How's your week going?- Week of August 30, 2021

[ProudTVJunkie]

Hi Everyone,

It's hard to believe that August is just about over. This summer has flown by!

My sister sold her house, or is about to. Most people told her to sell her place as-is and move on, but she's spent the last six months updating the kitchen and landscaping. It took a lot of time because she's in such a rural area and there are no contractors to hire so each of my parents has been out there to help. She said she had neighbors who told her she was wasting her time. Well, her house was listed on Friday and she got two offers on Saturday, one of them $20K over asking price, and it sounds like she got two more offers yesterday. I'm really happy things have worked out so well for her.

On the flip side, my family and I can't seem to find a rental! We were hoping to be moved by the end of the summer. Unfortunately, there hasn't been much available except a couple of luxury apartment buildings that were built here over the last few years. The rents for them are exorbitantly high. We want to stay in this school system for my daughter, but we need to move by the end of October and I'm getting desperate. If anyone can send some good vibes our way, I'd appreciate it. It feels like I'm going to need them!

larryholmes, we're so glad you're back. It sounds like you and your brother had a wonderful trip. If you have any photos, feel free to share. I hope you two get to do it all over again next year.

Fjordmom, we need to see a picture of your new goat!

Okay, now it's your turn. Let us know how things are going where you are.

[tycho657]

The week has started off on a somber note. I played taps for a gentleman that I think I actually met one time. He was one of those people who touches many lives. Many people payed tribute to him in speeches. He and his wife did not have any children but he was a mentor and guide to many people over the years. He was an Elk at the same lodge that I joined just before covid hit. ( I joined so I could camp along the Oregon coast at Elks lodges, but with covid that did not work out) I think he was one of the men at my initiation ceremony. 
While waiting to play taps one of the VFW people there to do the flag folding ceremony asked if I could play taps at a vigil in Chandler later that night for the 13 service people who were just killed in Afghanistan. I said of course. They pulled the vigil together in one day. It was very nice at a park in Chandler by a lake. There were about 100 people and one news crew who showed up. Such a shame to loose such young lives.

[DrvrTrnr]

The sale of my sister's house is supposed to close today. We got everything out that we wanted and gave away/donated/trashed many things. I'm just glad to be finished with it all. My dad was the original owner of the house. He died in June 2000 (age 86), and my sister has been the owner ever since. We had to prove that she was entitled to sell the house, even though she has the official paperwork from the county recorder (she's been paying the property taxes all these years). The title company needed to see a copy of my dad's death certificate today. The whole process has been absurd.

Most school are back to in-person learning. Our state legislature passed a law that says schools cannot have a mask mandate or ask about vaccine status. Needless to say, the kids under 12 won't be protected. Our governor even went so far to offer incentives to schools that don't require masks! What an irresponsible, morally deficient individual. I predict schools will return to online learning in the near future.

Our weather is a lot more humid than usual. Moisture from the remnants of hurricane Nora has been streaming into Arizona and combining with our usual monsoonal flow. We're expecting lots of rain this evening and into tomorrow morning. Unfortunately, the weeds love all the rain. My husband, not so much, lol. Our neighborhood has had over 4 inches in the past month, making it hard to keep up with all the yardwork.

[ProudTVJunkie]

tycho657, to play for those ceremonies sounds like quite an experience and an honor. I'm glad you were available for them. I'm sure it meant a lot to the people who attended.

DrvrTrnr, I'm happy to hear you're done with your sister's house. Between just cleaning it out, and then the getting all the paperwork done, it sounds like it was quite a job! Hopefully, you can put it behind you now.

As for schools, ours don't start until next week. In NJ, masks are mandatory in all public and private schools. I'm incredibly grateful for that. I have cousins in Florida where the state fights against mask mandates. Their school started the second week of August and they had to shut it down two weeks later because of mass Covid outbreaks. When they come back, kids will have to wear masks, but parents can opt their kids out, which sounds confusing and not nearly as effective.

I had been upset that our plan to move to Florida fell through, and now I'm so grateful it didn't work out. Overall, of the eligible people in NJ, over 60% are fully vaccinated and 80% have had at least the first dose. I'm hoping this all saves us and helps keeps the schools open. My daughter is really looking forward to getting back to school.

[ProudTVJunkie]

Wow! What a crazy night. We got the remnants of what had been Hurricane Ida. It's not even classified as a tropical storm any longer, and yet, we got over 3 inches of rain in one hour. I think we're close to 7 inches now.

My husband worked until 8pm and couldn't get home. The flooding on the highway is over the concrete dividers. Our exit was completely flooded. He tried other exits, but no luck. He tried to get back to his office but the water had risen. He says he was only able to get as far as he could because he has a Jeep that's higher and able to get through the water but he saw a lot of stranded cars, cars turned around or on their side in the water, and several water rescues by police and EMS.

Around 9:30pm, he actually ended up in a shopping mall off the highway where there's a McDonalds and a hotel. He went through the drive-thru for a Quarter Pounder meal. He didn't think he could get into the hotel. The parking lot was packed and there was a line out the door. But thankfully, my Mom is a Hilton Diamond member. So I called her and she used her diamond account to get him a room.

It still took an hour waiting in line to get the room because there was only one person working at the front desk but he finally got into his room around 11pm. Then he got a call from two people he works with that left the same time he did but were going in the opposite direction. Turns out they couldn't get anywhere either, had been driving for hours, and ended up at the same McDonalds (which was now closed.)

So my husband invited them to his room so they didn't have to sleep in their cars. I'm still waiting to hear how this little party is working out but at least they're all safe and out of the storm.

[tycho657]

I saw the morning news reports and thought of you. I’m glad your family is safe. Good thing your Jeep got fixed. I bought my daughter and grandson a glass breaker for their cars a couple of years back. I made them take a picture of it in their cars so I know it’s there for emergencies. If you don’t have one in all your cars I would get one. I was watching the US Open tennis last night and it was crazy. They had to stop one match as it was misting so bad the court was getting wet. They said they had shut the subways down so I have no idea how people would get home from that event. I almost went this year. Glad I didn’t go now.
Climate change is happening now. I don’t think they will be able to keep denying it any longer.

[ProudTVJunkie]

The flood waters came so fast around here that they just surprised and overwhelmed people. A roadway collapsed. Two houses exploded with gas leaks. So far I think they've found four local people dead in their cars and there's still some people missing.

My husband's colleagues hung out with him at the hotel until about 2am. The rain had stopped and they decided to try and head home. They were headed south which didn't get as much rain. They finally made it home around 3:30am. Todd couldn't get home this morning but was able to get back to work. I'm just hoping he can make it home tonight.

My family is lucky. We live close to the river but our house is on a bit of a hill. Still, the flood waters came to the end of my street and I've never seen that happen before. Here's a photo from about a block away. That's a walking bridge over the river. I've seen the water hit the bottom of it during really bad storms, but never go over. It's well over it now!

[ibmjas]

PTVJ, that storm really hit you hard! Glad Hubby had the Jeep and was able to get some food and a room. That would be so scary when all the roads are flooding around you and you can't get home. Hope he got home today.

[nathanfan1]

Tycho, thank you for YOUR service as you volunteer to play taps. Having attended a few services with military ceremonies, I know how moving and meaningful that piece of the ceremony is and there are fewer and fewer people who actually do it. The most recent funeral I attended they just played a recording. The gift of sharing your talent is a precious one and an awesome way of honoring those who have served!


Christine, I thank God that you and the family are all OK! The pictures and stories are incredible and I suspect the cleanup will go n for a very long time.


Here in Wisconsin, we've had a severe drought all summer long and finally, this week, we got some soaking rain. It sure won't make up for what we've missed but it's a start and we're hoping that this dry pattern will finally come to an end. 

Back to school for the kids this week and our district has a required mask policy for which we're extremely grateful. We have 3 young grandkids who can't be vaccinated yet and worry a lot about their health. Our oldest daughter and her husband are both high school teachers and have been fully vaccinated, but we still worry about their exposure to so many unvaccinated students.


We're still enjoying the bounty of the garden and game days and nights with friends!

[ProudTVJunkie]

Two people in my town, and two in the next town over all drowned when they got caught in the flash floods on roadways. it's horribly sad and they are planning a vigil for those who lost their lives.

People are still coping with storm damage but most of my town is okay. The flood waters receded and the power is back on for everyone. The local fire dept has been out helping people pump out their basements and clearing the mud away. The food pantry in town put out the word that they were trying to stock up. I didn't have extra food but they needed bags (plastic, paper, or canvas). I had plenty of extras so I dropped those off.

There's a town nearby where I grew up and still have family. It's Manville, NJ. It always gets hit hard with flooding during hurricanes and every year it seems to get worse, but this storm was just brutal. Last I heard, about 300 people were homeless and taking shelter in the local VFW. The surrounding towns have been sending food, clothing, blankets, etc. Lots of homes were underwater, some were moved off their foundations by the force of the water. There was a large building on the edge of town. When I was a kid it was a roller rink. It's also been a dance hall and a restaurant. Well, it blew up! There's nothing left but rubble.

I spent most of Thursday and Friday just reaching out to make sure friends and family had made it through and didn't need anything. Some had property damage but everyone I know was okay and still had their homes. I'm grateful because a lot of people in this area weren't so lucky.

[Fjordmom]

ProudTVJunkie , it's sad to see the devastation and deaths Ida has caused from Louisiana all the way up through the Northeast, but I'm so glad to hear you and your family made it through relatively unscathed. 

We were lucky here in north central Mass., only had 3 1/2 inches of torrential downpours and a couple tornado warnings which thankfully didn't come to fruition, but no wind and certainly not the amount that areas south of here had.  

My dear friends from California were here for 3 1/2 weeks in mid July/early August and it was wonderful to see them after a 2 year hiatus because of you know what!!  

The goats are fine and my son just built them a new "run-in" shelter in their paddock area that they all can fit in if it starts raining and I'm not around to let them into their regular shed stall.  We moved their rock pile next to the new shelter.  I am working on some pics of all 6 of them so I can post them.