My Substitute Reality -You're just jealous cause the little voices only talk to me-

In my last post I went over some of the upgrades we are doing to the house. I figured I should update everyone on how that is going.

We added a few things to the list. In addition to the AC, windows, insulation and solar panels we decided it was time to paint the outside since it hadn’t been painted since we moved in at the end of 1999.

The house was kind of yellow when we moved in but it wasn’t newly painted then. Every year I kept thinking we should look into painting and finally along with all the other stuff we decided to bite the bullet even though it wasn’t an energy upgrade.

We decided on a light gray with dark gray trim. I think it looks very nice now.

We also decided it was time to remove the carpet that was used as a liter box by our old blind cat Jasmine during her last year or so of life. We knew there was a hardwood floor underneath but had no idea what shape it was in. As it turned out it was in great shape.

We also replaced the dishwasher that we bought shortly after we got married in 1994. I would walk into the kitchen and see Betty or Michelle or Jen hand washing dishes and then putting them in the dishwasher. I couldn’t understand why you would even put them in the dishwasher if you had to wash them by hand anyway but apparently I don’t know much about such things. We replaced it with a Bosch unit that cleans the dirtiest dishes very well. It even has a water softener even though our water isn’t that hard.

We also figured if we were going to do the floors then we should pull off the old wallpaper and do some painting. When we pulled it off over by the shower in our master bath the wall was darkish. When we pulled up the carpet it was clear there had been some water damage. We called a plumber out and he opened the wall and found that our pipes had been leaking along with the shower pan. Because it was going to cost a lot to re-tile the shower I decided to rip it out and replace it with a fiberglass one that is more modern. The whole shower/leak thing wasn’t in our budget but it needed to be done so we did.

We also replaced the old couch we bought shortly after we got married with a sectional with recliners. That won’t show up until after the floor is done.

And finally I ordered a 70″ Sharp Q+ TV that is going to go over the fireplace. It will turn that room into a theater. I originally thought about getting a 4K TV but after talking to Ken H. about it he convinced me it would be better to get a little larger 1080p as the 4K technology is still in it’s infancy. There is also a limit as to how good something looks based on your distance from it and a 70″ 1080p will look about as good as a 60″ 4K from the distance we will be viewing.

The final thing we are probably going to do is a hot tub but that’s going to wait until we get the solar panels.

Lots of upgrades and now you are up to date.

Betty’s mom passed away last Monday.

She’s been living a life that hasn’t been very enjoyable for quite a few years so we are glad her suffering is over but it’s always hard to say goodbye to someone who’s been such a large part of your life.

When Betty and I met in 1993 her mom lived in the house Betty grew up in. It was in Van Nuys just a short distance from downtown Van Nuys. In 1993 she was still quite good but it was plain she was getting nearer to the time when she would need help.

I’m not sure exactly when but I believe it was around 2000 that she moved in with Betty’s youngest sister Donna. Donna lived in Santa Clarita which is about 25 miles north of Los Angeles. She lived in a double wide trailer with her 2 sons and one daughter. The sons and daughter eventually moved out and it was just Donna and Alice.

Alice began showing signs of Alzheimer’s in the early 2000s (probably around 2003) but her health was still okay. Over the last 5 years she’s gotten worse and it was close to a year since she had been out of the house.

Last weekend Donna said she stopped eating and was much worse than she had seen her. Monday morning Donna talked to her and she opened her eyes, then closed them for good.

She is survived by 4 children listed in age from oldest down. Cliff is married to Gloria and they have 2 sons and a daughter. Lillian was never married. Betty was married twice and has 3 daughters. Donna was married to Dennis Price (who passed away last year) and has 2 sons and a daughter.

This was taken at Forest Lawn. Next Thursday there will be a memorial service.

It’s been almost 2 months since I made a post, well, 6 weeks anyways.

The problem is there’s been nothing really post worthy for those last 6 weeks. At least nothing that deserved more than a mention on Facebook.

Oh sure, Betty is still dealing with medical issues (as she will be forever) and so is Michelle (hopefully not forever) and Jen is Jen and Ann is Ann.

I think the biggest thing that’s happened in the last few weeks is Jenny driving to Ventura for jury duty for a few weeks. She would have had jury duty a few miles away but her residence of record is still Simi Valley. I don’t feel sorry for her having to do that drive and she did say she enjoyed it. I think she was just making lemonade and they could use the eggs.

We did get a bit of good news mixed with bad about Michelle last week. The good news is she is cancer free but the bad is she is going in for surgery this Tuesday to remove most of her “parts” she would have liked to keep. I’ll let her elaborate.

Another good thing is Betty and I will be traveling to Arizona and Wisconsin next month to see family. I need to see my mom and it’s always great to see the other Phoenix folk. Dale is supposed to also be in the area so hopefully we can see him too. We saw Heather and her brood a few months ago in Southern Cal but I always love to see them anytime.

After spending a few days in Arizona we will head to Kenosha to see the newest member of the Weiss family. Eric and Jocelyn just moved out of that old house and into a nice apartment. I don’t know what we will be doing for the 4 or 5 days we will be there but Joce says she has plans. Anytime with the kids and grandkids is fine no matter what we’re doing.

I knew mom would like an update so I figured I could get this in and then when we get back from our trip next month I can tell you all about it.

Not me, not yet. Michelle is going to visit Jocelyn and Eric and the boys in a couple of days. I think she’s going to spend almost a week.

I had wanted to go with her but a few things are keeping me here for a bit longer. Maybe I can visit after they start getting snow. I do love me some Wisconsin snow. But for sure I’m going to go out before the end of the year. Hopefully Betty will be able to go with me.