Cop Car's Beat

Mini Disaster

Let's set the scene:  Lazy Sunday afternoon, I had just finished marking the last of the 50 questions in the final exam on a FEMA course and was mentally preparing to go to the computer to input my answers on the FEMA web site.  Enter:  Hunky Husband, running up the stairs from the basement yelping, "Water.  There is water everywhere!"  I quickly put down my paperwork and followed him into his (upstairs) bathroom.  It was inundated with about 3/4" of water.  Water (fortunately, clear water) was overflowing the commode, had pooled on the floor, and was running down the furnace ducting--in addition to seeping under and around every bit of finish, wood trim.

I retrieved the "plumber's helper" and, while HH un-plugged the plumbing and un-stuck the float in the reservoir (most "disasters" are caused, as was the case here, by a double failure in a system), I started throwing arm loads of towels and sheets into the puddle.  When I had built a dam around the furnace duct to stop the water's going down it, I reminded HH that we had a wet vacuum in the shop--which he promptly retrieved.  We vacuumed and mopped for another 10-15 minutes.  Hardest was to soak up the water from the carpeting in HH's bedroom and in the hallway.  Of course, the padding was also soaked.  Then, we went down to the basement bathroom that sits under HH's bathroom. 

Water was pouring from it's ceiling-mounted furnace outlet and had flooded the floor--soaking out into the carpeting of the hallway.  We got a ladder and screwdriver to remove the grating from the duct and started another mop-up operation. 

Somewhere during this frenzy, I realized that water had come down the clothes chute that terminates in my kiln room--next to the bathroom.  Water had run into the shelves of stained glass and kiln accessories underneath the chute.  When we had vacuumed and mopped up the downstairs bathroom, the end of the hallway, and around the clothes chute, we set up fans to help further dry out the two bathrooms and the surrounding carpeting.  Then we sat in the living room, he with a glass of wine, I with a bottle of cranberry drink, to recuperate.  (When I told HH that we had now had our exercise for the day, he gave me a dour look and reminded me that he had run 4 miles that morning--no mean feat with the icy streets/sidewalks in our town.)

OMG!  I had not checked my sewing room--next door, on the other side of the basement bathroom!  Down, I flew.  Not a moment too soon.  Water had found its way to the fluorescent light fixtures in the closet and at one end of the room--the end where my sewing machine sits on its desk and where my fabrics hang/reside in bins--and proceeded to drip down onto whatever it found, below.  Water had also found its way under the wood finish trim to soak the carpeting around the edges.  Short version:  I will need to re-upholster my sewing chair (which I had just done a year or two ago), wash all of my quilting fabrics (and, worse, iron all of them).  The carpeting was soaked in about 1/4 of the room.  Oh, me.  Just shoot me now! 

We are booked up for this entire week (I am double-booked on Wednesday--but--will go to Topeka for a meeting, that day.)  As soon as I get over this week's activities, I need to get in to see my physician (moderate-to-severe discomfort in my back) and get a plumber out to fix a problem with my bathroom sink (he couldn't tell where it was leaking when I had him out a few months ago.  Since then, I have figured out that the leak is in the fitting just above the under-sink cutoff valve and I have (mostly) been keeping the valve turned "off". If I forget to turn off the valve, I have a very minor flood in my own bathroom!)  We have, at least, got all of the towels and sheets washed and dried! 

January 29, 2007 at 08:35 AM

Comments

You folks seem to know all the best ways to have fun!

Seriously, sounds like a lot of expense!

Posted by: Cowtown Pattie | January 29, 2007 at 07:55 PM

Oh, myyyyyy! CC...that's NOT the way I would have planned to relax! I'm almost afraid to talk about this. We've dodged this bullet so far, but I think I need to prepare for a problem in the kitchen. Maybe the dishwasher repairman can give me some guidance tomorrow.

It sounds like most of your house is on the damp side, still. Get that fabric into the drier. It can wait to be ironed. (Egad.....what a job!)

I hope you've resolved the problem, and that your back is better soon! (most gentle hugs)

Posted by: buffy | January 29, 2007 at 11:20 PM 

What a pain in the butt, I mean, back.

I think I would be more worried about the sheetrock drying than anything. Unfortunately, it is tough to tell with that stuff until it is a bit on the late side.

Posted by: bogie | January 30, 2007 at 03:06 AM

Pattie--Just think what it would have been like had we been away from the house for a few hours--or a few days! HH says that if his check list for leaving the house gets much longer, he'll just have to stay at home. One day two or three years ago, we returned home--from being gone for a few hours--to find that he had left the fire on under his glass water pot (that he uses to heat the water for instant coffee). The plastic lid had melted, falling into the pot, and the pot had broken. The heat warped the housing of the vent fan. My, what a fire we could have had, had there been anything more flammable than the wooden cabinetry nearby.

HH has a friend who is in the home mini-disaster cleanup business. HH will have him come out to evaluate further steps that he might recommend.

Buffy--Yes, it would be well to avert the flood, if you can. Our builder thought that I was being paranoid when I insisted upon having a floor drain installed by the washing machine. We haven't really needed that drain, yet, and it's one more chore to do each Saturday (I put a couple of cups of water down that drain and the basement shower that sees scant use to prevent backup of sewer gases into the house), but it's a comfort to know that it is standing by. (I also had a manual cutoff valve, in addition to the code-required automatic backflow valve, on the main sewer line--to give us a chance to prevent major backup into the house!)

I moved the fabrics into the wash room (the hanging rack is on wheels) to get them out of the humidity of the sewing room. The sewing room is still under "fan-attack" with three fans working it over.

Bogie--Yes, obviously, the sheetrock has been our major concern and, as you point out, it may take time for damage to show up. We went through that with the last house when one of the ice storms damaged the roof/ridges so badly that water came into the house. We had some of the sheetrocking in the basement ceiling replaced, sad, sagging thing that it was. Actually, I'm thinking that we got this situation taken care of soon enough that such damage was averted. You should have seen how we rigged fans to assure that we dried out the basement bathroom ceiling (one fan was face-down into the furnace duct of the upper bathroom.) The thermostat has been at 73 degrees, night and day, since the event--and the humidifier turned off. I'm thinking that, today, we should be able to return to a more comfortable temperature range.

At this point, the only two things that are apparent in their need to be done to the house: 1) a very, very, very slow ooze from a sewer line cleanout trap that is in the closet of my sewing room was discovered in addressing this mini-flood. It needs to be taken care of and the sheetrock surrounding the trap needs to be repaired. 2) The carpeting in the upstairs hallway stretched and now has a ridge across the width of the hallway. The carpeting needs to be cleaned and re-stretched.

All-in-all, I'm feeling pretty lucky that nothing truly bad seems to have come of this experience (except, maybe, HH's confidence in leaving home!)

Posted by: Cop Car | January 30, 2007 at 05:05 AM

Oh CC....I know only too well what you and HH just went through. It brings back all the horror of the flooding I went through in December...right before the holidays. I didn't even know my body could move that fast anymore. I know how crazed you both were trying to get to every place that had water. I can't tell you how much I wish I could hug you right now. I'm glad that you were able to take care of everything without total disaster. It's amazing what you can do when you're called into action, isn't it? Now just take care of that bad back...I'm sure this episode didn't help it. Thinking of you...

Posted by: Joy | January 30, 2007 at 08:04 AM

Oh my goodness. What a palaver! When I think how worse it would have been if you and HH had been away for any length of time I have chills up my back. I hope that everything has been sorted out by now and that there hasn't been any permanent damage. Does this mean you now have to negotiate with the insurance company - not my favourite activity?

Posted by: Adele | January 31, 2007 at 03:08 AM

Joy--As a matter of fact, it did fleetingly cross my mind that you had had a much worse episode of flooding and its attendant issues. Our situation was really, in its effects, quite minor. Thanks for the hug.

Adele--It doesn't look like there will be any need for the insurance company to become involved. Our agent is a dear to work with, however. It was he who came and winched me out of the ice pack when my car was stuck athwart our driveway. (I had called him to ask for a recommendation on towing services since there are none listed in our phone book for our little city.)

Posted by: Cop Car | January 31, 2007 at 05:14 AM

How sad is that? A city of 17,800 people that has no towing services. For a lark, I google for your city and didn't find anything right off the bat for towing either.

Just around our town (not actually in our town though), there are 3 places in Hillsboro (pop 5000), a place in Antrim (2500), one in Bennington (1400), at least three in Henniker (4800) and another three in Weare (7800).

I don't know if that means that people driving in NH have unreliable cars or that they just suck at staying out of ditches - you can draw your own conclusions.

Posted by: Bogie | January 31, 2007 at 11:32 AM

Bogie--My conclusion is that NH is not flat like KS, making it ever so much easier for a NH vehicle to end up in a ditch. Obviously, your drivers are used to the situation or you would have even more towing services! We do have tow trucks around. They just do not advertise. (If worse came to worst, I could call one down from Wichita!) I can't recall where the tow truck was from that carried off my little car when the fuel line broke in the parking lot at the rec center. Lincoln sent them out--and it was a big, flat-bedded truck that actually carried the LS off to the dealer.

Posted by: Cop Car | January 31, 2007 at 07:50 PM

Well, that's a relief that you don't have to deal with your insurance company. One less thing to worry about. How is the clean-up going, is it all sorted out and did you manage to get a pluber out? Last but certainly not least have you seen your doctor and sorted your back out? I had back troubles some time ago. I still remember how painful it was. OUCH!

Posted by: Adele | February 01, 2007 at 02:55 AM

I know you like excitement in your life, but I really think this water thing was overdoing it a bit. You've really put the fear into me. I have a commode that filled up a bit too high, cause it wasn't emptying at it's usual speed, raising my red alert flag. I keep putting off flushing it again as want to do it bright and early on a weekend day when I can be free to devote whatever to the unknown consequences.

I'm truly sorry you're having to cope with all that mess.

Posted by: joared | February 01, 2007 at 05:25 AM

Adele--Really, although it is in the aft part of my torso that the discomfort originates, I don't believe that my back (as in bones and spinal column) are involved. Fluid checks ruled out some organic infections; so, I am really puzzled. We shall see, thanks.

Joared--Except for the continuing dialogue on this blog, I've forgotten all about the flooding. Been too busy to give it another thought. *laughing*

Posted by: Cop Car | February 01, 2007 at 08:39 AM

Would you care to post HH's list of things to check before you go out the door for the day, or for a longer period? I check the locks on the three doors. I might turn off the printer in the office, and lights in the kitchen. What else is there to check, other than recalcitrant water lines?

I hope you figure out what's causing the pain. I'm sure that we all hope that you have a speedy resolution of the problem, especially now that you're so active in the Red Cross.

Posted by: buffy | February 03, 2007 at 10:15 AM

Buffy--HH was exaggerating, I think. I don't really know what all he checks, other than the doors (because he knows that I don't usually think to check them), the stove, and (now) his toilet. He is an inveterate list-checker, however, so his list may run to three pages, for all I know!

Please don't fret about the discomfort that I've been experiencing. It has eased up in the last couple of days and may well have been something as simple as my having "pulled" something or the other. Since I have a problem pinning down just what hurts and how it hurts, it could be nearly anything--tennis elbow? (My dad was the same way. He could never really describe how/where he felt bad.)

Posted by: Cop Car | February 03, 2007 at 07:35 PM

Wow I've missed bunches of your posts. I mainly read from google reader which alerts me of new posts.
Yours however doesn't do that. Wonder why?
Not a problem just want you to know why I bop in only once a week or so.

Sorry to hear about the mess! We had a similar thing happen in our home in Denver. Our ice maker in fridge decided to start spewing water and ice on it's own. This happens more than you would guess from what I've discovered.

Needless to say I'll never own another refrig that the ice and water thing is on the outside of the door.

Posted by: janet | February 04, 2007 at 12:42 PM

Janet--Excepting those who are family, and those who have too much time on their hands, I can't imagine that anyone expects others to stop by a blog any more often than once per week. If I can get around on a speedier schedule, I feel lucky. If others can do it, I feel amazement. Thanks for coming by. (I really am enjoying the photo!)

Posted by: Cop Car | February 04, 2007 at 05:45 PM

P.S. Google Reader doesn't work on my blog because I deny access to search engines. I prefer that anyone who stops in comes by because they were led here by another friend--not by some anonymous Google hit. I also credit this decision with saving me from the spam attacks that some of my friends have had on their blogs. Sorry to inconvenience you, Janet.

Posted by: Cop Car | February 04, 2007 at 05:47 PM

Let's set the scene:  Lazy Sunday afternoon, I had just finished marking the last of the 50 questions in the final exam on a FEMA course and was mentally preparing to go to the computer to input my answers on the FEMA web site.  Enter:  Hunky Husband, running up the stairs from the basement yelping, "Water.  There is water everywhere!"  I quickly put down my paperwork and followed him into his (upstairs) bathroom.  It was inundated with about 3/4" of water.  Water (fortunately, clear water) was overflowing the commode, had pooled on the floor, and was running down the furnace ducting--in addition to seeping under and around every bit of finish, wood trim.

I retrieved the "plumber's helper" and, while HH un-plugged the plumbing and un-stuck the float in the reservoir (most "disasters" are caused, as was the case here, by a double failure in a system), I started throwing arm loads of towels and sheets into the puddle.  When I had built a dam around the furnace duct to stop the water's going down it, I reminded HH that we had a wet vacuum in the shop--which he promptly retrieved.  We vacuumed and mopped for another 10-15 minutes.  Hardest was to soak up the water from the carpeting in HH's bedroom and in the hallway.  Of course, the padding was also soaked.  Then, we went down to the basement bathroom that sits under HH's bathroom. 

Water was pouring from it's ceiling-mounted furnace outlet and had flooded the floor--soaking out into the carpeting of the hallway.  We got a ladder and screwdriver to remove the grating from the duct and started another mop-up operation. 

Somewhere during this frenzy, I realized that water had come down the clothes chute that terminates in my kiln room--next to the bathroom.  Water had run into the shelves of stained glass and kiln accessories underneath the chute.  When we had vacuumed and mopped up the downstairs bathroom, the end of the hallway, and around the clothes chute, we set up fans to help further dry out the two bathrooms and the surrounding carpeting.  Then we sat in the living room, he with a glass of wine, I with a bottle of cranberry drink, to recuperate.  (When I told HH that we had now had our exercise for the day, he gave me a dour look and reminded me that he had run 4 miles that morning--no mean feat with the icy streets/sidewalks in our town.)

OMG!  I had not checked my sewing room--next door, on the other side of the basement bathroom!  Down, I flew.  Not a moment too soon.  Water had found its way to the fluorescent light fixtures in the closet and at one end of the room--the end where my sewing machine sits on its desk and where my fabrics hang/reside in bins--and proceeded to drip down onto whatever it found, below.  Water had also found its way under the wood finish trim to soak the carpeting around the edges.  Short version:  I will need to re-upholster my sewing chair (which I had just done a year or two ago), wash all of my quilting fabrics (and, worse, iron all of them).  The carpeting was soaked in about 1/4 of the room.  Oh, me.  Just shoot me now! 

We are booked up for this entire week (I am double-booked on Wednesday--but--will go to Topeka for a meeting, that day.)  As soon as I get over this week's activities, I need to get in to see my physician (moderate-to-severe discomfort in my back) and get a plumber out to fix a problem with my bathroom sink (he couldn't tell where it was leaking when I had him out a few months ago.  Since then, I have figured out that the leak is in the fitting just above the under-sink cutoff valve and I have (mostly) been keeping the valve turned "off". If I forget to turn off the valve, I have a very minor flood in my own bathroom!)  We have, at least, got all of the towels and sheets washed and dried! 

Amaryllis & Cop Car

For Christmas 2005, Bogie and her Wonderful Spouse sent my Hunky Husband a beautiful basket--with two containers of amaryllis bulbs nestled in it.  As I recall, the first to bloom bore white flowers--seven of them!  WS was a bit less than perfect in following the instructions; but, just now, there are three huge blooms on that plant.  Unfortunately, the beautifully striped amaryllis didn't make it, this time.  The bulb rotted instead of growing (might it have been a bit too damp?)  Here's the photo of the white one.  There is a fourth bud getting ready to burst into bloom on the stalk with the three that are open, and there is another bud stalk coming out.  HH is really enjoying his flowers, Bogie--as am I!

This is a "freebie".  As you can see, I still haven't figured out how to get a good picture of a black cat--Cop Car!  Here she is, with her shadow.  (Apparently, the camera has as much trouble as I in focusing on black!)

January 28, 2007 at 11:26 AM

Comments

You're the second blog I've read that has a post about an Amaryllis plant...only all of her blossoms weren't out yet. I learned a few things about this beautiful plant...thanks CC.

Posted by: Joy | January 28, 2007 at 11:21 PM

I got mine started late, so don't expect blooms for a couple of weeks yet. Actually, since I forgot them in the lean-to, and the temps got colder than the bulbs like, I'm surprised they survived at all.

Too bad about the bulb rotting - did it rot before you brought it out of hybernation or after?

Posted by: bogie | January 29, 2007 at 03:09 AM

Joy--You are welcome. It's nice that we can enjoy the beauty, second hand, through posted photos, isn't it?

Bogie--The bulb came through hybernation, fine. It rotted in the pot. I think that the initial soaking (which I did for HH) was too much and the drainage not good enough. (I promised HH that I would replace his bulb.)

Posted by: Cop Car | January 29, 2007 at 08:09 AM

For Christmas 2005, Bogie and her Wonderful Spouse sent my Hunky Husband a beautiful basket--with two containers of amaryllis bulbs nestled in it.  As I recall, the first to bloom bore white flowers--seven of them!  WS was a bit less than perfect in following the instructions; but, just now, there are three huge blooms on that plant.  Unfortunately, the beautifully striped amaryllis didn't make it, this time.  The bulb rotted instead of growing (might it have been a bit too damp?)  Here's the photo of the white one.  There is a fourth bud getting ready to burst into bloom on the stalk with the three that are open, and there is another bud stalk coming out.  HH is really enjoying his flowers, Bogie--as am I!

This is a "freebie".  As you can see, I still haven't figured out how to get a good picture of a black cat--Cop Car!  Here she is, with her shadow.  (Apparently, the camera has as much trouble as I in focusing on black!)

State of Denial by Bob Woodward

"If journalism is the first draft of history, President Bush is going to have a very hard time in the posterity he is now approaching. Woodward's new book, the third in his trilogy on George W. Bush, conveys a great deal of information, none of it good for the president and his team. It gives far more operational detail on Iraq than its predecessor, Plan of Attack . It also goes much further in asserting the author's distaste for the war and the administration's handling of it than anything Woodward has written previously. In fact, it is the angriest book Woodward has written since his first, All the President's Men . Like that masterpiece, State of Denial feels all the more outraged for its measured, nonpartisan tones and relentless reporting. It is nothing less than a watershed.

"The book begins in December 2000, with a shaky president-elect searching for the right secretary of defense and giving in to Dick Cheney's suggestion that his old friend Donald Rumsfeld is available. The story continues to very near the present (July 2006), when Woodward conducts the last of his many interviews with Rumsfeld. It gives a full chronicle of the Iraq adventure, including far more than has been previously reported on what our leaders said and did after the apparent victory of March 2003. In so doing, it reveals a government crippled by dysfunction at precisely the wartime moment when leadership was most necessary."

The above quote is from a review posted on the Washington Post web site, Blind into Baghdad.  Having just finished reading this riveting book (loaned to me by Elegant Friend--thanks, EF) I urge those who have an interest in politics, history, or the current fiasco in Iraq to go read the review.  As my reading of the book was interrupted by reading four other books, by the year-end holidays, and by volunteer work, I won't attempt to translate the passages that I marked (with little sticky flags) for inclusion in my own review.  You readers get off easy this time!  *smile*

January 28, 2007 at 10:33 AM

Comments

P.S. In my opinion, the Washington Post reviewer is a bit prejudicial in his review of this book. The book was much more even-handedly written than would be implied by the quote, above. The information in this book interweaved, nicely, with the information in SOLDIER: The Life of Colin Powell by Karen DeYoung (review at http://copcar.typepad.com/cop_cars_beat/2006/12/soldier_the_lif.html), The Mighty and the Almighty by Madeleine Albright (review at http://copcar.typepad.com/cop_cars_beat/2006/12/the_mighty_the_.html), and a couple of books that I'm not sure that I reviewed in my blog, The Halliburton Agenda: The Politics of Oil and Money
by Dan Briody, and The 9/11 Commission Report
.

Posted by: Cop Car | January 30, 2007 at 05:24 AM

"If journalism is the first draft of history, President Bush is going to have a very hard time in the posterity he is now approaching. Woodward's new book, the third in his trilogy on George W. Bush, conveys a great deal of information, none of it good for the president and his team. It gives far more operational detail on Iraq than its predecessor, Plan of Attack . It also goes much further in asserting the author's distaste for the war and the administration's handling of it than anything Woodward has written previously. In fact, it is the angriest book Woodward has written since his first, All the President's Men . Like that masterpiece, State of Denial feels all the more outraged for its measured, nonpartisan tones and relentless reporting. It is nothing less than a watershed.

"The book begins in December 2000, with a shaky president-elect searching for the right secretary of defense and giving in to Dick Cheney's suggestion that his old friend Donald Rumsfeld is available. The story continues to very near the present (July 2006), when Woodward conducts the last of his many interviews with Rumsfeld. It gives a full chronicle of the Iraq adventure, including far more than has been previously reported on what our leaders said and did after the apparent victory of March 2003. In so doing, it reveals a government crippled by dysfunction at precisely the wartime moment when leadership was most necessary."

The above quote is from a review posted on the Washington Post web site, Blind into Baghdad.  Having just finished reading this riveting book (loaned to me by Elegant Friend--thanks, EF) I urge those who have an interest in politics, history, or the current fiasco in Iraq to go read the review.  As my reading of the book was interrupted by reading four other books, by the year-end holidays, and by volunteer work, I won't attempt to translate the passages that I marked (with little sticky flags) for inclusion in my own review.  You readers get off easy this time!  *smile*

Still Alive & Well

I was able to spend a couple of evenings with my aunt, V, in KCMO.  She had been down with a bug and hadn't even bathed for a few days the first night I saw her; but, she had bathed and dressed and looked to be feeling much better the next evening when I took dinner in to her.  V hadn't been eating while ill--nothing sounded good; but, Kentucky Fried Chicken struck her fancy Sunday evening.  She had fresh veggies in the frig, so we ate well.  I washed up the dishes that she had been collecting for the last few days (she uses her apartment-size dishwasher as a handy repository for foil/plastic wrap/waxed paper/etc) to spare her that effort.  We had a great visit.

I'm sorry to have been out of the loop for these several days. (I missed reading your writings!) Have a great 3-day weekend, if you are fortunate enough to get Monday off!

January 12, 2007 at 07:38 PM

Comments

Welcome back CC. You and HH really have been busy...and I can only applaud your efforts. You both are amazing. I hope you really do just crash this weekend and totally relax....you've earned it. Take care...

Posted by: Joy | January 13, 2007 at 08:21 AM

Thanks, Joy. It's 8:49 AM and I'm still in my jammies--and may stay that way all day. We arose to sleet/snow, this morning. With a layer of sleet well layed down, I've not yet heard a motorized vehicle; but, our paper was in the driveway so I must have missed one car.

Posted by: Cop Car | January 13, 2007 at 08:50 AM

Welcome back CopCar. I wondered if something had come up which had made you very busy (we hadn't heard of the problems with tornados over Xmas on your side of the pond). It sounds to me as if a thorough rest this weekend is just what you need. You deserve it!

Posted by: Adele | January 13, 2007 at 11:00 AM

It's so nice to see you back and posting! I miss you when you're off working, taking care of your corner of the world. You could keep that sleet, thank you very much! I'm so used to the Fall-like weather that I'm not ready to be doing winter.

Enjoy being lazy. You've earned it!

Posted by: buffy | January 13, 2007 at 08:47 PM

Adele & Buffy--Thank you for excusing my being a chair potato, yesterday.

To All--Yesterday, I caught up on my reading of our three daily newspapers(Derby, Wichita, & Wall Street Journal), a couple of monthlies (both, for us elders--AARP & the State of KS), and assorted mail. Other than that, the only thing I did was to clean the litter boxes, throw a load of towels in the washer, and cook up a batch of chicken breasts in spaghetti sauce, with green and yellow peppers, to serve over spaghetti for dinner--with biscuits. It was our first real home-cooked meal since before Christmas, I'm sure. Oh, and I started dough to make a nut roll for Hunky Husband.

This morning, I showered at 6:30 and was at the grocery store by 7:00--stocking up on meats and fresh veggies before more snow/sleet/etc hit (there was already about an inch on the ground.) After unloading the groceries, I rolled out the dough, formed the nut roll, and set it to rise while washing the windshield of my car, filling the bird feeders, cleaning the litter boxes (a never-ending task, no?), and starting a large pot of chili. Now, the nut roll has been baked, the chili is simmering (for the 2nd or 3rd hour--who counts?), and I've read the newspaper and folded the towels from the dryer. I'm about done for the day!!

Hope each of you is having a good week-end, regardless of what the weather is choosing to do in your area. I am still wondering whether I shall be called back to Kansas City--to the FEMA office--because of the power outages in MO, this time. My going would depend upon road conditions, of course, even were I asked to go.

Posted by: Cop Car | January 14, 2007 at 12:40 PM

 

I was able to spend a couple of evenings with my aunt, V, in KCMO.  She had been down with a bug and hadn't even bathed for a few days the first night I saw her; but, she had bathed and dressed and looked to be feeling much better the next evening when I took dinner in to her.  V hadn't been eating while ill--nothing sounded good; but, Kentucky Fried Chicken struck her fancy Sunday evening.  She had fresh veggies in the frig, so we ate well.  I washed up the dishes that she had been collecting for the last few days (she uses her apartment-size dishwasher as a handy repository for foil/plastic wrap/waxed paper/etc) to spare her that effort.  We had a great visit.

I'm sorry to have been out of the loop for these several days. (I missed reading your writings!) Have a great 3-day weekend, if you are fortunate enough to get Monday off!

Bright New Day

Ahh!  From Beautiful Sunrise, we move to Bright New Day--the same scene but at nearly "High Noon".  What a glorious day we are having, here in the middle of America--a day that makes being alive that much more enjoyable--and a perfect way to start a New Year.  (The little white patches are from the 1/4-inch snow that we received yesterday morning.)

To all of my blog friends and readers, I wish a bright, rewarding Year 2007.  If we don't achieve or receive all that we hope for, let us resolve to appreciate to the utmost what we can/do achieve/receive!!  Hugs to all. 

Cop Car

P.S.  Special thanks to Bogie, who introduced me to the world of blogging.

January 01, 2007 at 10:57 AM

Comments

AH, HA!! We found the culprit! Light the torches and head to someone named "Bogie"'s place.

Just kidding. Hope you have a most wonderful 2007, and Happy New Year.

Posted by: Wichi Dude | January 01, 2007 at 07:38 PM

Happy New Year CopCar. No more snow for you, I hope.

Posted by: Adele | January 04, 2007 at 10:50 AM

Happy New Year Cop Car! Haven't been by in a couple days, sorry. I think rss feed may be working on your site, which should remind me when you post. goody!

Posted by: janet | January 06, 2007 at 12:28 PM

Nope always starts at Jan 2005 Meteorologically Speaking post. Darn

Posted by: janet | January 06, 2007 at 12:31 PM

Oddly.....mine starts at the same place, Janet...."Meteorologically Speaking."

Cop Car.....so resolved! I'm hoping for a great year for ALL of us!

Posted by: Buffy | January 08, 2007 at 07:59 AM

Ahh!  From Beautiful Sunrise, we move to Bright New Day--the same scene but at nearly "High Noon".  What a glorious day we are having, here in the middle of America--a day that makes being alive that much more enjoyable--and a perfect way to start a New Year.  (The little white patches are from the 1/4-inch snow that we received yesterday morning.)

To all of my blog friends and readers, I wish a bright, rewarding Year 2007.  If we don't achieve or receive all that we hope for, let us resolve to appreciate to the utmost what we can/do achieve/receive!!  Hugs to all. 

Cop Car

P.S.  Special thanks to Bogie, who introduced me to the world of blogging.

Comments

[Cowtown Pattie]

You folks seem to know all the best ways to have fun!

Seriously, sounds like a lot of expense!

[buffy]

Oh, myyyyyy! CC...that's NOT the way I would have planned to relax! I'm almost afraid to talk about this. We've dodged this bullet so far, but I think I need to prepare for a problem in the kitchen. Maybe the dishwasher repairman can give me some guidance tomorrow.

It sounds like most of your house is on the damp side, still. Get that fabric into the drier. It can wait to be ironed. (Egad.....what a job!)

I hope you've resolved the problem, and that your back is better soon! (most gentle hugs)

[bogie]

I think I would be more worried about the sheetrock drying than anything. Unfortunately, it is tough to tell with that stuff until it is a bit on the late side.

[Cop Car]

Pattie--Just think what it would have been like had we been away from the house for a few hours--or a few days! HH says that if his check list for leaving the house gets much longer, he'll just have to stay at home. One day two or three years ago, we returned home--from being gone for a few hours--to find that he had left the fire on under his glass water pot (that he uses to heat the water for instant coffee). The plastic lid had melted, falling into the pot, and the pot had broken. The heat warped the housing of the vent fan. My, what a fire we could have had, had there been anything more flammable than the wooden cabinetry nearby.

HH has a friend who is in the home mini-disaster cleanup business. HH will have him come out to evaluate further steps that he might recommend.

Buffy--Yes, it would be well to avert the flood, if you can. Our builder thought that I was being paranoid when I insisted upon having a floor drain installed by the washing machine. We haven't really needed that drain, yet, and it's one more chore to do each Saturday (I put a couple of cups of water down that drain and the basement shower that sees scant use to prevent backup of sewer gases into the house), but it's a comfort to know that it is standing by. (I also had a manual cutoff valve, in addition to the code-required automatic backflow valve, on the main sewer line--to give us a chance to prevent major backup into the house!)

I moved the fabrics into the wash room (the hanging rack is on wheels) to get them out of the humidity of the sewing room. The sewing room is still under "fan-attack" with three fans working it over.

Bogie--Yes, obviously, the sheetrock has been our major concern and, as you point out, it may take time for damage to show up. We went through that with the last house when one of the ice storms damaged the roof/ridges so badly that water came into the house. We had some of the sheetrocking in the basement ceiling replaced, sad, sagging thing that it was. Actually, I'm thinking that we got this situation taken care of soon enough that such damage was averted. You should have seen how we rigged fans to assure that we dried out the basement bathroom ceiling (one fan was face-down into the furnace duct of the upper bathroom.) The thermostat has been at 73 degrees, night and day, since the event--and the humidifier turned off. I'm thinking that, today, we should be able to return to a more comfortable temperature range.

At this point, the only two things that are apparent in their need to be done to the house: 1) a very, very, very slow ooze from a sewer line cleanout trap that is in the closet of my sewing room was discovered in addressing this mini-flood. It needs to be taken care of and the sheetrock surrounding the trap needs to be repaired. 2) The carpeting in the upstairs hallway stretched and now has a ridge across the width of the hallway. The carpeting needs to be cleaned and re-stretched.

All-in-all, I'm feeling pretty lucky that nothing truly bad seems to have come of this experience (except, maybe, HH's confidence in leaving home!)

[Joy]

Oh CC....I know only too well what you and HH just went through. It brings back all the horror of the flooding I went through in December...right before the holidays. I didn't even know my body could move that fast anymore. I know how crazed you both were trying to get to every place that had water. I can't tell you how much I wish I could hug you right now. I'm glad that you were able to take care of everything without total disaster. It's amazing what you can do when you're called into action, isn't it? Now just take care of that bad back...I'm sure this episode didn't help it. Thinking of you...

[Adele]

Oh my goodness. What a palaver! When I think how worse it would have been if you and HH had been away for any length of time I have chills up my back. I hope that everything has been sorted out by now and that there hasn't been any permanent damage. Does this mean you now have to negotiate with the insurance company - not my favourite activity?

[Cop Car]

Joy--As a matter of fact, it did fleetingly cross my mind that you had had a much worse episode of flooding and its attendant issues. Our situation was really, in its effects, quite minor. Thanks for the hug.

Adele--It doesn't look like there will be any need for the insurance company to become involved. Our agent is a dear to work with, however. It was he who came and winched me out of the ice pack when my car was stuck athwart our driveway. (I had called him to ask for a recommendation on towing services since there are none listed in our phone book for our little city.)

[Bogie]

How sad is that? A city of 17,800 people that has no towing services. For a lark, I google for your city and didn't find anything right off the bat for towing either.

Just around our town (not actually in our town though), there are 3 places in Hillsboro (pop 5000), a place in Antrim (2500), one in Bennington (1400), at least three in Henniker (4800) and another three in Weare (7800).

I don't know if that means that people driving in NH have unreliable cars or that they just suck at staying out of ditches - you can draw your own conclusions.

[Cop Car]

Bogie--My conclusion is that NH is not flat like KS, making it ever so much easier for a NH vehicle to end up in a ditch. Obviously, your drivers are used to the situation or you would have even more towing services! We do have tow trucks around. They just do not advertise. (If worse came to worst, I could call one down from Wichita!) I can't recall where the tow truck was from that carried off my little car when the fuel line broke in the parking lot at the rec center. Lincoln sent them out--and it was a big, flat-bedded truck that actually carried the LS off to the dealer.

[Adele]

Well, that's a relief that you don't have to deal with your insurance company. One less thing to worry about. How is the clean-up going, is it all sorted out and did you manage to get a pluber out? Last but certainly not least have you seen your doctor and sorted your back out? I had back troubles some time ago. I still remember how painful it was. OUCH!

[joared]

I know you like excitement in your life, but I really think this water thing was overdoing it a bit. You've really put the fear into me. I have a commode that filled up a bit too high, cause it wasn't emptying at it's usual speed, raising my red alert flag. I keep putting off flushing it again as want to do it bright and early on a weekend day when I can be free to devote whatever to the unknown consequences.

I'm truly sorry you're having to cope with all that mess.

[Cop Car]

Adele--Really, although it is in the aft part of my torso that the discomfort originates, I don't believe that my back (as in bones and spinal column) are involved. Fluid checks ruled out some organic infections; so, I am really puzzled. We shall see, thanks.

Joared--Except for the continuing dialogue on this blog, I've forgotten all about the flooding. Been too busy to give it another thought. *laughing*

[buffy]

Would you care to post HH's list of things to check before you go out the door for the day, or for a longer period? I check the locks on the three doors. I might turn off the printer in the office, and lights in the kitchen. What else is there to check, other than recalcitrant water lines?

I hope you figure out what's causing the pain. I'm sure that we all hope that you have a speedy resolution of the problem, especially now that you're so active in the Red Cross.

[Cop Car]

Buffy--HH was exaggerating, I think. I don't really know what all he checks, other than the doors (because he knows that I don't usually think to check them), the stove, and (now) his toilet. He is an inveterate list-checker, however, so his list may run to three pages, for all I know!

Please don't fret about the discomfort that I've been experiencing. It has eased up in the last couple of days and may well have been something as simple as my having "pulled" something or the other. Since I have a problem pinning down just what hurts and how it hurts, it could be nearly anything--tennis elbow? (My dad was the same way. He could never really describe how/where he felt bad.)

[janet]

Wow I've missed bunches of your posts. I mainly read from google reader which alerts me of new posts.
Yours however doesn't do that. Wonder why?
Not a problem just want you to know why I bop in only once a week or so.

Sorry to hear about the mess! We had a similar thing happen in our home in Denver. Our ice maker in fridge decided to start spewing water and ice on it's own. This happens more than you would guess from what I've discovered.

Needless to say I'll never own another refrig that the ice and water thing is on the outside of the door.

[Cop Car]

Janet--Excepting those who are family, and those who have too much time on their hands, I can't imagine that anyone expects others to stop by a blog any more often than once per week. If I can get around on a speedier schedule, I feel lucky. If others can do it, I feel amazement. Thanks for coming by. (I really am enjoying the photo!)

[Cop Car]

P.S. Google Reader doesn't work on my blog because I deny access to search engines. I prefer that anyone who stops in comes by because they were led here by another friend--not by some anonymous Google hit. I also credit this decision with saving me from the spam attacks that some of my friends have had on their blogs. Sorry to inconvenience you, Janet.

[Joy]

You're the second blog I've read that has a post about an Amaryllis plant...only all of her blossoms weren't out yet. I learned a few things about this beautiful plant...thanks CC.

[bogie]

I got mine started late, so don't expect blooms for a couple of weeks yet. Actually, since I forgot them in the lean-to, and the temps got colder than the bulbs like, I'm surprised they survived at all.

Too bad about the bulb rotting - did it rot before you brought it out of hybernation or after?

[Cop Car]

Joy--You are welcome. It's nice that we can enjoy the beauty, second hand, through posted photos, isn't it?

Bogie--The bulb came through hybernation, fine. It rotted in the pot. I think that the initial soaking (which I did for HH) was too much and the drainage not good enough. (I promised HH that I would replace his bulb.)

[Cop Car]

P.S. In my opinion, the Washington Post reviewer is a bit prejudicial in his review of this book. The book was much more even-handedly written than would be implied by the quote, above. The information in this book interweaved, nicely, with the information in SOLDIER: The Life of Colin Powell by Karen DeYoung (review at http://copcar.typepad.com/cop_cars_beat/2006/12/soldier_the_lif.html), The Mighty and the Almighty by Madeleine Albright (review at http://copcar.typepad.com/cop_cars_beat/2006/12/the_mighty_the_.html), and a couple of books that I'm not sure that I reviewed in my blog, The Halliburton Agenda: The Politics of Oil and Money
by Dan Briody, and The 9/11 Commission Report
.

[Joy]

Welcome back CC. You and HH really have been busy...and I can only applaud your efforts. You both are amazing. I hope you really do just crash this weekend and totally relax....you've earned it. Take care...

[Cop Car]

Thanks, Joy. It's 8:49 AM and I'm still in my jammies--and may stay that way all day. We arose to sleet/snow, this morning. With a layer of sleet well layed down, I've not yet heard a motorized vehicle; but, our paper was in the driveway so I must have missed one car.

[Adele]

Welcome back CopCar. I wondered if something had come up which had made you very busy (we hadn't heard of the problems with tornados over Xmas on your side of the pond). It sounds to me as if a thorough rest this weekend is just what you need. You deserve it!

[buffy]

It's so nice to see you back and posting! I miss you when you're off working, taking care of your corner of the world. You could keep that sleet, thank you very much! I'm so used to the Fall-like weather that I'm not ready to be doing winter.

Enjoy being lazy. You've earned it!

[Cop Car]

Adele & Buffy--Thank you for excusing my being a chair potato, yesterday.

To All--Yesterday, I caught up on my reading of our three daily newspapers(Derby, Wichita, & Wall Street Journal), a couple of monthlies (both, for us elders--AARP & the State of KS), and assorted mail. Other than that, the only thing I did was to clean the litter boxes, throw a load of towels in the washer, and cook up a batch of chicken breasts in spaghetti sauce, with green and yellow peppers, to serve over spaghetti for dinner--with biscuits. It was our first real home-cooked meal since before Christmas, I'm sure. Oh, and I started dough to make a nut roll for Hunky Husband.

This morning, I showered at 6:30 and was at the grocery store by 7:00--stocking up on meats and fresh veggies before more snow/sleet/etc hit (there was already about an inch on the ground.) After unloading the groceries, I rolled out the dough, formed the nut roll, and set it to rise while washing the windshield of my car, filling the bird feeders, cleaning the litter boxes (a never-ending task, no?), and starting a large pot of chili. Now, the nut roll has been baked, the chili is simmering (for the 2nd or 3rd hour--who counts?), and I've read the newspaper and folded the towels from the dryer. I'm about done for the day!!

Hope each of you is having a good week-end, regardless of what the weather is choosing to do in your area. I am still wondering whether I shall be called back to Kansas City--to the FEMA office--because of the power outages in MO, this time. My going would depend upon road conditions, of course, even were I asked to go.

[Wichi Dude]

AH, HA!! We found the culprit! Light the torches and head to someone named "Bogie"'s place.

Just kidding. Hope you have a most wonderful 2007, and Happy New Year.

[Adele]

Happy New Year CopCar. No more snow for you, I hope.

[janet]

Happy New Year Cop Car! Haven't been by in a couple days, sorry. I think rss feed may be working on your site, which should remind me when you post. goody!

[janet]

Nope always starts at Jan 2005 Meteorologically Speaking post. Darn

[Buffy]

Oddly.....mine starts at the same place, Janet...."Meteorologically Speaking."

Cop Car.....so resolved! I'm hoping for a great year for ALL of us!