Why Do I Think My Life Is Boring??..........

Wow, time is flying by.  2nd week of July already.  Well things have been happening over the past month or so.  I tend to fall into a funk every once in a while.....thinking "I'm soooo bored; same-ol-same ol every day".  Then I start to reflect, like when I'm planning this post.

Here's a quick (?) rundown.

Well, the realtor called at 1:00pm on Father's Day to say a gal wants to come see the house.  She'll be at the office at 3:00 and they'll head over.  Ok.  Father's Day.  Who looks at property on a holiday?  Whatever.

I planned a nice dinner; it was just BH and me.  Told the boys...no. no. no visitors this weekend; we just want a nice quiet weekend to ourselves.  So....steaks, baked potatoes, salad, garlic bread and raspberry cheesecake for dessert.  Plan to eat between 4 - 4:30 so we can enjoy the rest of the evening.

3:00....no show.  3:30....no show.  3:45 I start seasoning the steaks; wash the potatoes, salad is made.  4:00.....realtor calls and says the gal got delayed, but she's on her way; they'll be here at 4:30.  I'm doing a slow burn.  How should I delay the dinner?   4:30....no show.  5:00, they arrive.   Yadda, yadda, yadda......and it's over.  Oh,  the prospect LOVED the house and the property, asked about the bank, who to contact, what arrangements, blah, blah, blah.  And they left.

We ate dinner at 6:45.  Yeah.   And.....not one further word from the realtor.  Pffftttt.

A few weeks ago, we're going grocery shopping at the BIG store...25 miles away.  BH says....lets take the van.  OK; I was thinking the same thing.   Off we go.  5 miles down the road, I pulled over and stopped to let a logging 18-wheeler pass by.  Pulled back into the road and.....the speedometer starts jumping all over...it's reading 100mph!!  But we're not going any faster, thank God.  BH says "pull over; turn off the engine and start it again".  Ok.   Apply the brakes......no brakes!!   The ABS light is on, the speedometer is still dancing the hoochie-koo, and the brake pedal is as hard as cement; won't depress a hair.

So we coast another couple miles until the engine can be turned off safely.   Call the tow truck.   Long story somewhat shorter.....it took almost 2 weeks for our mechanic to figure out what the problem was, concluding with the computer.  New computer (actually, one from the junk yard....saved us about $400!!).   So, coming home from the repair shop, 1/2 mile down the road, the ABS light is on.  Sonofabitch!!  Pull in the driveway, turn off the engine, wait a few seconds, turn it back on....the light is off.  Whew. Must be the computer was re-configuring.

Last week, we're going to the grocery store....in the van.  You guessed it.  Pulling out the driveway; stop before pulling into the road.....the ABS light is on.   No. No. No.  We're not taking this anywhere....I don't trust it, I tell BH.   So....we pull back into the driveway and take the car.  The van has been sitting ever since.

In the meantime, the car has been making funny noises, acting weird.  It needs to go to the repair shop....it also needs shocks all around.  This will be many $$$$.  A big hit to the budget.  Next week we'll see about getting it into the shop.  I want to scream.

Here's some good news.....I finished the raspberry vest.....turned out very nice, despite being ripped 4 or 5 times.  AND  the Aran sweater is done!!!  I can't believe how great it turned out....especially since the pattern was for a child's sweater.  I had to tweak the stitches, measurements and patterning a few (HAHAHAHA!) times.  But it's done.  There was enough dyed yarn to finish it (whew!).  And it fits beautifully!   And the buttons for it....wait till you see the buttons!!  Hope to post the pictures next week.  Right now it's blocked and drying.  Ohhh, I can't wait till Fall to wear it....everywhere!!

I started spinning the wool for another Aran sweater.  This one for my brother, who has been asking me for the past year if I could make him one.  "Hey, could you make me an Irish sweater like the one you made for Pop?"....."ehhh....sure."  "How much would you charge to make me an Irish sweater?"......."ehhh.....you don't have  THAT much money!"  
"How long would it take to make me an Irish sweater?"........"ehhhhh.....about 2 years".     "REALLY??!!" ....."ehhh....you don't understand; there's a lot involved to spinning and preparing yarn for knitting".

Well, anyway, so the guilt has gotten the better of me.  Over the winter, I purchased more of the wool for the purpose of his sweater.  Then I start thinking.....maybe I should just buy the acrylic yarn and get it done.  For one thing, I can see the wool sweater being thrown in the washer and dryer.  Neither he nor the wife have any concept of "WOOL".   Butttttt.......the sweater  will be made of wool; spun, plied and knitted by his sister and will come with a forceful warning....."DO NOT WASH THIS SWEATER; GIVE IT TO ME; I WILL WASH IT FOR YOU.  IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO IT, I WILL NEVER SPEAK TO YOU AGAIN!  DON'T EVER CALL ME AGAIN!"  I'm thinking of having the clothing label made with that warning.

He's a good guy, my brother.  Always been there for me; always there for our sons when they need help.  He's also in an Irish band, so I can't wait to hear what the other fellas say about his sweater.  There are 6 bobbins of plied yarn so far.  Another thing....this will be no quick and easy task.....my brother is 6'2" and weighs about 270#s.  A big beer gut, to boot.   Why, yes.  That would be Irish beer.  This is going to take about 8#s of wool.  I'm definitely going to have to buy more.

 This weekend both our boys from the 'burbs are coming up to visit.  BH's birthday was Wednesday.  One kid is bringing steaks and the trout he caught; he'll cook dinner tonight.  Tomorrow is my turn.  More on that later.

So we've got the new charcoal BBQ grill all put together; used it last week when other son who lives closer was here.  And we finally managed to get the screen house up, as we had a few days reprieve from the constant rain.  Now.....just to get out there and actually use it!   Hopefully this weekend....but the weather report says......rain off and on.   I think there are more mosquitoes in Minnesota than people right about now.

And the humidity has been a killer.  I suspect the electric bill will be 3 digits this month.  Just can't catch a break.  I really gotta get outside and take care of the flower beds.  Noticed that the marigolds in the wheelbarrow look like they're dying.  No....it's just that there's soooo many  dead ones.  Really need to dead-head them.  But this weekend is calling for......rain.   More rain = more mosquitoes.  If Einstein were alive and living in Minnesota today, I'm sure he could come up with a mind-blowing equation for this!

Wishing you all sunny skies, beautiful temperatures and pleasant days!