Mar 29, 2012

Putting Out Fires

Literally and figuratively.

You see, my 8 y.o. son started a fire in the woods the other day. In 40 mph winds. It was terrrifying.

Lately, Jason has been going back behind the barn, to the field, and fishing in the pond. I had given him a new pair of boots when he got home from school. He put them on an told me he was going out back. I assumed to fish. I assumed wrong.

He came in shortly after, pale and visibly shaking, screaming about a fire behind the barn. He told me he set a fire and it got away from him. I freaked. Completely. It was windy, there were fire alerts every where- on the news, the local weather channel. And my child has just told me the woods are on fire.
The woods, behind the barn. My barn that would burn like the dry tinder it is. Where the ponies are and my chickens live.
The woods, surrounded by long dried grass from the summer. Surrounded by pines, pines that will explode in the fire.
dry as dry can be

Oh my holy hell, what has just happened?!? What has he done?
This is the orchard, the right of where the fire was. You can see how dry it is.

I grabbed the phone and ran like hell. I had no idea where the fire actually was. I ran through the barn, to see the woods about 100 yards away on fire. I called 911, and then ran to the driveway to wait for the fire trucks. I was petrified, thinking the fire would take off in the wind. That acres and acres would burn. I called my neighbor, who's husband is a firefighter, and told her to watch the woods, they were on fire. She would be trapped if they burned. She told me she just heard the call come over the scanner. "It's US" I told her. "Jason set the woods on fire."
This is the woods- the fire burned from the bottom left near the target,  to about halfway up. It stayed on the ground, but it snowed yesterday, so you can't see much.

I don't know how long it took, it seemed like forever. But the firehouse is close by. Lots of people showed up. Everyone was kind. The fire was on a small hill in the woods. The Chief told me fire likes to burn up a hill, but the winds were blowing down the hill. Surprisingly, none of the trees caught fire. The fire burned a good bit of leaves and underbrush, but it never really took off. We had had a little but of rain a few days before. That, and with the warm weather, things had started to green up a little. I think that slowed the fire down.

Jason was shaken to the core. So was I. I still am. I am having trouble dealing with this. I am crying alot. Overwhelmed. My child stole matches from the house and deliberately set a fire. He was playing "campfire" back in his fort. I know all kids do this. The guys at work chuckled about it- they said they had set fires too when they were young.

It could have gone so wrong. Could have, but didn't. My brave child came and told me, rather than hide the fact that the woods were on fire. I have that to be thankful for. I am grateful with every fiber of my being that he wasn't burned, that his clothes didn't catch fire. God, thank you. Thank you.

We will have to do a Juvenile Fire Prevention program. His name will go in a file, kept on record. Hopefully this is the end of it.

Mar 26, 2012

What the heck ?!? And a BIG can of Worms...

OK, weird title, but you'll see where I am going with this...

First and foremost, putting it out there that we are putting our house on the market has opened a whole can or worms. You know, the kind like "when are you listing it" "how much?" and the dreaded "what if it doesn't sell?"

My answer: I don't know. To all of them. I'd like to list soon, but we have some projects- like the bathroom- to finish up. How much- not sure, enough to pay the mortgage but enticing enough to get it sold. If it doesn't sell- ?? rent it out? leave it? stay??  I don't want to even think about it. This is a really cool house, with tons of potential- great big bedrooms, huge barn, and income property potential. Maybe even as a B&B. Anyone have any ideas??

In addition, it means a lot of work for me- paiting and more painting. Purging. Boxing. UGH.

Which brings me to the what the heck part- jeez Louise I have accumulated a lot of crafty crap supplies in my studio!! WTH did I think I was going to do with some of it?? I have been selling off beads and things on eBay. Most of the stuff I posted earlier is gone. But still.... really... maybe I need to be more discerning. Or get in there more and create!! hahaha

Seriously, if you have a fetish are a horder need some things, let me know what you're looking for. I may just end up mailing it to you!!

Mar 20, 2012

She Needed to Go Home

8 x 11 mixed media piece, for sale if you're interested.

Pretty much sums it up.... we are feverishly trying to get the house together to put it on the market.
YES- as in move back to Pa (or Md or De.)!

We have tried and tried to make a go of it.  But for various reasons, things just aren't going our way.


The icing on the cake, of course, is that Chris can't really find work up here as a commercial diver, so... the writing is on the wall.

So, lots to check off before we get the place on the market. Then it will be lots of praying to get it to sell! Wish us luck!!

PS- We have St. Joseph ready to go. He helped us get our other house sold, and now lives on the windowsill in our kitchen- front and center. Hopefully he will help us again, when the time comes. I'm thinking 1-2 months before the necessary work is done.

Mar 13, 2012

The Renovations....

are plugging along. Plodding along.

Actually, that's not true. Hubby hasn't been working, so he's been working on the house.
We are converting a small bedroom in the front of the house into a bathroom. Currently there is no bathroom there, so the bedrooms are sitting unused, except for guests (and then they have to walk through our bedroom to go to the bathroom).
 before
during
 The closet wall has beem moved out, taking advantage of the chimney on the right. This will make a nice sized closet, so sorely missing in old farmhouses.
This door is now gone. The tub will be in this spot, with the toilet to the left.
This all came about after Chris jacked up a beam in the basement, which subsequently cracked the plaster in the bedroom and dining room wall. When we decided to repair the wall, I told him that we really needed to think about putting a bath in that part of the house. Did I mention that I've been saying that since we moved in??

This entails closing off the door to that room from our bedroom, which is where the wall cracked. We opened another door off the hallway/office area. So far, the plumbing is roughed in and it passed inspection. The enlarged closet is roughed in too Thank God Chris can do this himself.
 before

the new doorway into the bathroom

Closing off the doorway presented another problem- how to match the paneling. This is real paneling, not the stuff you buy in sheets. Luckily, there was some in the barn, so Chris sanded it, and I will paint it when the drywall is all done. Then, probably just buying some carpet and calling it a day.
before

during

What do you think?

Mar 6, 2012

Spring Cleaning!

OK, this is a shameless plug... BUT, I am cleaning house and selling some supplies and other goodies. The truth is, we are struggling a bit financially, so why not part with the somethings that I just haven't used?

 Check out my Etsy shop, Twigs & Feathers, for these goodies: 



And, I listed a bunch of stuff on eBay:


Happy Shopping!!

Mar 3, 2012

An Update

I saw A again the other day. This time her husband was with her.

She didn't look well. She was tired and breathless. I could tell she hasn't been eating or sleeping well. She peppered the physician with questions. I'm not sure if he could answer them. Answers, she's looking for answers...

I did the usual, started her IV, sedated her for the procedure. I used half the medication that I did last time, and she slept through most of it. Then she stayed for an hour, sleeping. Her husband sat next to her, texting on his phone.

Eventually I took her out in wheelchair. Last time she walked.

I don't know what is in store for her. The word "terminal" is being tossed around. She is 46.

I hope I see her again. I hope I can take care of a few more times, make it easy for her for a few minutes.

Similarly, I took care of a woman in her early thirties before Christmas. She was terminally ill, but trying to hang on until the holiday for her children. I cared for her 3 weeks in a row. I gave her as much comfort as I could. I went up to my old unit to get her chapstick because her lips were so dry. I gave her warm blankets and let her sleep.

I dreamed about her one night. Her hair was shoulder length. She hugged me and thanked me for taking care of her. I found out that she died 3 days later. She didn't make it to Christmas. True story.

The moral? Be gentle with each person you come into contact with, you never know what their situation is, their energy level, their needs, their loneliness. Your smile may be the very thing that gives them hope for a day.

hugs, Lee