A Three Hour Tour...

Name that tune!

OK, the point of this has nothing to do with the theme song to Gilligan's Island.  :)

Thursday when I got home, there was a hanger on the front door from the electric company.  We were dealing with Frasier and frankly, the electric company was the last thing I was concerned with at that point in time.  They said that they needed to get into my yard for something and I did call the number to arrange them to come out today when Otter could be here, but other than that I didn't have any interest in anything they needed.  They were supposed to be out here at 8:00 a.m. today.  They were needing to get to just a small part of my yard, to dig up an area and re-run some cable - or maybe run in new cable to either the next door neighbor or one of the neighbors behind us.  Or at least that is what it sounded like on the very bad connection I had when I called the number on the door hanger.  Because of a past issue with them leaving the gate open and Maggie getting out, we do not let anyone have access to our yard unless we are here at the time.  And they know it!

Otter got here about 7:00 this morning, she dozed on the couch until I woke her up at 7:30 to let her know I was leaving.  She called me about 8:10 or so to let me know that they were here and that she'd blocked Maggie Moo in.  Otter also mentioned that it took a while to convince him that yes, she is an adult and could let him in the yard!  I told her she should just get her driver's license and glue it to her forehead!  She called me back shortly after that to let me know that the (one and only) guy on the digger had come to the door to tell her that he'd cut the phone line accidentally.  He told her that he would call the phone company himself.  About 11:30, he was still digging and that's when I decided I'd better head on home.  I ran by Sonic to get lunch for Otter, and I was home just as the digger operator was walking back to his truck.  He said that he had called the phone company and told them that the homeowner was livid, so they'd better get out here on the double.  Which is funny, because most of the time I have to deal with the phone company I am livid! :)  I told him that, and why, and also that the joke about Redhead tempers (especially on Redhead Women) is not exactly a lie.

I asked him how many of my crepe myrtles they were going to have to replace and he said that he'd made sure to dig the trench well out of range of them.  He said he knew how mad his mama would be at her plants being destroyed, so he always tries to avoid them if it's at all possible.  He also said that they will lay strips of sod over any exposed dirt areas when they are through.

Otter hung around for a while so we could visit, and she could also spend a little more time with a certain beaglebrat.  She gave the dog a short walk to visit the grass in the front yard, then she headed home after that.  The telephone company crew showed up somewhere in that time frame, and so did about 3 other electric company employees.  I let Maggie out later on, she wasn't really sure about going out in the yard with all those people out there - which is unusual for her, but she's still obviously adjusting to being an Only Dog.  The 2nd time I got her out there, she was much more relaxed and did what she was supposed to do.  I talked to the crew at that point and they were working pretty steadily.  In fact, the only time that they weren't working was when they went on their lunch break.  When Bill got home, he went out to talk to them and they were pretty much done by that point - at least three of them were using shovels to cover the trench back up by hand.  It turns out that the man on the digger was actually the supervisor, and he was working along side the crew which is unusual.  They didn't quite get finished, there is one spot in the corner where they have to do something else involving cables and they will come out tomorrow.  I set up a specific time so that I can be here.

The three hour estimate lasted from 8:10 this morning until shortly before 5:00 this afternoon!

Does this look like a small spot in the corner of the yard to you?  It sure doesn't to me!

The pictures were all taken from inside the dining room and living room windows.

I did upload my pictures of Frasier from last Thursday, I took them when I got home about 3:15 before the vet visit.  I don't think I'm going to post them.  They are not bad, he looks happy in a couple of them but they are very hard for me to look at still.  In most of them, I can tell that he was not feeling 100%.  I may eventually change my mind, but not right now.  We're still adjusting ourselves and it's slowly getting better, but he was very much part of the family and it's been tough.

The hummingbirds are here!  Bill saw two of them this afternoon, one flew out of the trellis where the honeysuckle is and the other one was flying up into the tree at the same time.  It's rainy and cool, so I was kind of surprised that they were here already but I'm happy that they are.

This also makes us happy!  I took this a few days ago, there are even more buds and blooms now.  The scent is so strong, it's almost intoxicating.

Is it Still April?

April is a pretty bad month, too many bad things happen.  Not just to us, some are national or local tragedies but there are also family things.  Today in 2001 is when we lost Mom, we lost our puppy last week, there have been bad tornadic outbreaks in April in the past, Waco, Oklahoma City...

In other words, I Do Not Like April!

Maggie is still mopey but she is better.  I had to go to work Friday, so we had to leave her by herself.  I put her out in the garage like normal, but I gave her several milkbones instead of the usual one she gets in the morning.  She was very clingy and I spent a lot of time petting her before I had to leave.  She was ok when Bill got home, but he said she was quieter than normal and not playful like she usually is.  We took her for a short walk yesterday afternoon, I think she enjoyed it.  Now that the area behind us is all built up, there are no grassy areas so we now have to carry a plastic bag to pick up anything she may leave!  While on the walk, there was what can only be described as a swarm of little girls playing in the front yard of one house.  I'm not sure who was more excited, the dog or the girls!  Talk about a happy dog, I think every single one of them had to hug Maggie.  Which Maggie loved, by the way.  Yesterday morning, we woke up at 5:30 when Maggie was making whining noises at the baby gate that keeps her from coming into our room - we moved it down the hall from where it was because it was at the top end of the hallway.  We had to have it at the top end of the hall because Frasier would have spent all night standing at the block if it was close to our room in hopes of making enough noise to wake me up.  Maggie wasn't making a lot of noise, but it was about 30 minutes later than she is used to eating.  Bill got up and fed her and he stayed up.  I didn't get up for about another hour.  It was strange walking into the living room because Frasier would always greet me.

Today, I took Maggie with me when I went to buy something at Otter's store.  They allow dogs in the store as long as they don't make a mess.  Maggie had never been there before, the first part of the drive goes right by the vet's and she knows that particular direction.  She perked up once she realized we were not turning in!  She seemed to enjoy her shopping experience, especially when all the males who work there melted as soon as they saw her!  She was happy to see Otter for a few minutes.  I also went to my office, I wanted to take the trash cans out for pick up tomorrow and Maggie Moo went with me then too.  She was very interested in the spot in the back seat where Frasier usually sat when we took him anywhere.  She sniffed it quite a bit, then she went to the other side of the back seat and curled up looking sad.  After a minute, she came back up to the front seat where she usually sits and sat there for the rest of the trip.  She was happy to get home, I couldn't tell for sure but she might have looked for him when we came in the door.  I gave her a belly rub and petted her for a while, I saw the first puppy smile and got the first puppy purr that she's done in several days.  She's still pretty clingy but she is better.  Me too, although slowly.

We were pretty sure that the time was coming this time last week, but we weren't expecting it to be quite that soon.  But last Wednesday when Bill let them in when he got home, Frasier went into the living room and laid down.  And he didn't get back up, at all.  Not even for a treat.  I cooked some chicken breast and he wanted to, but it was obvious that he was having a lot of stiffness so I actually brought it to him in the living room and gave him his treat from my hand.  Otter had been over to do laundry and she was aware of it, she was part of the discussion we had.  I covered him with blanket and he seemed to like the warmth.  I had called the vet to order more anti-inflammatory medication and was going to pick it up Thursday after work.  Thursday morning, I was afraid that I would find him gone overnight so Bill actually was the one who checked on him first.  He was still with us, but he hadn't moved.  Maggie was curled up with him and she did not want to leave his side.  She did leave for food, but he didn't want to get up.  We got him to a standing position carefully and he was able to go outside, but he didn't want to eat.  I got him to eat a few bites from my hand and we pretty much knew at that point that it was time.  He wouldn't eat much, I soaked a few bites of bread in raw egg and he liked that.  Then I gave him another egg which he really seemed to enjoy.  He did not want his morning milk bone, but he ate a few of the smaller treats that Maggie usually gets.  He found a spot in the dog yard that he liked and he laid down.  He refused to get up, so I got him a pain pill and fed it to him in a bite of cheese.  He had gotten water when he first got up and he was able to relieve himself but he was pretty shaky.  Bill suggested I see about taking him for a walk when I got home, but we also decided to call the vet and make a late appointment to at least get him looked at but we knew what we were probably going to have to do.

It was not a good day at work on Thursday.  I left 30 minutes early and Otter got off about 15 minutes early.  When I got home, he was up and moving around but not well.  He was also acting for the first time like he was hurting.  I took both dogs out to the back yard and he wandered around for a few minutes, then he was ready to come in.  He gave Maggie a quick groom and then he sat down and stayed there.  Bill and Otter got here and we basically just spent the next 45 minutes petting him and talking to him.  I took several pictures of him but I haven't uploaded them yet.  Otter was able to get Maggie out without getting Frasier's attention.  He was happy to see his leash and we got him up, he was able to get to the door and out but it was obviously very difficult for him.  We had to lift him into the car and out of it when we got to the vet.  He had lost a little weight since the last time I took him in, a few weeks back.  The vet examined him and gave him several treats.  He said that we could try sterioids, but we would probably be looking at maybe 6 months (probably less) and that it might not work - he really didn't think it would work, actually.  He could also tell that the dog was hurting.  We spent about 30 or 40 minutes with him, just loving him.  And then we did what was the best thing for him, and let him go.  The vet uses an iv to anesthetize them before the final shot, so they are as pain-free and relaxed as possible.  So we feel ok about the process.

I had one of the worst headaches of my life Thursday night, it was not a migraine but it was on that level and I'm sure it was stress and grief.  I went to bed before 9:00 and I think I was awake for at least an hour.  I woke up at 2:00 a.m. Friday morning and was unable to go back to sleep.  Friday was hard but it was not as hard as Thursday because it was already done and I know without a doubt that we did everything we possibly could for him.  We know he had a good life with us, much better than he had with the rescue group that we got him from.  We know he was at least 13, but he could well have been a year or two older.  We wish that we'd been able to get him when he was younger, but we had 9 great years with him.  He was a great dog and there will never be another one like him.

We always had a carpet piece in the garage for the dogs to snooze on, but it eventually got grody and I threw it away.  I had an old bath mat which had been in the laundry room and I put it out there for them when we tossed the carpet piece.  Frasier had been spending more and more time on the mat and it was very dirty.  He was still in control of his bodily functions, but there were a few times when he maybe wasn't able to get up as quickly as he used to and it got dribbled on a few times.  Which made Maggie Moo think it was ok to leak there!  I tossed it out a few days before we realized it was time with Frasier and I hadn't had time to get anything to replace it yet but I took their blankets out there for them.  I bought a bath mat for the guest bathroom when I redecorated it after Otter moved out, but I never really liked it.  It's kind of like a covered foam piece and it seemed to get dirty just from the air!  I washed it this morning and put it out in the garage for Maggie.  It's soft and I think she'll like it.  I cleaned up the garage floor several days ago, before Frasier, and I got the spray cleaner out to take care of any spots that might have a smell to make the dogs go back there.  There were no more accidents after that and I'm hoping that it's enough.  I'll get another bath mat for the guest bathroom, hopefully I can find one that I actually like this time!

Otter will be over here in the morning, the electric company is doing something in the neighborhood and may need to get into our yard.  They are the specific reason that we do not allow anyone to work in the yard at all unless there is someone here.  The last time we did allow it, they let Maggie Moo out and we were really lucky that a neighbor happened to see her and got her before she wandered too far.

We went to Goldie's for lunch today and had hamburgers.  They have really good burgers.  We walked over to the store our booth is at and Bill got 3 pachinko machines to bring home.  He also downsized the booth to a smaller size.  We were going to rearrange the garage a bit, which it does need, but neither of us were in the mood to do that so it's been put off for a few days.  Bill mowed the yard this morning.  We've mostly been hanging around the house getting stuff done, except for the booth and lunch trip and when Maggie and I were out this morning.  We're going to be taking Maggie on more walks than we've been doing lately, the weather was an issue and then Frasier's arthritis issues kept us from walking them much.  This week the weather should be mostly good, and we're going to get back to a regular walk schedule.

Blah Friday

Today has been an exceptionally hard day.  I went to bed before 9:00 last night with one of the worst headaches I've ever had, stress related I'm sure.  I think I was awake for at least an hour before I managed to get to sleep.  I woke up at 2:00 and never could go back to bed, although I think I was starting to doze off right before the alarm went off at 5:00.

It's been a long day and a fairly horrible week.  I'm glad that they are both over.

I know we did the right thing yesterday, but it's still been tough.

I think I'm going to stay home tomorrow and play with the beagle.

Frasier

We let Frasier go today.

It was time.  He was hurting and it was only going to get worse.

He was without a doubt the best dog I have ever have and I will miss him for a very long time.

At Least Monday is Over

But it's not Friday yet.  Unfortunately.

Bill sanded the switc hplate down to the wood, the one I threw out and then rescued from the trash.  I painted it again, with the white basecoat and when the paint is dry I'll cover it with modge-podge glue and put the scrapbook paper on it that I found.  It's supposed to be small doily-ish patterns and I like it.  After the modge-podge is dry, then I'll apply a sheet of clear mylar.  Then the fun begins!  The part where I kept messing up.  Cutting the holes out and cutting it around the edges!  After all that's done, I'm going to hit the painted (but unpapered) sides with clear sealer and then they just have to dry.  Then I can actually put them on the wall.

I'm not as tired today, but I do still have Redhead Anemia issues.  Not as bad, it's just "there."

I'm also having more allergy issues this afternoon, but that generally happens after I pull weeds in the rock garden.  Literally, IN the rock garden for part of it.  And around the edges.  I found a frog in the rock garden.  Actually, I almost picked "him" up with a bunch of weeds!  Did you know that frogs can give dirty looks?  This one did, anyway!  :)  He was not a huge frog, but I think he was still fairly young.  He hopped away from me, to the other side of the rock garden and probably is happily hiding in the honeysuckle now.  He might be the one I've been hearing the last few nights.

I've also heard tree frogs lately.  Especially when it rains.  I haven't seen them yet this spring, but they are obviously here already.

No sign of hummingbirds yet, but I put out two feeders Sunday.  I thought I might have seen one zipping by but it was hard to tell.  It's still a little early though.  But sometimes they arrive early, and just because I haven't seen them does not mean that they aren't here yet.

Fraiser is a little creaky today.  He and Maggie Moo were happy to go out in the back yard with me.  While I was pulling weeds, Maggie Moo was sitting on her behind and staring at the ground.  After a minutes, she reached down and pulled a large beetle grub out of the dirt.  Then she ate it!  Frasier was walking around like he does, looking for spots to water.  But then I noticed he was laying down in a grassy spot and when I called him to come in, he didn't want to get up at first.  He seemed to be more than a little stiff, but he did get up and came inside.  Then he went out the dog doors and to their yard.  He laid down in his usual spot, and I took an anti-inflammatory to him.  He hasn't needed them lately, but it's been cool and damp which seems to affect him  I called the vet and ordered a refill.  I still had one pill left for him, but I also had some from Maggie Moo's bladder infection she had last fall and the vet said that I can use them.  They are still within a safe date, they are the same dose but were cut in half for her.  I was going to take the brush to Frasier while we were outside, but that will wait a day or two.  Mostly because of my allergies, I didn't want to stay outside any longer than I had to.  He love the brushing, and so does Maggie Moo but she's not long haired so it's just a fun experience for her.  At the moment, they are both in the living room and both of them are snoozing.  Frasier is probably snoozing because of the medication, but Maggie Moo is just napping because it's what beagles do best, after all!

Lately...

It's been insane around here lately.  I spent most of last week dealing with an allergy attack that left me with hardly any voice and I was home most of the last half of last week.

I painted and decorated a light switch cover and 4 outlet covers for my craft room.  Then I tossed them in the donate pile, bought more and started over.  And over again!  Last night, I gave up and tossed all of them but then I got them out of the trash and looked at them again.  3 of the outlet covers hadn't been finished up and were easy to complete, but one outlet and the switchplate will have to be re-done.  It's getting frustrating!  But I know better than to work on something that takes attention when I'm not feeling well, and I wasn't last week.

I am also dealing with a pretty good case of Redhead Anemia.  I love being a redhead, but there are times...

One good thing from last week:  Otter is now the owner of a silver 2002 Chevy Impala!  She got her insurance taken care of and we took the car off of our policy, she also went to the Tag Agency and we got the title switched to her name.  Because it was a family member transfer, she just had to pay a very small transfer fee and not the normal taxes, etc. that go along with titling a car.  We "gifted" her the part of our insurance policy that covered that car and she was able to take over payments on the policy without having to pay a month ahead or anything else.  We told her that we would wash the car, vacuum it out and also fill the tank when she officially got it but it's been raining pretty often so the washing and vacuuming will be done later on.  She'd put gas in it right before the transfer, so we told her we would fill it up the next time but Younger Boss wants to buy her a tank of gas to celebrate so he'll get the next fill-up and we'll get the one after that.  Either way, she's not complaining! :)

In other news, the dogs are still lazy.

168

20 Years

Neigh

I started trying to lose my voice yesterday.  I have had a little congestion and allergy symptoms for the last couple of days, but yesterday afternoon my voice got kind of wonky.  I also have had a sore throat, not horrible but still painful.  I woke up this morning with hardly any voice at all so I stayed home.  I'm not feeling 100% but my voice is a little better this evening.  Not a lot better, just better.

Otter came over this afternoon, she didn't have a lot of laundry but she wanted to get it done while she could.  Maggie Moo was overjoyed to see her, as usual.  Frasier was very affectionate towards her, he's a sweet-natured dog and loves Otter but he was much more interested in getting her attention today than he usually is.

Frasier was a little clingy this morning and I didn't think he was in pain, but I thought he was a little uncomfortable so I gave him an anti-inflammatory.  I've been giving them to him for the last couple of days again, he seems to need them when it's cold and/or rainy.  Which it's been the last few days.  They don't make him quite as sleepy and stoned as the pain pills seem to, but they do make him a little drowsy.  He spent the next few hours snoozing at my feet, I put a little bit of my afghan over him and he wiggled until he was underneath most of it - I think he likes the warmth over his arthritic hips.

I'll decide in the morning about work tomorrow.  My throat is getting more sore this evening but I did talk more than I intended to today, when Otter was over.  She had several things she needed to talk about and we had a pretty nice visit - when she could actually hear me, that is!  She and J are working on their cosplay and they have some really good ideas.

OK, back to my oj and maybe a snack.

After 22 Years...

You would think I would have learned by now.

As soon as I declare a season change, especially if it's changing from Winter to Spring, it gets cold again!  And wet, it's been raining since sometime last night and we turned the heater back on.

I'm not switching quilts again, however!

The benefit to the cooler weather is that all the wicked little stingy-ended bugs are staying on their nests and it's easier to spray them.  Bill killed three nests tonight, all on the house and all near doors.  Two were yellow jackets and one was a wasp.  Indications are that it's going to be a bad year for the evil things.

(This one is borderline on what I usually post as far as language goes, but the one non-family friendly word is actually slang and is not quite impolite enough to worry about it.  Besides, it pretty much all true!)

Two of my favorites, pitties and blues!  And Bruno has good taste, bluebonnets smell heavenly.  He's a pretty smart puppy, obviously.

This little goofball, on the other hand...  When I got home, she was out in the garage.  Behind the tall boxes that block them off from parts of the garage we don't want them in.  And she was stuck!  Stuck as in lost, because she couldn't figure out how to get out - by going back the way she came!  As in back around the end of the shelf and back up to the front of the garage where she'd pushed a box out of the way.  Goofy little thing, that's for sure.  Sweet but still a goofball!

Switched

It is officially Spring for us today.  I know it's been Spring for a few weeks now, but it's not official for us (me mostly) until this:

gets taken off the bed and replaced with this:

(I can't find an actual picture of the camo quilt on the bed, although I know I have at least one and have posted it before.)

The other picture choice for the camo quilt was this one:

Otter had on purple socks that day, otherwise she really would be invisible like the sign she's holding up says!

Otter came over yesterday for a short visit - she did laundry and we went to Hobby Lobby.  But she wasn't wearing camo so we could see her!  :)

Froggy, I didn't see your comment on the bluebonnet post until I signed in to post this.  Blogger is supposed to tell me when there is a comment, and sometimes it actually does.  Just not this time.

I really don't have a lot to talk about today, but Froggy will get on me if I don't post something. :)

Renewed

My TEXAN soul has been renewed.

(Taken this morning, April 8, 2015.  In my front yard).

It's Been 20 Years

Otter was diagnosed with asthma the Christmas before her 4th birthday.  Today, it's 20 years later (short a few months but still 20 years.)  Today was her annual lung recheck at the allergist/asthma specialists office.  This is the 3rd doctor she's seen for it.  The first one diagnosed the asthma - although we already knew what it was and her then-pediatrician only sent us to the specialist to shut me up because he insisted that Otter was fine and there was no trace of asthma.  The specialist said she was on the verge of pneumonia and basically he said that a blind monkey could have seen that she had asthma - a fact I took great pleasure in telling the pediatrician!  Otter was really in a bad situation, her asthma was very bad and it took us a long time to get her to a stable place.

There were a few times when we thought it was possible that we would lose her.  We had many sleepless nights.

We had an insurance change and that meant a new doctor.  We were able to start using one of the better known specialists in Tulsa, he was a friend of The Teenager and we had originally wanted to use him but he wasn't on the insurance plan we had when she was diagnosed.  But the doctor that first diagnosed her was good and we were happy with him.  The 2nd specialist is the one who also pointed out how much her scoliosis was worsening (something else the idiot pediatrician refused to face and told me that it was not ever going to be anything to worry about!) and he's the reason she was referred to an orthopedic specialist.  She took a few years of gymnastics and had some specialize exercises, which strengthened her upper body muscles enough and the scoliosis progress was halted and it is not an issue now - although it would have been, and possibly it would have been very severe given how fast it was progressing when she was so young.  The 2nd asthma specialist suggested we consider allergy testing and we eventually did. She had about 4 years of allergy shots through his office and she responded very well to them.  Eventually, she was able to stop the daily nebulizer treatments.  A nebulizer essentially turns liquid medicines into a mist that can be inhaled.  She was having 3 or 4 treatments per day at one point.

Then specialist # 2 retired.  He referred her to the doctor she's seen for the last few years.  She had been improving but then the karate got to a really hard part in the lessons and we realized that her asthma had also become exercise induced.  She was able to get the first level Black Belt but she never could go any further because she literally could not breathe.  There was one specific class that resulted in her nearly needing to be run to the ER because she was taking in so little oxygen - grey lips and blue nail beds are not indications of good things!  At that point, she was seeing # 3 twice a year and on a couple of different inhalers.  Once she quit karate, she made a rapid improvement and was able to start seeing him once a year.  That's what it's been for the last few years.  She had a daily inhaler which she has been using for 3 or 4 years with nothing else needed unless she had a cold or bad allergies, and then just seeing her doctor in the spring to follow up.

But all that ended today.

Otter's asthma has improved to the point that she is as close to not having it as is it is possible to be.  

It's incurable, but it can go into remission and basically go to sleep.

Otter's asthma has done even better than going to sleep.  It's very nearly turned itself to OFF.

She is off all medication, she hasn't used her daily inhaler for the last few months because she basically forgot it.  Her peak flow readings were almost off the charts today.  He said that progress like hers is almost unheard of.  As in SHE IS DONE WITH IT.  It's still in her system and she might have the occasional issue with it, such as if she has a cold or gets the flu.  But even when she's had a cold or when she had the flu a couple of years ago, she had hardly any asthma at all.  That's probably what she can expect in the future.  Little to none.

Yes, we do believe in Miracles.  And we have had one.

Easter Sunday 2015

Happy Easter!  It's been a wet one for us.  Church was enjoyable, it was a really nice change to have a sermon that actually dealt with the specific holiday and didn't feel like just another not very important day.  We really enjoyed it.

We went to Church at 8:00 a.m. and got a little wet, it was raining pretty good when we got up and it rained until early afternoon.  Just in time for Bill to get the grill out and get started on the steaks we had tonight.  He also grilled lemon spiced chicken, fajita chicken and barbequed chicken.  Along with 6 beef hamburger patties.  I won't have to do a lot of cooking this week, that's for sure.  :)

Last Friday's blog entry was done on my lunch hour and I hadn't heard back from the insurance company yet.  I finally called them about 2:15 and eventually managed to get connected to an actual person.  And she spent the next 40 minutes telling me that my account had been "credited" and pretending that she couldn't understand when I asked her exactly what "credited" meant (although I knew, but I wanted her to tell me) and then she acted like she just couldn't understand what I meant when I told her that I wanted the money returned to me ASAP.  I absolutely hate people who pretend ignorance and she knows that now.  Let's just say it was a M.A.J.O.R. *RHTW moment!  In fact, *RHTW was out of the fence and did all the talking.  The upshot is that they wanted to keep the 2nd payment and apply it to May, which is what "credited" meant and I basically told them that this was there one and only strike, that the next screw up on their part might well mean that we'd no longer be there customers.  I told her flat-out that I had cancelled the automatic withdraw for payments because I didn't trust them to a) do their job and b) do it right.  After putting me on hold for a very long time, and obviously sounding like she did it on purpose in hopes that I would hang up based on how she came back to the phone, she finally admitted that the money would be returned to me - but it took me telling her (not threatening them or bluffing them, because I would have done it) that if it was not back in my hands by the 15th I would tell the IRS to call them and ask them where the income tax money went since that is what was in the savings account.  They claim that they can not refund the money back to my account except by check - and she told me that it was going out right then, to expect it by 7 business days.  It was well after 3:00 when I got off the phone.  I had a couple of errands after work and I was just about to walk out of the post office when the person I spoke to Thursday evening called me back - she was not who I spoke to Friday afternoon, and I told her that I appreciated her calling me back and also what I'd been told by the other c/s rep that afternoon.  And I told her also that I'd tell the IRS to call them if I don't have the premium returned to me by the promised date.  I know the IRS wouldn't really care, they would still expect me to pay them but I wanted to let the insurance company know how serious we are about this.

The cable company got a touch of *RHTW as well.  The line burying crew still hadn't shown up and I called them in the afternoon - they were running behind, which is what I was told.  But they called me when I was in the grocery store after the post office and wanted to know if it was ok if they didn't come out until Saturday - NO.  I told their rep that Bill had taken the day off from work and had been home waiting all day, that there was no excuse accepable.  I gave her Bill's cell phone number and she said she would make sure the crew got there right away.  I got home about 5:00 and the crew consisting of exactly ONE person was just getting there.  He got a lot done but he ran out of time and asked if he could come back Saturday morning to finish, which was ok with us.  He did exactly what he said, came back on Saturday and finished up.

Otter came over after work today and brought her laundry.  She came for Easter dinner, but the laundry basket generally comes to visit my washing machine once a week anyway.  :)  Her laundry wasn't quite dry but she was tired, she had one of those exhausting days today, so I took her home when she was ready (Bill's going to keep her car and see about a few things on it tomorrow) and I'll take her laundry to her tomorrow when I get her to take her to the allergist for her annual lung/asthma recheck.  She wants me to go with her and we're also going to see about getting her eyes examined and then she'll probably need new glasses.  She wants new ones anyway, not Oakley brand this time because their earpieces are basically straight and slide right off.  She will probably decide not to have her eyes dilated since they can take the retina photographs now.  We are going to have lunch at a specific steak house that we don't get to very often and we might go to our favorite garden store to see about a few pepper plants.

*RHTW:  Whatever you do, do not make Her mad!  She will make you regret it.

Still Here!

No, I have not fallen off the side of the Earth.  It's just been a chaotic week.  I'm not really sure that it's not actually still Monday, it's been that kind of a week.

At the moment, I am arguing with our new insurance company.  They took out the April premium like they were supposed to, after we signed up last Sunday.  I spent Monday through yesterday trying to get my online access set up and they finally got that figured out for me last night.  I was finally able to print temporary id cards in case we need to use the insurance before the actual id cards come.

 - 

Then I discovered that they took out ANOTHER premium for April yesterday.  Which has caused all sorts of issues with my bank.  I had a "nice" talk with the insurance rep on the phone at 9:30 last night.  Not quite at *RHTW level, but very close to it.  She (the rep) was going to hand-carry the file to the correct department to get them to refund us immediately, as opposed to them sending a check to us in a few days.  She is supposed to call me this afternoon with the status on that.  At which time I'm going to tell her that they also owe me for the fees my bank charged me because the checking account didn't have enough funds to cover their premium - we had enough in the savings account so that the bank was able to transfer and nothing bounced, but the bank still charges us for that.

I also had a very long conversation with the benefits department because I keep getting a different story on what prescription benefit we have.  I think that's finally figured out.  Then I had to talk to them about some other issues, all involving benefits and what exactly we have.

Then I was transferred to the department that handles the premiums and cancelled the auto pay.  I'll call them each month and make the payment, they've already had there one and only chance with us on that.  I don't do "three strikes and you're out" on most things.

I'm not naming names, but they have a color and a Christian symbol in their name.

Also happening today is the cable company coming out to bury the internet cable, which has been strewn across the back yard for several weeks.  They were scheduled to be out there today, and they said that it would probably be in the morning.  Bill took the day off from work for this.  At about 11:00 or so, he called me because they still weren't there.  I called the cable company and had about a half-hour conversation with the tech department.  That isn't even the correct department, but it's who I finally was transferred to.  The tech guy went "over and above" as far as I'm concerned, he did everything he could to find someone to talk to for me and then he was told it would be "maybe tomorrow."  By this point, *RHTW was attempting to break down the fence.  (She's not out of the gate yet, but She's possibly going to be breaking through when the insurance company calls me back.)  Anyway, I told him that Bill had taken the day off for this and that we'd already been waiting weeks.  He made another call and finally got the crew that is actually burying lines today.  They promised that it would be today, I'm not sure what he told them but I don't think he was too polite to them.

I'm just glad it's finally Friday.

*RHTW.  Run for the hills if She gets loose!