting too hot for my liking when I walked to the mailbox. It is 88ºF right now. So, it may have gotten to 90ºF. After several days in the 70s, that is quite a jump.

Oh, this was dinner. I am stuffed!

I loooove pork country-style short ribs. Yes, I like my eggs browned. I can't eat them runny. More Cowgirl Creamery Créme Fraîche on heirloom tomato. And, raw milk. Also had an organic tangelo - not pictured.

7:15pm
So, I finally got the lamp apart. Took some doing!

And, I got more shine!

It is going to take me a bit longer to get the lamp finished. My fingers get so tired with all the scrubbing/polishing! But, it will be worth it. I'm still going to paint the post on Saturday.

May 29, 2013

1:15pm
One more day off. I have to work Friday morning. Sucks.

Got the deck cleared of the evil turf rug. It is now covering the yard. I really prefer a wood deck. I like the feel of it on my bare feet better. I think Nikky likes running on it better, too. And, it's so much easier to keep clean of the wild bird seed! Just sweep!

Have a load of wash running. Bunny towels and cleaning rags. Just finished cleaning the bunny pen. Have to do it twice a week now that there are two, or it really starts to smell. So, Saturday it gets cleaned, along with the doves' cages. And, Wednesday it gets cleaned again. They have a new treat today. Watermelon rind. They are mostly just staring at it right now. Hope they try it. I'm having a piece of watermelon for lunch with some cultured raw cream.

I need to get a couple of jars of sun tea going. It is sunny and warm today, so they won't take too long to steep. Just need to decide what flavors I want to make.

3:30pm
The bunnies have tried the watermelon. I think they are still pretty full from lunch, but it's been nibbled on. Now Robin is cleaning Sheree.

Sun tea is done. I made pomegranate tea and saffron tea. Should last me until Sat.

Going to work on the lamp for a bit. I might get it done by the weekend. As you can see, the rabbits need light near their cage. I had to enhance the pic as it was too dark to see them!

I really need to take them outside tomorrow for some sunshine.

4:15pm
Yes. We are starting to see a shine! I might get the lamp done by the weekend! I hope to paint the post on Saturday. The upper part of it is flaked off a bit. So, will be working more on that brass the next couple of days. I know it won't be like new with all the pitting and stains. But, it is probably about 80 years old, at least. Papa probably bought it new, knowing him! But, no one has taken care of it in over 40 years ... since 1969 it was in my dad's garage until I got it. Then it was in storage for 2 years and just sitting in my living room gathering more dust for over 3 years now. It's time it was brought back to life.

One of my goals is to try to find a lamp shade that will fit it in the style of its era. I need to go through a lot of our old pictures and see if the lamp is in any of them, so I can see the shade it used to have ...

Had an early dinner. Dukkah-spiced wild cod; sliced heirloom tomato with Cowgirl Creamery Crème Fraîche (they use Straus milk in their products!) and black pepper; hard-boiled eggs. And, raw milk. No pic ... but, it was very good!

May 28, 2013

12:45pm
I rode my bike over to BelAir this morning. Had to drop my swaps off at the post office. I got some organic red lettuce for the bunnies and some short ribs for us to have for dinner. It was buy one/get one free! So, I got 2 packages. We'll have one for dinner and one for the freezer.

No breakfast this morning. Just water and then some lemonade while I was working on the deck.
We got the carpet pulled up. My mom pulled all the staples out. I got one section cut and dragged it around to the yard to cover it. I still need to cut another section. But, we stirred up too much dust & mold and I was starting to feel wheezy for the first time in a year. So, had to stop. Will cut the other section I need tomorrow morning. We are laying the carpet over the area that was weeded already to hopefully prevent more growth while we start leveling the ground and then laying the aggregate stepping stones to cover the whole area like a patio. Hope to get it done by the end of summer ...

My potatoes have sprouted! So far, it looks like 4 plants. (Too small to take pics yet.) Also, one of my tomatoes has flowers!! The one on the left in the above pic. (Close-up picture didn't turn out ...) The basil, lemon cucumber and butternut squash are doing well, too! The Prickly Pear cactus is blooming! Two yellow flowers. Might get fruit!

I have a load of throw rugs hanging from the clothesline. It's still pretty overcast, but they should dry in a couple more hours.

This is lunch. My homemade yogurt topped with thawed mixed berries, pine nuts and pecans. With some raspberry sun tea.

Listening to the Beatles White Album!

4:30pm
Finally gave Sheree a bath. Her hip is healing really well. There will be a scar, but it is not infected and skin looking better. She has definitely put on weight. I did discover that she has a deformed front leg. She may have had her elbow dislocated at some point or she was born that way. Will never know. The leg is somewhat atrophied; much less muscular than the other front leg. But, she is doing really well. Robin is helping her dry now! I'll put more coconut oil on her wound in a bit.

I finally started taking Papa's lamp apart. I may never get the brass clean, but I am going to repaint the pole. I took out the old cord and the old over-sized socket. They don't make bulbs that size any more!

Dinner is pork short ribs with baked onions and a glass of raw milk!

Listening to Jim Croce music! Love it.

6pm
I only got 3 albums burned today. But, 2 of them had 2 disks.

Should burn a movie or some series episodes, but it is getting late and they take quite a while to burn. I actually should get all 3 computers running and burn things on all of them. But, only my XP has the program I like to use! Dilemma or excuses? Hmmm. Both. Plus, laziness! Ha!

May 27, 2013

8:30am
Having homemade yogurt for breakfast with some frozen mixed berries stirred in. I let it set out overnight before putting it in the fridge. It's not as thick as I really like, but for my first batch ever, it's not bad! Had it with a glass of water.

Will try the kefir tonight.

9:30am
I was starting to work on the deck, but it started raining. I don't think it will last, though ...

10:15am
Raining again. Took a pic of my flag. Not waving, due to the rain.

12:30pm
Got all the rug loose from the deck. It is in bad shape. I'm going to have to replace the whole thing. Previous owner did a crap job on repairs and then covered it all with the rug to hide it ... sucks. But, I have plans in my head now of how I want it when we re-do it next year. It is still usable the way it is. It's not in danger of falling or us stepping through a hole or anything like that. Just looks awful and does have some bad wood. Will take pics tomorrow after the rug is taken completely off.

It's still raining a bit. Mostly sprinkles.

I've got 2 CDs burned, so far. About 100 or so to go ... but, I only have about 60 more blank CDs.

Load of laundry in the dryer.

Must eat something ...

Then, I'll be filling capsules with cinnamon and ground eggshell. Not together! Separate batches.

1:15pm
Had a yummy little lunch. Hard-boiled eggs with plain rice crackers and very spicy chèvre! And, lemonade/tea.

3:15pm
Still raining. :) We need it badly.

Burned 7 CDs. Will burn more tomorrow. I really need the room! Too many drives are in the red and making everything sluggish. I need to order some ink for my printer, too. I need to get the covers and tracklists printed. Just have a little post-it in the jewel case to know which album they are! Hate that. Time to hit eBay and do that, since I have no cash to go to Fry's.

4:45pm
Ordered ink. Also, paid a bill.

Still haven't done the cinnamon ... or the eggshells ...

Almost time for dinner. Spicy ribs!!! Yum!

7:15pm
Got 3 swaps packaged to mail tomorrow. And, 2 of them were not at the last minute! ;)

Had some of my homemade kefir with vanilla extract and maple syrup. It was yum.

May 26, 2013

3pm
Spent about 3 hours outside weeding some areas my mom couldn't get to.

Have a load of laundry hanging on the line.

Kefir and yogurt started. The kefir has to stand about 24 hours. The yogurt only about 4. I'm going to flavor the kefir with vanilla and maple syrup. The yogurt I am going to keep plain and just mix in berries when I eat it.

Listening to '60s music and drinking sun tea now.

5pm
I'm thinking that Sheree may have a broken 'wrist' as she never puts a lot of weight on one of her front paws. She doesn't seem to be in pain and eats really well. She can also run pretty quickly without using that leg ... it doesn't bother her when I touch it, but there is a small bump the other leg doesn't have ... The injury to her side seems to be healing well. I need to give her a good bath tomorrow and get some of the coconut oil out of her fur. I'll be able to really see the wound better after that to make sure it's not infected at all. But, she seems to be doing well after all she's been through. So glad she and Robin get along so well.

I really need another external hard drive. Or, to burn a LOT of music and movies ... I have 3 externals and 4 computers and they are all full ... that's not good. I also have tons of jump drives and SD cards that are full ... I think I'll start on burning the music to CDs tomorrow.

May 25, 2013

8:15am
Well, I started the blog yesterday, but only got a couple of sentences written and then got to doing other things ... so anyway ... start over ...

Finally! The bunny's name is Sheree. I don't really think it fits her, but it is better than Gigi!

Serviced two stores and then went to the farm for milk and eggs. Then, got home and waited for the A/C maintenance guy. He finally showed up around 4. Found that the A/C is 23 years old! Didn't think it was that old, as it works pretty well. He recommended that a couple of small parts be replaced. But, that will have to wait ... no money.

Today, we'll be rearranging where the rabbit pen is. It is just too hard to clean, so it is moving into the kitchen at least until I pull the rug from the other room and replace the floor ... whenever that will be, I don't know yet.

Then, we will be pulling the turf carpet from the big deck so I can see what condition the wood is. Depending on the condition ... I might be able to replace part of it this summer. If it's bad, it will have to wait until next year most likely ...

1:15pm
Rabbit pen is moved. I think I will like it where it is, especially once I get a light over there. It's too dark! Yeah, I still have to replace all of the kitchen lights ...

We got half of the carpet pulled up from the deck. It was obviously there to cover up the shoddy repair jobs on the deck. Definitely needs to be re-done. Next week, I'll be going under the deck to check all of the posts and see the condition they are in. I'm hoping I'll just need to replace the flooring boards and not the whole deck.

But, I'm done with working on the house, etc. for the day. My back is bothering me a bit. And, I kept sneezing like crazy out there!

I'm on my second load of laundry. I might do 1 or 2 more, as I haven't done laundry for several days. I hate that. I like doing 1 load a day to keep up with it all.

I have a batch of lavender lemonade steeping. I'm going to make another batch of sun tea in a few minutes. Made a batch yesterday, too. I love it!!

Also, boiling some eggs. Yum.

I need to fill capsules with cinnamon, as we are out, but I don't feel like it! It's such a messy job.  I also have eggshells in the dehydrator to make another batch of calcium tomorrow.

I really need to eat something ...

2pm
Laundry load 3.

Lemonade done in the fridge. Sun tea out in the sun. Eggs almost done boiling.

Having a cashew, macadamia nut, pine nut, dried cranberry, carob chip, cacao nibs mix to snack on for lunch. I'm really not hungry enough for more ... and some tea.

3pm
Well, I had 2 hard-boiled eggs while I was destroying (peeling) them. This is the worst batch in a long time where I couldn't get the shells off easily. Oh, well. At least they are still edible and yummy!

9:30pm
Some quotes to end the day ...

"All living creatures and all plants derive their life from the sun. If it were not for the sun, there would be darkness and nothing could grow  the earth would be without life."
--Okute, TETON SIOUX

"If the Great Spirit wanted men to stay in one place He would make the world stand still; but He made it to always change..."
--Chief Flying Hawk, OGLALA SIOUX

"The earth was created by the assistance of the sun, and it should be left as it was... The country was made without lines of demarcation, and it is no man's business to divide it..."
--Chief Joseph, NEZ PERCE

He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad.
Rafael Sabatini
He was going to live forever, or die in the attempt.
Joseph Heller

Everyone sees what you appear to be, few experience what you really are.
Niccolò Machiavelli

Nobody ever figures out what life is all about, and it doesn't matter. Explore the world. Nearly everything is really interesting if you go into it deeply enough.
Richard P. Feynman

If you obey all of the rules, you miss all of the fun.
Katharine Hepburn

Laugh all you want and cry all you want and whistle at pretty men in the street and to hell with anybody who thinks you're a damned fool!
Armistead Maupin

May 23, 2013

7:30am
The bunny lives! He's much better this morning. The wound still looks awful, but it is trying to scab. The baby LOVES apple. Going to have to watch that as he gets older. Make sure he eats other things.

There is also rutabaga in the bowl. And, the greens is lettuce that has gone wild from last year's planting. Robin loves that stuff.

8:30am
It's actually chilly this morning. My fingers are cold. Gotta get ready for work.

3:15pm
Got home about an hour ago. Bought some fresh red dandelion greens, red lettuce, carrots with tops and a red turnip at the co-op for the bunnies. They are now chowing down on some. Baby is much perkier than this morning. When I got home the bunnies were snuggling together. I think the little guy might make it. I need to bathe his wound and put some coconut oil on it in a bit.

My mom wants to name him Urgo ... ugh.

5 pm
OK. I have to admit I made a BIG error! My mom was wondering why Robin had no 'balls' yet ... Well, I hadn't even looked since the day after we got Robin ... and, it wasn't really a thorough check ... so, I just looked ... um. Robin is a girl and so is the new baby ... I need a little embarrassed emoticon here ... so, have to rethink names for the baby. Luckily, Robin fits either gender. I can't believe I made that mistake, but it has been over 15 years since I had any rabbits ... oops.

Baby had a quick rinse and then coconut oil on the wound. Put her back in the cage and she immediately started eating some dandelion leaves. Tonight, they will be getting half a banana for their late snack before bed. Along with more greens, some nuts, turnip and their hay mix. That will last them until morning. They get at least 95% real food; very little 'rabbit kibble'.

9pm
Just felt an earthquake! The news is saying it was up in Susanville/Greenville area (near Mount Lassan and Mount Shasta,) which is about 180 miles north of here in the Northern Sierra mountain range. It was 5.7. I haven't felt an earthquake in several years. Luckily, it doesn't seem to have caused any major damage or injuries. Just shook things up a bit. Nikky was being a bit fussy in her crate just before it hit. She rarely makes a peep once she goes to bed.

May 22, 2013

2:30pm
My goodness. What an eventful day ... started off windy. It's still windy. So, I didn't get to ride my bike to work here in town. Took the car ... Got home about an hour ago. Driving up the lane, a little streak of white barely shot in front of my car. Luckily, I was going slow. I stopped to see what it was and saw a tiny little white bunny. I went the rest of the way up the street to my place and parked the car. I walked back to where I'd seen it, and it was huddled in someone's driveway ... directly across from a sleeping cat ... So, I carefully picked it up (he is very friendly, or it may be from weakness ...) and he didn't try to get away.  I asked some kids if they knew where he belonged; no one did. I walked up to the front of the park with him to the office to see if they knew of anyone missing a bunny. No one did, so they said I should keep it ... I planned to. (Also found that Laura was fired. She'd been manager here since a couple of months before we moved in. She'd been on some kind of medical leave the past 6 months; had come back about 2 weeks ago and now they let her go!! Really sucks. I liked her.)
Anyway, got the little guy home. Gave him a quick bath and checked for injuries. He has a tear along one hip. Once he's dry, I'll put some medicine on it. He is just skin and bones. He's only about a month old, by the size of him - he barely covers my hand!. He is Himalayan marked. He may be a Netherland Dwarf cross. He's in with Robin now. Robin has accepted him; Nikky has slobbered on him and is whining like crazy; Ezra is just bored by it all! Here's some pics.

Robin is huge now in comparison!! Amazing how much he's grown in a month!
I no sooner had the bunny in with Robin, than there was knocking on the door. I at first thought that maybe someone was coming to claim the bunny. But, it was someone who grew up with my mom and was looking for one of her brothers. This guy's sister lives across the way from us. So, my mom got to reminisce with him for a bit. Now to get the cigarette smell out of here ... it was all over him.

Any way ... So, now we have 2 male bunnies. I'll take more pics of the baby later and name him. I'm wanting Spencer or Ianto ... or Daniel. We'll see how much arguing my mom does about the name like she did with Robin's naming ...

He's so young and weak, he may not survive. But, at least he's got a chance now. He has eaten some hay and greens, so that's good.

3:30pm
Nikky is driving me nuts with the whining. Just like after we got Robin ...

Oh, I sold the Café Latte machine yesterday. Need to get it packaged to ship in the morning. Need to leave a bit early in the morning to do that as I have to meet Viola (my manager) at one of my stores in the morning. We're working together tomorrow in 3 stores. After that, I head to the farm for my raw milk for the week. I hope to make some kefir and yogurt this weekend.

6pm
Little bunny has started to eat, but hasn't found the water bottle yet. He likes apple, rutabaga and hay, so far. I don't think he was impressed by the carrot.
He now has Neosporin coating his wound (that's why it looks so shiny.) It looks like a cat may have tried to catch him recently and the claw tore his pelt almost to the muscle. It looks huge on such a tiny body. If he survives until tomorrow night, I think he will make it.

7:45pm
Fifteen minutes until the season finale of Criminal Minds!!! Can't wait! Looks to be a really good one. Two hours tonight. And, Sean is back! Can't believe it's only the second episode they have had him in all these years! You'd think they'd show Hotch's brother more than that! At least he's more present in fanfic! haha!

I think I want to name the baby Castiel ... earlier I was thinking of Spenser, Daniel or Ianto ... but, I think Castiel may fit him. And, my mom can't complain that she won't remember it like she does Ezra's name. She insists on calling him Izzie ... grrr. She can call the baby Cas. How hard is that? We'll see. I'm not settling on a name until I am sure he will live ... and as much as he is moving around now and acting perkier, I am more prone to believe he will.

10:15pm
Wow. Criminal Minds was really good. But, man, Mark Hamill sure hasn't aged well ...

May 18, 2013

1:30pm
Got some weeding done this morning. Then, came in and ate lunch before cleaning the doves' and Robin's cages. Robby ran around for a bit, playing with Ezrie while I cleaned his cage. I had Nikky out on the deck. But, then I let her in to see if she would behave with him and she was great. Here are some pics.

7pm
I'm still loving the radio stations that my RabbitTV has found for me. Going to watch another episode of My Favorite Martian later.

Having yummy lavender lemonade. I used the last of the lemons. Won't be able to buy more for a couple weeks ... too many damn bills to pay with my money because of my mom's SS cut. I usually buy most of the food with my money, but we're going to get really low on food backstock this month ... I really don't want too many of the bills to get behind.

May 17, 2013

3:45pm
This day started out crappy. I was so upset there was no way I was driving in Sacramento traffic today ... my mom is just too much sometimes. I wasn't awake ten minutes before she put me in a crying mood. That really hasn't happened in a long time ...
Plus, she broke the canvas lawn chair I just bought her the other day. That's 3 chairs in 2 weeks. I have no idea what she is doing to them ... I may be able to fix this one, though ...
Then, I get a message from the gas company saying that I better get my bill paid or it will be shut off! WTF! It is not late! I just got the bill and it's not due for 2 more weeks! I even looked on the website to make sure! Still need to call them back and complain. Just can't handle it today.
Then, I get myself calm enough to get things ready for work and leave at 9. I pick up the mail, and there is yet ANOTHER letter from the county about her medical. I was just there yesterday afternoon getting something copied for her worker. So, first I have to go to my 2 banks and try to scrape together enough cash to pay one of the credit card bills in full and on time. Barely enough to do that. I get there and the teller tries to tell me that I can't pay another company's credit card there!! What? I've been paying the bill there every month for a year! She kept trying to tell me that it wasn't their card. I kept telling her to look on the back of it where it says it is theirs! She finally entered the number and then she's all apologetic! Grrr. I hate Wells Fargo ...
Finally, I get to the county offices to find out about the letter my mom got and come to find that the reason her SS got cut is because she got put on some low-income senior program where her medical is free (which it was until 2 years ago ...) so they took the part of her SS that was the state low-income allowance for medical co-pay or some such thing. Some kind of racket, ya know ... grrr. Probably because they noticed she never goes to the doctor any more, so they are getting a freebie anyway. But, it sure makes it hard to pay the bills for the next few months until we get caught back up by the unexpected change in our budget.

Anyway, I was so stressed, I couldn't work today ...

I cried for about an hour when I got home.

But, then I decided to play with my new RabbitTV gadget and I think I am going to like it a lot! Been listening to some music videos while I worked on my Bonanza shop. Finally got it somewhat organized again. I deleted all the stuff that had been sold off-site or swapped. Next project is adjusting the text on a few things. But, I did get the Mr. Coffee listed: Mr. Coffee Café Latte Coffee and Expresso Machine - in original box

10pm
Just finished watching the very first episode of My Favorite Martian. That was fun. I used to love the show when I was little. Always loved how Martin 'talked' to the audience.

May 16, 2013

9:30pm
The past two days I've been dealing with a migraine, so didn't do much online other than some reading. Was much better today, so went to work.
I just took some pics of Robin and Ezra. Robin has grown sooooo much in the past month. He just learned to climb up onto the loveseat! I didn't see him do it, but caught him on there trying to get to Ezra.

May 11, 2013

11:30am
Today officially sucks. Got a letter from Social Security saying the state of California will no longer pay my mom's Medicare! So, next month, they are taking over $300 from her check and then every month after that $105! Next month is really going to hurt ... even with my extra work hours ...

I have no idea if this is a statewide thing or if it is because we 'make too much' money or what. Letter doesn't specify. If making $23,000/year between us is too much ... gah! Oh, well, we've lived on less before. A LOT less, so we'll handle it.

So, anyway ... I just got back from Home Depot. Bought 6 big bags of dirt. I hate buying dirt, but if I want to grow decent food I need it. It should fill at least 4 bins, the garbage can and a few pots. We'll be planting tomorrow! I also bought a new lavender bush and a packet of Seeds of Change mixed carrot seeds.

Just made a yummy mixed berry/banana smoothie for lunch. And, made a batch of strawberry/banana for tomorrow's lunch.

Time to clean cages ...

LandrethSeedCo ‏@LandrethSeedCo 7h

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9:30pm

Just put all the critters to bed. Took a bunch of pics. I need to take pics of Nikky tomorrow. She never seems to get camera time.

 Robin loves his flat of wheat grass. It needs to be 'mowed', though!
Ezra wants to go to bed in Robin's room! Robin chased him out.

The doves are roosting for the night.