Remember when I said . . .

If you dropped by Tuesday and read that there are others far worse off than I, I was actually thinking about the people devastated by the floods in Australia, the homeless living on the streets in the cold, or the people snowbound along the I-95 corridor, but NOT anyone in my neighborhood. However, Tuesday afternoon, I heard the fire engines go by my house and turn off their sirens rather close by. I didn't think anything about it at the time, but decided to investigate after a few minutes. When I stepped off my porch, I saw billows of smoke coming from down the street, and knew it was either my neighbor Sally's house, or my neighbor Donna's house. By the time I retrieved my camera and card, which was still plugged into the hard drive, some of the smoke had dissipated.

When I stepped across the street, still in my house slippers, I immediately saw it was my friend Donna's house. I would have posted these photos sooner, but I was told her DIL Helen reads my blog and I didn't want her to get the news on my blog before someone had a chance to notify her.


I snapped photos as I walked to the scene. Others had gathered on the west side of the street, too.


As I got closer, I didn't even notice the firefighters on the roof.


My concern was for my friend.


The fire marshal arrived about the same time I took this photo.


As the smoke began to dissipate, I finally noticed the firefighters on the roof.


There was more smoke as they cut through the roof of the garage.


More firefighters


joined the ones already on the roof.


Real drama was playing out in front of my eyes and my camera.


As I snapped shot after shot (over 200 in all), I noticed my friend Sally standing in her doorway.


Although you can't see it here, she is talking to the fire marshal. She couldn't remember the phone number of Donna's daughter. It was at this point, I joined her and gave the fire marshal Donna's daughter's name, while Sally looked up her phone number.


I couldn't believe all the people who came to gawk,


and all the firefighters who came to this fire.


Although it's hard to see in this photo, onlookers are now starting to arrive from up the street,


even though the smoke was gone, and the firefighters had entered the house to make sure the fire was truly out. The glass in the garage windows had shattered under the intense heat and the cold water that was directed toward the roof area.

After making sure Sally was OK, I took one last shot of the fire crew, then


headed home. Since Donna was not home, there was nothing I could do, except possibly get in the way.


There was even a truck filled with equipment parked across the street from my house.


One final shot from my driveway, perhaps my favorite of all.

It just goes to show, no matter how many problems you think you have, there is always someone who has it worse. When I couldn't get to my basement, it was a HUGE inconvenience (and I admit, a bit of a panic on my part). But I still had the rest of my house, Bleubeard and I were safe, and we could sleep in our own beds at night. Thanks for dropping by and I will add updates as I learn them.

WOYWW # 86

I almost didn't join WOYWW this week, because I only visited about eight people out of nearly 170 last week who linked to Julia at Stamping Ground. I had every intention of visiting everyone, but on Wednesday

while packers were moving my basement studio contents to storage,

the stairs going to my basement studio fell. Or possibly I should say, they slid down the wall due to excessive traffic and wet wood. I spent the next few days helping my friend Scott (as best I could) rebuild them since they weren't covered by insurance.


Now Bleubeard and I have only the tiny craft room upstairs to work in, but he doesn't seem to mind. He enjoys cozy environs.


On my work table tonight are the beginnings of some things I hope to have made for the One World One Heart (OWOH) blog hop which begins this Sunday.


Included will be several mixed media birds, although right now these two look more like metal lids than birds.


Of course, I know you came to see the rocking horses! These tiny rocking horses are the only two out of about 450 that are cast iron. Yes, they are quite small, but very heavy.


They are also quite elusive when it comes to photographing them in the harsh night light.

Before I leave, I want to thank each and every one of you who dropped by last week. I swear I would have visited if I'd had even one free minute. I'm very, very grateful to all of you. And please come back on Sunday to see all the goodies I will be offering as gifts just for stopping by the OWOH blog event.

Paperwork and Tea

Some of you may have noticed that I didn't post yesterday for the first time in over two years. I was busy with the restoration company, the general contractor for the renovation, and the guys who took measurements and decided what had to go and what they would replace in my basement. It seems it will be a bigger job than first anticipated, since they decided to repair or replace the hallway walls, and paint the bathroom. The entire renovation will take around two months.

So today, while I'm answering phone calls and waiting for the packers to return, I begin the arduous task of the required paperwork that must be filled out along with everything else. Right now, I'm taking a minute to have tea with Kimmie and all the gals who regularly participate in this weekly fun event.


Today I'm drinking Yogi Simply Green Tea. This is the perfect tag for today. It reminds me that no matter how many things go wrong in my world, I still have a ton of blogging friends who visit whether I return the favor or not, I have my health, I have a way to get to the basement thanks to a very real life friend, and I know there are others who are in far worse shape than I. I am really and truly blessed because these are my strengths.


While the tea steeps for the requisite 3 to 5 minutes, I had to laugh at my favorite piece of paper in the entire stack. It is the hastily drawn sketch of the stairs that Scott drew on the back of a receipt last week before we went for supplies. Click to enlarge.

Add to that, a lovely envelope the tea came in, the tea bag and tea tag, and I will have lots of art fodder (and a bit of compost material) as soon as the tea bag dries. What more could I ask for? After all, it's a beautiful Tea Tuesday with loads of sunshine. These (and YOU) are truly my strengths. Happy Tea Tuesday and bless you for checking in on me.

Silent Sunday: Lighthearted Homage to Bleubeard

Week in review (or when life gets in the way of visiting blog friends)

This post could well have been called "The Joys of Owning This Old House." A week ago Friday, I had a broken pipe in my basement. It burst and did a tremendous amount of damage. I didn't take any photos because I was too busy sucking water and trying to salvage things that were on the lower shelves in my craft room. After the water subsided and had been sucked up, I managed to take a few photos I showed last Sunday. Those photos showed lots of "stuff" being pushed around in my basement studio in order to get to the water damage, the pipes, and to make room for the restoration equipment. I didn't take photos on the weekend, because I was busy trying to salvage what I could.

On Monday, the POD that was supposed to sit in my drive could not be delivered due to the low hanging branch across said drive, so there I was, stuck making all kinds of decisions while feeling a bit overwhelmed. I was trying to keep out items I thought I might need in the next six weeks, including a couple of swaps and the OWOH giveaway. It took forever for me to decide what to keep and what to allow them to pack.


On Tuesday, the plumber was back and things began to move at lightning speed. Looks like a branch didn't make it when the plumber backed in.


While he was here, the restoration people came to pack my studio. When the plumber left, they moved one truck to the driveway and it looked like a convention. And all they did most of the day was pack and pack and pack and pack and pack.



Late Tuesday afternoon, one of the movers started bringing boxes upstairs.


It didn't take him long to practically fill my small living room.


He was a real sweetie and worked hard getting all the boxes up the stairs


two boxes at a time.


I went to the basement to see how things were progressing and I noticed the top step was a bit shaky. But it looked like the packers were really making progress.


Most everything in the main craft room was packed and ready to travel on Wednesday.


We even took a few minutes to laugh. That was the last time I laughed all week!! By late Tuesday afternoon, the stairs going to my basement had shifted and nearly collapsed. It was no longer safe to get to the basement. Edited due to questions in comment section: These are two of the people who came to pack my belongings. I am the short one behind the camera and am not in the photo!

When the insurance adjuster came on Wednesday, I could barely make it down the steps. I'm short and the first step had sunk about 16", too far for me to step at one time. The adjuster said the insurance company would not pay for the new steps. He talked to me like I was some kind of criminal, some kind bad person, trying to scam the insurance company when all I did was ask if the equipment and added usage while the stairs were still wet, could have caused the stairs to collapse. A fair question, I thought. I am not used to being treated like a child. I didn't treat him with disrespect, I couldn't understand why he treated me that way.


I did the only thing I knew to do. I called my friend Scott. Granted, Scott is in the middle of a whole house remodel, and I'm sure the last thing he wanted to do was come repair my steps. But he dropped everything because I know he heard the despair in my voice and the fact I asked for help. No beating around the bush, no subtle hints, just "please help me." That was all it took. By the time he got here, the insurance agent was gone, but he talked to the owner of the restoration company.


The restoration people were super nice, climbing the steps after they removed the the top two. They worked till noon, removing as many things as they could, then left for the day. Scott did a lot of measuring,


and removed concrete that had crumbled under the weight of the water. You can see how far the step slid, by the lack of paint on the right wall.


After a trip to Home Depot for supplies, and gathering tools from both our places, it was dinner time. I put on a pot of beans and Scott removed the old steps.


He then began the arduous task of repairing the concrete with mortar.


He also patched the cinder block wall on the left.


There was nothing left to do on Wednesday, except wait for the mortar to dry and eat dinner. By now, it was nearly 11 pm.


Thursday morning was a sharp contrast to Wednesday. The sunshine brought hope and the prospect that things would truly be OK. Even Bleubeard was checking out the operation.


Now anyone who knows me, knows I'm a neat freak, so boards in my living room were a bit of a stretch. But it had pelted ice the night before, so the boards needed to be kept dry.


Mr. Curiosity had to inspect everything,

and ask if he could help.


I told him that he could watch for Scott,


who would be here shortly.


When Scott got here, he began by making the runners that would hold the steps in place.


I didn't even have to use power tools. All I had to do was take photos and play "gopher."


When the first rail was finished, Scott used it as a template,


rather than remeasuring. Here he's making sure he has the board lined up straight.


then used the framing square to get accurate measurements.


Needless to say, Scott took these photos. The runners that hold the stairs together and against the walls are now in place. You can also see where he repaired the cinder block wall under the stairs.


He also took photos of what hadn't been packed, including the gray shelves full of things I thought I might need.


All the damage from the water is quite evident.


You can see where they already cut the wall and ceiling so the plumber could get to the pipes.


There are only a few items left in the room, but they still have the contents of the closet to remove.


All those machines don't look so big after everything is out of the room.


Some of the toe kicks are now in place. Scott cut them to size from a sheet of plywood. When he was finished, he cleaned the area and we called it a day.


Yesterday morning, we removed the old railings and toe kicks from the existing steps. Yes, the old steps need paint, but they are in good shape, even after sitting under wet carpeting for days. I was able to get two apart in the time it took him to do six. And one of mine nearly fell apart because it was one we couldn't reuse. Talk about fast. I could not keep up. In the end, Scott replaced three steps, which I didn't think was bad. In the above photo, nothing is nailed in. He is finishing the final step and doing a dry run.


By early afternoon, all the steps were made and screwed in place


except for one because I asked him to get photos before he finished. So where was I?


I went to City Hall, where the city government is. I had to go to the top floor, where the City Clerk's office is.


Thankfully they have elevators, or I would still be climbing the stairs! The purpose of the visit was to pick up forms for Scott, who will be filing for the position of Mayor in the upcoming election.


Yes, you read correctly. I may be friends with the mayor of our fair city soon. Filing deadline is Tuesday, but he plans to file on Monday. The primaries are March 1, so there isn't much time to campaign. He's hoping to campaign through word of mouth and virtually.


Back home it was back to reality. It was time to clean up and make things presentable, since the general contractor and the restoration people will be back on Monday to start the madness all over again. Until then, thanks for reading this (I realize it is LONG) and know why I haven't been around to see you for awhile. My time has truly NOT been my own. But be aware I am truly grateful for all your wonderful comments and concerns. Thank you for being so good to visit, even when I can't get to your place.