Hi Barb :)
WAY TO GO! getting things rolling! :D
Have fun on your mini vacation. :)

Hi Barb and Tillie, brilliant minds think alike, we all posted at the same time!!!

Hi everyone.
I received the cost estimate from the plumber. The dishwasher I ordered came in and the appliance store will hold it for me until the plumber is ready to put it in. The woman I talked to at the plumbing supply house is on vacation this week. I will go in Monday morning and order the fixtures and get a cost estimate for those. My plumber will pick them up.
My plumber told me that if I want to replace the flooring in the guest bathroom, I need to have that done BEFORE they put in the toilet, so today I picked up 3 samples of linoleum to bring home.
Decluttering has slowed some the past few days. I have made a list of everything that absolutely has to be completed before the workmen start.
Next week is the week I go to chaperone my nephew's baseball team. I leave on Tuesday morning and return late Sunday night. I am ready for another break away from the house. My brother is paying for the hotel. It will be nice to stay in a nice clean, uncluttered place where someone else does the cooking and cleaning for a few days. I know at the end of the week I will be ready to come home and start in afresh.
I was amused by the post today from Mary and her ad. I think she has come to the wrong place. Just what we hoarders need---more temptation to purchase more stuff---NOT!
Have a great evening, everyone. It is clear and cool here today; perfect for sitting outside with a glass of iced tea.

Hi Diane :)
We were posting at the same time :D
Hope the smoke doean't get too thick at your house.
Fortunately for me the wildfires are far enough away and the winds are blowing the smoke the other directions.
WTG! doing a locely, welcomung job on the steps.
Have fun with Tanner. :D

Hi Everybody :)

Today I have been so tired and sleepy all day.
Got sleep last night and still kept falling asleep all day today.
Took care of the cat's needs and nothing else.
Looking forward to bed time.

Hope you all are doing well today. :)

Hello all. Tillie, thanks for the reminder not to move lilacs in the heat!
We have wildfires in every directions and the wind is kicking the firmens butts, 25mph winds, gusting to 30+. Not enough people or equipment because so many burning.
Tanner got here at 9am, nice to have him here, although he mostly does his own thing. Hi mom said my front steps and front area are "very welcoming" now, I felt proud that I did such a good job on it.
Organized a couple of cabinets and drawers in garage this morning. Moved several rocks to area in yard that I have been cleaning up. Felt good to work in yard. Have a sink full of dishes talking to me. Feel tired today, will be good to have temperatures under 90 starting tomorrow. I have lots of work planned, hopefully more energy tomorrow. Thinking of everyone, hoping you are having lots of fun cleaning today.

Good morning!

Roxie: Thinking about you. Iced tea clink!

diane: I hope you have a great time with Tanner!

Tillie: I'm glad to hear you got a good night's rest Tuesday night. I hope you slept well last night also.

Me: I did do my goals for yesterday. I also got several other things done with the help of people in chat room yesterday afternoon.
One of my main goals for today is to continue to work on a certain section of my living/dining area that is particularly cluttered at the moment. I found a very odd assortment of items when I was working on that section yesterday, including a belated birthday card I'd purchased for someone. Now I don't remember whose birthday I had forgotten!

Have a great day, everyone.

Hi Barb :)
How's it going getting things ready there?

Hi LR2014 :)

WTG! finding that list so fast! :D

Hi :)

When I moved in here there were three very sad looking lilac bushes in different locations around the property.
They were very old and had lots of branches with little roots.
I dug them up and separated them out. They looked like sticks.
I planted all these sticks in a row and with water & manure they started to grow big & leafy very quickly.
They are all very tall now.
They get seeds and some seeds grow into new lilac bushes.
Some are in the hedge row so I leave them. Others grow where ever in the yard and I allow my friends to take them for their yards.
The transplants do very well but it is important not to move them when it is hot or they will just die.
Best to move them in early Spring.

Best lilac bush I have ever seen was in Virginia City.
It is very old, next to one of the original old houses there.
The house is two stories and the lilac is just as tall as the house. :D

Thanks Tillie, I cooked it with lid off that must be why it was like eating a tough tongue!! Will try with lid.
98 degrees is hot. Smokey too. I pulled weeds and grass, trimmed edges of lawn. Picked up things in yard for garbage. Still have not put away some things in here, just not much motivation in the heat, good today is hottest day of the week. 92 might feel better tomorrow. Might get down to high 80's this weekend.
Tomorrow at 9am Tanner comes to visit for 4 days, looking forward to my little pooch friend being here. I watered some this morning, worked outside from 6am to 1pm today, slow motion but did get some things done. I have a crocheted blanket and some string lights that go on outdoor umbrella ready to go away, have a really big black bag and would like to fill it this week, with donations.
Tiillie did you transplant lilacs to form your row or did they just march to next spot. I see mine are popping up in new places.
was thinking it would be good to move some to east side of big deck so I have shade next summer, well will take a few years to get that big, but my tacky shade cloth I put up on top of big umbrellas on deck today, made me think trees would be a lot better and prettier. I was cleaning that area of yard today and realized it is just bare dirt and would look so much better with trees there.

Good morning :)

Got the watering done already.
Finally got a good night's sleep last night. Was totally exhausted.
Need to eat actual real food today and not just snack on fruit, chips & chocolate.
Just a few things to tidy up around here and the house will be good enough.
Cats have all already started melting, drapped all limp on window sills, dressers & back of couch, napping.
Looking forward to watching movies on Netflix and playing with my beads & sewing projects.
So, what are you all up to today? :)

Good morning.

Well, I did end up being able to meet my posted goals yesterday. I was happy that I was able to find that address list within my ten-minute time frame. (Yea!)

Some of my minimum goals for today are to put away laundry I dried yesterday, take out trash, load the dishwasher, and spend some more time (at least fifteen minutes) working on some clutter in a certain section of my living/dining room area.

Have a great day!

Hi Diane :)
Great plans you have for working around this heat.
Sorry you have wildfire smoke too to deal with.
Weather report here lied, temps up to 108 today not the cool 100 they promised.
Whenever I have cooked chicken breast in the microwave I have put it into a lidded casserole type bowl.
Uncovered it will dry up.
Depending on the size of the chicken and the power of the microwave it is best to cook it for 5 to 10 minutes, check, then another 5 to 10 minutes till no more pink.

I don't eat chicken but one winter had a Robin who had been shot living here till she recovered and was able to fly again.
I fed her lots of different foods but she loved chicken.
She decided she would no longer eat anything except chicken.
So I cooked chicken for her.
Then she decided that she only wanted white meat.
So I cooked her chicken breasts.
Eventually her wing healed and she regained her strength.
Her leg was crippled but she was able to use it well enough to stand or perch or hop around.
When it was time to let her go she really didn't want to leave.
She had to think about it for hours before she finally flew out the open door.
:D

Hello everyone. Tillie, I am with you, the heat is taking a tole on me too. I stayed outside longer today, feel like a mole in a hole with all the shades pulled etc, being outside even in the heat was good, until too hot. Watered, messed around with shades still not up outside. Several fires in surrounding areas, smoke. Thousands of lightening strikes, several fires started, fire fighters are stretched thin, must be so difficult to work in the heat, God Bless firefighters.
I arranged several strips of fabric by color outside so had enough light to clearly see what goes together, fun in the shade, til too hot.
Did wash all dishes. My goals today are slim to none. Already spent an hour in big bedroom insulating around window air conditioner, and organizing stuff. Light is good in there so really want to work some more in there until more floor is available, with window ac, and good lighting in there, plan to set up table in there and sew in there. Really want all craft stuff out of living room.
I rarely read, except at night to fall asleep, would like to read some today for pleasure. 15 minutes on paperwork.
How do you cook chicken breast in microwave?

Good morning, everybody.

Following up on yesterday: I did my posted goals, except that I spent only half as much time working on that bedroom as I'd originally planned. I appreciate the help of those who were in the chat room yesterday while I was there.

Some of my minimum goals for today: I plan to go to the Laundromat to dry the clothes I washed yesterday. I also plan to add to my gratitude list, get a bill or two paid, work on that bedroom some more, and spend at least ten minutes looking for an old address list that has some contact information I wish to have. I will not spend too much time looking for it, because it may have been one of the items that got ruined when a plumbing problem occurred here a few months back.

Have a great day, everyone.

Barb: I am glad things are progressing with your work estimates and that you are pleased with this plumber so far. (I hope you are also pleased with the estimate.) I relate to the comment about how things "migrate" when they're not contained. As for your overall plans, in case I didn't say it already, I think you're really going to enjoy all these repairs and updates when you're finished with them! I'm excited for you!

diane: I'm really glad you had fun at the festival. Good idea to take the camera with you for those clothing ideas. Yea for clean clothes, clean dishes, good self care, and . . . yea for fun skirts! I was really glad to hear you say you were able to see how much progress you had made when you were able to see it from up high. I hope you're having a blast today! Go, diane!

Tillie: I hope you have a fun "playdate" with your beads today! With all this talk about watering and gardening and all that, I was thinking that maybe fun could be thought of as "fertilizer for the soul." Ha. (I don't know . . . maybe "watering the soul" sounds better.)

bitsy: Even though you have messes, be sure you still have some fun.

Roxie: Thinking about you! Hugs!

Me: I did end up getting together with family for part of the day yesterday. That was nice. By now, I've forgotten what all I did get done at home. I know I did get some laundry put away and some cleaning done in one of the bathrooms (the one that had the leak last week).

I got out fairly early this morning and did some work in that rural area of which I often speak. Sprayed some invasive trees and cleaned out a small water tank that I didn't finish cleaning out last week. Cleared away some tall grass at the entrance to the property. Also did some weed-eating in an in-town yard. Wanted to get all that work done (especially the tree spraying) before rains hit later this week. (Yea for rain in July!)

Goals for later today: Wash a load of laundry. Spend twenty minutes sorting some items in one of my bedrooms. Get some bills ready to be paid. Add to my gratitude list.

Hugs to everybody!

Congrats Barb on getting the hoard out of plumbers way, and actually having him come in and make a plan for repairs, I would love to do the same, good to see you hire help.

I just wrote a long good morning note and my computer shut down to install some dumb thing for windows.
Anyway, went out to garage and organized some more, found more cotton knits to cut up. Got the outdoor shades down from rafters, dusty critters. From up high I realized I really have made lots of progress, still lots to do. Looked at all the cabinets I painted, and most are still empty, have to decide what would be most convenient to put in cabinets and label them. Went in insulated room, did some organizing and put nuts in an empty cabinet. Moved lots of stuff off floor in both, vertical space use thanks to Karl.
Did not put shades up, have to let go of guilt for that, but worked hours already, tired of it.
NOW-------the fun begins. Brought table and cutting board in from garage, and all the knits I found out there, most were in rag bag cause have paint or tar on them, perfect for practice cutting sewing.
Table up, ready to start cutting, may do it all day. Want to give myself permission to just mindlessly cut all the seams out, not worrying about how I will use them, just cut panels for now. Rare to give myself a day just to play, and today is the day, after reading about tillie playing with beads, and how that lifts her spirits. Happy I have all I need, to eat, create, drink, can just have fun this week in the heat. I plan to clean up my craft mess when I am done.
Thanks all for chat last night, I feel much more positive today after saying my affirmations to start my day. Sunday chat is helpful, I learn so much about what others are dealing with, and get so much support.

The plumber came today to do the estimate. I was able to get areas clear for him to access. He was very courteous, asked lots of questions, and answered many of mine. I think they will do a good job. I will know how much it costs in a day or two. The next step is to finalize all the fixtures and get them ordered. He also suggested that I have the new flooring put in the bathroom before I put in the toilet.
The cat went into the garage and the dogs went outside while he was here so they would not get in the way. After he left and the dogs were back inside, the sky opened up and it poured. Oh, Tillie, I wish I could send you some of this rain to help cool things off.
I have two bins of projects to do. (1) the material, thread, etc. for the living room curtains (2) tile, mastic, grout, sealer, and applicators to do the kitchen backsplash. I want to have the living room completely decluttered before I sew the curtains and the new plumbing done in the kitchen before I start working on the backsplash.
I will also need to have bins to contain the items from under all 3 sinks when the plumber comes.
The bad thing about being a hoarder and clutter is that items tend to migrate and get lost in the mess. If they are in bins with lids on, everything at least stays together.
Have a great day and take care of yourselves, friends.

Good morning :)

I am up early watering.
Really need to after yesterday's 110 degrees.
Will do some dishes and shower & shampoo when the watering is all done.
Then back to playing with my beads. :D
Cats still can't go out, too many baby bunnies in the grass.

Have a GREAT day!
Make time to do something fun. (((hugs)))

diane
your project sounds so fun!
doing creative things is what used to keep me going. I haven't been able to do much of anything lately and I miss it. Maybe after I manage to take care of my messes I will be able to enjoy something like that again.

Yesterday I had a great time at the Summer Street Festival. The two booths that had upcycled clothes were both there again this year. Both women were pleasant and talked at length about their process, and let me take pictures. They both live in a big city and go to Goodwill and get old t shirts by the pound, cut up and make skirts, tops, pants out of different combinations of t'shirts. Last few years I forgot how the things looked when I got home so took camera this year. I went to a thrift store that has clothes in a 25 cent bin. I found a few t-shirts 100%cotton, good quality, great colors. Washed today and hung out to dry. now will cut them up. Then make a pattern of skirt with several sections. Put different pieces of shirts in unique design. So last night and today, went through my closets and found plenty of tshirts and other knit things that can be cut up and used. Shirts that I couldn't part with, will now be used in a fun new way. Sure did not need to buy more at thrift store, thought I had given my old tshirts away, well there were still plenty. Hard to believe I really do have everything I need, sometimes, silly me.
So now there are piles of tshirts by color in living room, need to pick the one color spectrum I will work on first and put all the others away. When this much stuff is out, am immobilized.
Got the dishes done a few hours ago. Watered lots of things outside this morning. Ate vegetables and took my vitamins. Cut toenails, which haven"t been cut in ages. Still need to shower before chat. I am excited about my new project and willing to make a pattern, so I can perfect the fit. The trick for me is to do a craft project and not leave stuff all over the place.
Did great keeping dishes done this week, clean clothes, more self care, and now found a way to have fun in the heat. mowed my tiny lawn, now will clean up my cotton supply and start working on making a pattern for my fun skirts.

Hi friends,
I think that I will probably not join the chat group tonight. I still have more to do to get ready for the plumber to come and give an estimate tomorrow, so I would like to keep working tonight as long as I have the energy.
Clay did not show up to mow on Wednesday and with all the rain we have had, the grass was getting really tall. Two boys from down the block and around the corner came over and asked to mow so I hired them. As this was there first time, I stayed outside and trimmed some bushes so I could supervise their work without breathing down their necks. Since I was outside most of the day, I got behind on the inside work.
I hope that the plumber will be able to focus on the areas I am asking him to fix and not be bothered by the clutter in the areas I have not yet dealt with.
I noticed that where the toilet leaked before I shut it off damaged the linoleum and baseboard in the bathroom. I was not going to redo the flooring in that room, but I think that I might as well get an estimate for that room as well. (It is a tiny room and the subfloor will need to be check anyway.) I may as well go ahead and have them put in same tile I am putting in the entrance.
Now I am going to shower, dress and go get a sandwich. I need to get out of the house for a while and also don't want to mess up my clean kitchen by cooking.
Have a good discussion, all, and I will check in again after the plumber is finished.

Good morning, everyone!

bitsy: I relate a lot to what you wrote yesterday. It is sometimes hard to know when to go to the ER and when not.

diane: Looking forward to hearing how your day went yesterday. I hope you had fun!

vi: We're thinking about you as you get all this moving done! Looking forward to hearing updates when you finally get the opportunity to post. I hope you get the chance for some rest and relaxation soon.

Roxie: I'm hope you are feeling better today. I'm glad to know that if you do end up having to be back in the hospital, you will have the comfort of knowing that you have friends who would take care of Sloopy. I hope you were able to get someone to make a run to the grocery store for you. Many hugs!

Me: It took more time and effort than I expected yesterday, but I finally did get the toilet unclogged. Didn't end up doing any work in that other bathroom. Did spend a little time cooking, and I made a run to the grocery store. The best thing about yesterday is that I got to bed early last night and slept better than I did the previous two nights.

I got out fairly early this morning and worked on cleaning out my vehicle. (It's not clean, just better.) It's supposed to be very hot this afternoon, so I knew I'd better do that while I had the chance. The rest of my plans for today may vary some, depending on whether I have a family get-together midday or not. (Sometimes we do on Sundays, and sometimes we don't.) If I end up being at home midday, I will probably work on dishes, laundry, that bathroom that I didn't work on yesterday, and also on sorting some things I got out of my vehicle this morning.

Have a wonderful day, everyone. Hugs to all.

Roxie,
I hope your chest pains have subsided! It is hard sometimes to decide when to call 911 or go to ER.
I have been having chest pains more often lately but have been chalking it up to anxiety attacks.it's kinda scary but if I be real still and take a pill for anxiety the pain goes away. my regular doctor said that I need to schedule another stress test. Anyway please post again soon and let everybody know how you are.

today I paid a couple bills and worked on the stuff in the car some. we have had to have the car jumped twice this weekend.I have to get it to mechanic Monday.

diane: I hope you do have fun (and also manage not to melt).

Tillie: I definitely had an LOL moment about your story about the cats and the potato.

Me: I did get the dishwasher run and got some laundry dealt with yesterday. As far as housework today goes, so far the main thing I've done has been to dry some laundry. Some of my plans for the rest of the day include getting some cleaning done in one of my bathrooms and getting a newly-clogged toilet dealt with in the other bathroom. (Oh, what fun!)

I hope all of you have a great day!

Already 80 degrees at 9:45 so trying to talk myself into staying home today, since by 11 when it opens it will be 90, then I read your post Tillie. Thanks so much, now will get my butt out the door and get there early, try to see everything before I melt.

I have been a busy woman today. I have both air conditioners on full blast so worked in big bedroom for about an hour, then went out in little room on garage that is insulated, smelled like a really bad sweaty arm pit, the potatoes I put in there months ago had long sprouts, some were 2 feet long, also many potatoes were rotten and smelled terrible, good I got them in garbage cart before pickup this morning. At first I was going to try to save the towels and totes they were in, then said, toss it all, such freedom. Worked about 2 hours out there reorganizing, screws in cabinet doors, I took off when painting months ago, then labeled some, and put things away in them. the floor has been found again. Actually more like 4 hours. Then went into yard, finished taking off the filthy stuff off front by fence and steps. Put up a white metal panel to cover the area, much better. Staked up a huge shrub that was in the way, gives me more shade now as well as covers up area. Green plants are so healing. Took lots of dead stuff off it. Want to pound a t post in, just ran out of energy. I worked from 6am to 3:30pm with probably 5 breaks, 2 food breaks. It was only 90 degrees today normally I would whine about 90, but felt so much better than 97-100 which have had for past week or two and is predicted for next 10 days. I tell you, this is the weirdest weather, coldest winter now hottest summer. I still have to get out and water, put t post in attach ties.
already did dishes, wiped counter, washed hung out towels from under dripping sink yesterday.
Tomorrow is my favorite street art festival of the year in Bend. It is supposed to be 97 tomorrow. I will go when it opens at 11, but will heat up fast, will be good inspiration for my creative side. disappointed it will be so hot

What am I doing today? Right now, I'm smiling about robins and cute, itty-bitty kittens.

I went out early this morning to check on things out in that rural area. Worked on cleaning out a water tank and on killing some small, invasive trees. While I was in that area, I visited a friend that I hadn't gone to see in a while. Enjoyed that. Didn't get back home until early afternoon. Have plans to attend a special event tonight.

I have about an hour or so before I need to start getting ready for an event tonight. I plan to spend some of that time on laundry and on dishes.

Happy Friday to all.

Good morning :)

Reading your posts makes me happy. :D
Been outside watering. Left all the cats inside.
Had a Robin out there with me, following me around, even standing on the hose.
Walking around in front of me as I moved around, taking her time, enjoying the company. :D
She's been eating lots of ripe juicy berries off the mountain laurels & wild currant bushes.
Did some pruning on the lilac hedge and some weed pulling and killed two nests of wasps.
Will just be sorta hanging out around here the rest of the day, already did all the daily stuff.

T.G.I.F. hope you all have something fun planned.
Lunch in the yard, run through the sprinkler, hang out with a wild bird, play with a baby cat, read a book, finger paint, make mud pies, splash in a puddle, etc. :D

Hi, everyone. My last two days have been rather busy (been away from home for a lot of that time). I've tried to read posts off and on as I had the chance, and I've been thinking about all of you!

Roxie: I'm so happy you were able to get the little kitten to eat. Thinking about the two of you together makes me smile.

diane: Your tossing out good stuff just for practice reminds me that our attitudes on these things can change. I remember how shocked I used to get when I would see things that seemed to be perfectly good items (furniture, in particular) tossed into the big garbage dumpsters here. Now I don't freak out so much when I see it. Being able to do that myself with a piece of furniture about a year ago (well, with the help and encouragement of someone else) was a big deal to me. The world did not come to an end. Yea for all the things you've gotten done the past few days. Sorry about the leak! (Bummer.)

Tillie: Later in the day, after having read your recent posts, I started thinking, "I'm glad I'm the hoarder and not the hoard-ee!" Many hugs.

Vi: I like trying to picture your new place. With so much of your clutter gone, it will look so nice! I may be in "vi withdrawal" until you get your computer hooked up at the new apartment.

Me: As for my goals for yesterday, I spent time on each area that I listed except the living room area. Got laundry put away. The maintenance men eventually did come yesterday and were able to find and fix the cause of the leak. (Yea.)

I didn't set any new goals for today because of some away-from-home activities that I had scheduled.

It's getting late, and I'm getting tired. I'll probably post more updates tomorrow. Hugs to all.

thanks tillie, good to hear from you again today, was worried about you
Enough with this hot weather
I am just watching opb, not sure I will get any more movement out of this body today.
I did throw several things away that were good enough to donate, just wanted to practice tossing good things to see I will survive, and really want to get rid of stuff, so need the practice. Sure appreciate you ladies/women/youngens/friends, makes dealing with the heat a little easier checking in and seeing what you are thinking

great you are both working your butts off Vio, so much to do, happy you have help today.

I'm glad things are looking better Diane!

we're slowly filling our little moving room with things to take and at the same time emptying out the other rooms and chucking everything into the back yard for the dump or setting it aside for selling

found a couple of good things to keep in the garage but only a few, it seems i was correct in my assessment of 10% in there.

Mister has been working his hiney off all morning! He's been so good about saying no to things that I would have said yes to. I've only pulled a few things out of boxes and have been chucking the rest


I'll check in later with hopefully more done. :)

Thanks Vi. Ok, so paint dried, brought gate up on deck and cut some off bottom then painted that part, went into get a different paint brush, while in there, decided to check under sink in bathroom I do not use. It had a leak that I fixed a few months ago. Since LR and Tillie have bathroom problems, thought it was a good idea, when I found all the towels soaked, I was a bit frustrated. I was in such a good mood thinking gate would be on soon, then had to stick my head under a leaky sink. Well it is a very old iron sink that rusted out around faucets, allowing water to leak, so will have to be replaced. pipes are copper, only have worked with plastic, so not sure if I can do it by myself. That bathroom does not have a shut off valve, so dried pipes and floor and wrapped towels around, turned faucets off tight, they were dripping adding to problem. Too hot to go buy a new sink now, maybe tomorrow early.
Good news---------no evidence of mice, last year there was plenty of gross evidence.
Then went back out in the heat and put gate back on, it is much harder to balance that huge gate on my foot while lining up holes, all done now, I am very happy with the way it turned out, no more dust and spider webs, no more flakey gross paint.
Life is full of ups and downs.

time to update those of you who aren't on the chat

We have a new apartment, but it's smaller than i thought it would be. it's okay. The Kitchen is built like a shoebox, but there is lots of room for all of our kitchen things and plenty of cupboard space for food, since there's no pantry
there's a nice little dining room where we'll be putting our desks and a small living room with a brand new fireplace. there won't be room for much more than a loveseat and our fishtank. maybe a couple of chairs. the floors are all hardwood, except for the bedrooms which have a nice new shag carpet. all the light fixtures are nice too. the paint is an awful taupe color but I've been told we can paint. there's hardly any closet space but there are these neat wire shelves all over the closets with plenty of room for hanging clothes. I feel like freaking out but honestly this is for my own damn good. I've decided to stick with my plan of only taking the personal things I can fit in a box, one box only. That doesn't include my clothes and computer (and accessories.) speaking of clothes, I was going to take a few boxes, but I'll be paring those down to one box as well. I do get to take my washer and dryer with me though.
Back to packing i guess. I'll be logged on the chat room all day today, because I feel like I might start panicking again at some point over getting rid of things. Thank you all for listening. I hope to see some of you throughout the day.

TIllie, you are a wonderful woman and I hope Steven gets his act together real soon. I think diane suggested a surprise party involving his friends, I totally agree with that. Hugs Tillie, there are people here who adore you even if he's too far gone to.

Roxie, good luck with your kitten. If you found it wandering around, it's likely lost it's mother. Even feral cats tend to be fairly good mothers. The fact that it lets you hold it is really good news though and if you get it to eat it will love you forever.

Roxie, I have a great picture of you and sloopy snuggling, warms my heart, knowing kitty is bringing you joy.

Tillie, thanks for filling us in how your life is going. Terrible situation getting worse. could you say you are calling repairman if bathroom and pipes are not fixed by the end of this weekend? As for the junk he is bringing home and dumping, so sorry you have to deal with this, summer is the worst time for addicted acquirers, so much available nothing I can do. I still think having a surprise party for him, inviting his friends over for bar b q or snacks, would make him see things differently.
As for me, I have been super productive. Did wash floors in kitchen and dining room. There was a carpet remnant on dining room floor, I had just vacuumed it for over a year, when I removed it, there was like a sand dune under it, throwing rug away. swept up sand dune, then vacuumed then washed. did dishes this morning.
The front steps look so great made me see how bad the gate was, so unscrewed it, took into yard, washed it last night. Got up at 5am today, got two coats of paint on gate. Cleaned and painted the posts that the gate attaches too. Once paint dries, will cut an inch off bottom. It is a huge gate, over 50 inches wide, i think 56 inches, so the weight of it makes it hang crooked, was going to move latches, but easier to just cut more off bottom for now, got saw out. Am taking some junk off area on outside of deck by gate post, have to get ladder to get out, behind tall bush. It is filthy, amazing how much better my dirt vision is today. sanitized sink in bathroom and kitchen and floor around toilet. Cleaned toilet inside and out. Yesterday called friend and had pleasant chat. I am doing better with taking breaks, work is more balanced, not so obsessive, but still not so sure of fun. Think today will do something creative with sewing. Yesterday in chat I finally put insulation around window airconditioner to help keep it cooler. Wanted to do it days ago, but without support some things are very difficult for me, had to cut things to size, you know the decision making dilemna. As I have been doing more cleaning inside, I am seeing things I don't like the way they look, same on deck. I am asking, what are priorities? Definitely getting air conditioning surrounds tight and sanitizing. Cooked several turkey burgers last night so have some protein ready to eat. Did not eat vegies yesterday so will eat 2 times today. Almost time for a shower but want to fix gate and reattach it. I feel too vulnerable with gate not in place, so priority to do now. And before it gets too hot. 97 yesterday, will be hotter next 10 days even in 100's, this is rare to have weeks of hot weather in a row like this year, so Tillie I can relate to your heat and depression. The difference is that I can do something about my filth and junk, where you have to live in another persons hoard. Thank goodness for taking care of your nieghbors critters. back to the gate

Hi Roxie :)

I have had some orphan baby kittens about that age that since they were still used to nursing would not eat or drink for me.
What I did was using my finger to scoop up some food and put it in their mouth.
If using dry cat food pour some hot water over it till it softens up & becomes mushy.
An eye dropper or medicine dropper works to get some water, milk or kitten formula into them.
Another trick I do is to put wet food on their feet and let them suck it off.
Good luck with your new baby and if all else fails a veterinarian can help you. (((hugs)))