House For Sale!!!!!

Steve and I finished staining the deck Monday afternoon.  James came and worked that day but then we didn't see him until Friday because he and his family ate some bad lettuce and he was sick for most of the week.  But, all the important visual repairs / remodels were done by Wednesday when our realtor came to take photos of the house and yard.  And, on Friday, our house was officially listed with SIX showings scheduled already before the end of tomorrow!!!  One yesterday, four this afternoon, and one tomorrow afternoon.  I have savored two feelings all week: looking behind and knowing that all our months of hard work are finished and looking ahead and anticipating looking at houses in St. Louis.  

I actually went to St. Louis on Tuesday but it was with two friends, Elizabeth and Tracie, to shop at IKEA.  Elizabeth had a piece she had ordered that needed to be returned and she wanted to buy a piece of storage furniture for her scrapbook room.  Tracie and I mostly just went along for company, although Tracie had never been to an IKEA before - and I also went to look for dish washing brushes and a grater for a friend.  

I found the brushes but the graters are no longer offered. Tracie was completely wowed by the store and she got some plant pots for her mother-in-law.  Elizabeth made the return with no hassles but she did NOT get the piece of furniture because IKEA was completely out of stock. She was not happy, as you can imagine.  I had thought we could look at a house in O'Fallon on the way home but by the time Tuesday rolled around, it was already under contract.  Darn!  Aside from Elizabeth's failure to get her long-awaited furniture, it was a nice outing.  

For the rest of the week, I spent a couple of hours each day from Thursday through Saturday going over to Elizabeth's to help her paint her bathrooms (as if I had not done enough painting already!) because, now that our house is finished, what is there for me to do???  The project is not done and I expect I will be going over in the coming week to continue helping.  

Wednesday, Steve and I visited the scrap metal yard to get rid of the car parts we had to show for our insurance claim and to turn in two bags of aluminum cans I had collected while walking along Blue Ridge.  We brought home a whole $3.00 for our efforts.  Elise came over that night and we watched "Justice League" together.  

She came over again on Thursday to borrow the Element to move more things into her storage unit.  We saw her again last night when we moved the rest of her belongings out of our under-the-stairs area and into her storage unit.  She also stayed for dinner.  Pork steaks cooked on the grill.  Mmmmmmm!

We had a lovely time last Sunday evening with Beckie and Kyle and Micah.  They came into town to celebrate a friend's birthday on Saturday and stayed over into Sunday and came to dinner.  We ate outside under the backyard trees - weather was perfect - and just enjoyed each other's company.  Kyle and Micah brought their dogs, Luna and Armand, and Steven and Tamara brought Bacon.  All three had a grand time together.

Steve got the results of his bronchoscopy.  It is not the fungus so prevalent in the southwest.  It is "simply" sarcoidosis - which he also has in his kidneys.  He was actually prescribed hydrochloroquin for his condition - yeah, the stuff that was supposed to cure Covid19 and that President Trump is taking as a prophylactic - and he is reducing his steroid dose in steps.  His potassium and calcium levels are now within normal range but his creatinine levels, while getting lower, are still not within normal perimeters.  My x-ray showed mild osteoarthritis in both hips.  Certainly nothing to be done about that at this time except take ibuprofin when I need it.  And, I have not needed it as much lately.  All the remodeling activity just caused it to flare up.  I have noticed that I need more pills since I have been helping Elizabeth.  

So, going forward - our future, while a bit fuzzy,  still looks bright!