Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Tuesday, July 20, 2021 -- Mattie died 616 weeks ago today. 

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2007. That summer we bought a bigger kiddie pool for our deck. Mattie loved it. It took up practically half of our space, but we made it work! Typically the pool did not look this empty! Mattie loved to throw all his toys in the pool and he used them in his elaborate play schemes! It is amazing all the activity our deck saw at one time. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 34,157,936
• Number of people who died from the virus: 609,437

Another early morning here! It was a full day with the painters, electrician, and the replacement of an air conditioning unit. I wish I could say we were done, but the electrician will be with us at least two days next week and into the following week as well. In fact, next week our electricity gets shut off for the entire house for a day, as electrical work needs to be done. The electrical panel that is currently in the house is not up to code, and this translates down to many electrical connections in the house. Thankfully we have solid support with HVAC, heating, electrical, and plumbing. Everything else seems to be much harder to manage.

The painting project manager doesn't like me at all. He was walking through our home today with the painters, he waved, but wouldn't talk to me. Very mature! It is all the little things that add up to one big headache. Meanwhile in the midst of all of this, I am trying to apply for a funding opportunity for Mattie Miracle. I was outside on the porch minding my own business and working on the application, when the neighbor I deem the "town crier" came by. Because I did not answer my front doorbell, he came around back and tried to help himself into the backyard! However, we installed locks on ALL of our gates. So no one is legally getting back there without me knowing it! Needless to say, he saw me on the porch, and I let him in and of course he wanted to sit down and chat. I don't mind two way conversations, but that typically doesn't happen with the town crier type. 

This is another thing I will miss about our townhouse in DC. The privacy! You aren't getting to my front door without going through our front desk. This will be a big adjustment for me with owning a house! So putting up boundaries will need to happen, otherwise I can see a problem developing. 

Monday, July 19, 2021

Monday, July 19, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2007. That day, Mattie was at a swimming class. His teacher's name was Margaret. Mattie was very cautious around water, but was making excellent strides in his group class. Parents were NOT allowed by the pool during class. We had to watch from a glass enclosed gallery. Not my favorite view, but nonetheless, I watched every lesson and as you can see tried to take photos. I honestly do not know how Mattie even got in the water, as this indoor pool's water was like a refrigerator year round. But Mattie was a good sport.

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 34,124,341
• Number of people who died from the virus: 609,204

I honestly feel like I am living a manic life. Even sleeping isn't restful. Last night, around 1:30am, Peter and I awoke to a buzzing sound. At first I had no idea what it was, but then we followed the sound and it was coming out of our alarm box by the front door. When we moved into our townhouse, it had an alarm already set up. For the first few years we actually used the alarm. Then given how safe we felt in our complex, we canceled the service and haven't used this alarm for probably TWO DECADES. So why was the alarm box buzzing? Our fear was if we couldn't stop the buzzing, a full fledged alarm sound was going to go off and wake every one up. So we scrambled around, Peter removed the box and cut the wires. That stopped the sound! It is truly odd that this would happen now, over twenty years after disconnecting the alarm service. All I can think is the alarm line was connected to our land line phone number. Since I had that number transferred to the house in Virginia, perhaps that triggered the buzzing? I have no idea. But there is not rest for us. 

I got up at 6am, so we could leave DC by 7:30am. We met the tile and HVAC folks at 8am. I absolutely love Ed, the person who cleaned our tiles, recolored the grout to the color of my choosing, and then sealed the floors. I have to take photos! If you saw the before and after, you wouldn't believe it. We went from black and dirty grout, to ivory grout that is sealed and won't show dirt again! Even the HVAC person was wonderful. Who wasn't wonderful is the painting company. The people painting are actually doing a good job, minus leaving doors and windows open, but the people managing the project are driving me crazy. The manager has to be in his late 20s and thinks he knows everything. He likes to lecture me about how I am making things difficult for the team. Today I let him have it and also called his boss. Not surprising, the boss has a similar personality as the project manager. I honestly can't wait for painting to be done! As they have taken over our home and there appears to be no end in sight. 

Sunday, July 18, 2021

Sunday, July 18, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2007. That week we took Mattie to Boston to visit Peter's parents. While there, Peter's mom gave Mattie a large puzzle of Tutankhamun. Mattie assembled the puzzle, as he was a BIG puzzle fan, and then decided to get down on the floor with it to see who was taller, the puzzle or him. Clearly Mattie wanted to show us he was the winner. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 34,078,832
• Number of people who died from the virus: 609,018

Today was supposed to be a break for us! A break from running to the house! That did not happen. Thankfully we have an alarm system that pushes messages to us on our cell phone when things open or there is movement in our front or backyard. At 8:20am, it told us that a door was open and thirty minutes later the door was still open. We saw no record of the painters coming in or out, so that meant we had to go to the house to check it out. 

Turns out the painters never fully shut the door. In addition, they left many of the doors unlocked and windows opened. This is a huge security concern, not to mention an invitation for the wildlife to come on in. We have a resident fox that visits our house daily at night. So we are lucky he did not help himself inside. 

Windows were found open! This is a huge problem, especially when I told the project managers that all windows and doors must be shut and locked before everyone leaves. 

I should mention that the project manager gave me a LECTURE on Friday! I took it, but I don't like to be lectured, especially when it is in regards to a job I am paying for. The project manager told me all his people were going to be working on Sunday, in order to meet my deadline. He says NO ONE works on Sunday, but given the nature of this job, it has to be done. 

BY THE WAY NO ONE WORKED TODAY! We were there all afternoon, and even when we are not there, our alarm system recorded no other entries. 

Another bone of contention is the thermostat. We had notes all over the first floor, that the thermostats couldn't be touched. Despite our notes and directly conveying this message, the workers lowered the temperature. I get it, it's hot! But it makes no sense to leave it this way, if you are keeping doors and windows open overnight. 

The reason we asked that the thermostats NOT be touched is because the air conditioning unit in the basement is totally frozen, with ice all over it. We have been trying to get the ice to thaw for days now, and with them lowering the temperature, the ice is back! Which makes it harder for our HVAC people coming to work on the system tomorrow. 

Needless to say, Peter and I are frustrated. We wrote to the project managers today and showed them the same photos I am showing you here. In addition, I asked for the phone number of the owner of the company, and will be contacting him tomorrow. I am disappointed because we have really tried to be accommodating and kind to the painting team. I have bought them sodas, water, cookies, and cupcakes. They know they can access our refrigerator anytime they want. Yet they clearly have little regard for us and our property. You would be amazed how many wonderful reviews this company gets! But if I had to review them now, it would be a big blow to their reputation. 

Saturday, July 17, 2021

Saturday, July 17, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2007. That day, we got aboard Peter's brother's boat and motored around the Boston Harbor. Mattie LOVED boats and he would tell you that he was saving his money in his piggy bank for a boat. NOT a toy one, but a real one. He was holding onto his cousin's hand as we were speeding along! Captain Mattie in action.

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 34,064,168
• Number of people who died from the virus: 608,870

Last night we got home from being at the house all day after 8pm. When we got home, I noticed Sunny wasn't wearing his collar. The collar has his dog tags on it, with his name, our phone numbers, his pet microchip number, and his dog registration number for DC. In addition, the collar now has a GPS tag on it, so we can track him on our phones at all times. Given his disappearing act on Tuesday, Peter bought a tracker, and I am thrilled. But when I saw the collar missing, I panicked! Fortunately we had the dog this time, but were only missing the collar. So I looked on my cell phone last night, and I could see that the GPS picked up the collar in the backyard. 

Sunny has a routine! As soon as we turn into the neighborhood, we roll down the window and he literally puts his snout outside and starts heavy breathing and sniffing. He is a riot. 

The painters are working in our house both today and tomorrow! So there is no peace. We went to the house this morning to meet the HVAC consultant. Naturally we need a new system! Big surprise there!

But in the process of all these MASSIVE issues, I have been text messaging our realtor. As I think she is a lovely person and has a good heart, and wanted her to know the problems we have been facing. 

Today she told me something that STUNNED me. The day we were closing, we were all sitting around a big conference table signing paperwork. I got up to go to the bathroom, and apparently the former owners confronted Betsy, as they wanted $2,000 more from us because the previous owner pre-paid the maintenance for the pool through September. Given that this was a last minute request, Betsy told the owners that it was TOO late to even ask us for this payment. However, he was SO insistent that she paid the $2,000 out of her own pocket for us. It speaks to her character, as I met her years ago and liked her back then too. 

Today's finding is this.... the plumber installed a water filtration system in our basement. However, he never told us that he needed access to an electrical plug. So instead of solving the problem legitimately, he took the short cut. So there are wires stringing across our furnace. A problem we now have to call an electrician in to solve. 

We bought a house on a cul-de-sac. Ironically all the houses in this circle are up for sale! So today, I went in to see our neighbor's house! I wanted to know if it was in equally bad condition. For the last month, I have seen many contractors working in the house, so out of curiosity I wanted to see what it looked life. The house is in excellent condition with MANY upgrades.

The house is being sold by the same agent we bought our house from. So when I saw this agent today I gave her a mouthful about the house I bought! She was deeply sorry to hear this, but then she shared with me that the previous owners wanted to short change her on her realtor commission for the sale of our house. Why am I NOT surprised! It speaks to the character of these people, and given the state of their house, I know quite well exactly what I am dealing with. 

Friday, July 16, 2021

Friday, July 16, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2007. That day I took him to his friend, Kate's birthday party. Mattie and Kate went to preschool together. She had a gymnastics party! There were about three boys at the party and the rest were girls. But Mattie handled it like a trooper and had a really good time with his friends. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 34,046,437
• Number of people who died from the virus: 608,766

Have you ever seen the old movie with Cary Grant, Mr. Blanding's Builds His Dream House? It is a classic! I feel like we are living the modern day version. Everyday something major pops up in the house. That doesn't require a small fix, but instead LOTS of money. We are so upset with the previous owners who truly neglected this house. Today's surprise was ice in the furnace. Needless to say, the first floor now has NO air conditioning. A major problem with painters and other contractors in the house and it feeling so hot and humid. There are times, I want to absolutely scream. I hate the daily routine, which has no end in sight. I thought while the painters were at the house, I would spend the time sorting through things in our DC home. I have NO IDEA when I am going to do that, nor will I have the energy for that. I feel wiped out, as we are putting 12+ hour days. 

I took some photos of the new paint color, Medici Ivory. It makes the space look so much cleaner and brighter. However, this paint company and I are at odds. The salesperson was lovely, but apparently did not estimate things correctly. Mind you, he assured me that their company is known to get the estimates right on target, unlike their competitors. NOT TRUE. The other paint company who gave me an estimate, told me I needed to prime the walls for paint, because of the previous dark colors. The company I went with, said the primer is already in the paint (which is technically true, I checked with Sherwin Williams), but even with two coats of paint, the old color was coming through. So a third coat of paint is now needed. Which means that the cost of the job just went up! In addition to a bad estimate, we are also playing with personnel. The project manager came over today to give me a lecture, regarding how our demands are unreasonable. You can just imagine how well I handled that!

I handled it so well that I put my displeasure with them in writing! Putting that aside, the quality of the work appears to be solid and they are doing a great job sealing up and repairing holes and other issues with the walls and ceilings. 

Thursday, July 15, 2021

Thursday, July 15, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken on July 15, 2007. How do I know? Because we had two wine goblets out. Those wine goblets belonged to my paternal grandparents, as they too were married on July 15th! We shared a wedding anniversary date. Each year, we would take out those glasses out and make a toast. That day, Peter and Mattie were in the kiddie pool on our deck, and then we had lunch together to celebrate our anniversary. Patches, the cat was included too! 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins. 

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 33,971,523
• Number of people who died from the virus: 608,345

Today marks our 26th wedding anniversary. Typically we celebrate it and go out for a special lunch or dinner. This year, we are lucky we have our heads above water with this house. We left DC this morning to get to the house (aka "the farm") by 8am. When we got there, the grout and tile company was waiting by our front door to get in! The lead technician's name is Ed. Lovely and professional person! When you get one of these types of people, you feel like you won the lottery. The tiles on the first floor hallway and kitchen were filthy, as the grout which used to be ivory, was now black and no amount of scrubbing was going to correct this. But fortunately now there is a process where they can clean, recolor the grout and seal the floors, which will make it easier for them to be cleaned and the grout won't turn black again! In the process of dealing with the grout and tile folks, we were managing the painters, and an electrician. Not to mention that we waited the WHOLE day for the plumber to show up, and never did. We had to reschedule him for tomorrow. 

It is juggling all these contractors that I find stressful, especially when the only place I can wait with Sunny is outside on the porch. Mind you it is hot and humid out! So a full day in that heat, and I wanted to throttle someone. In addition to this juggling act, Peter was working and I was attending two webinars. Forget it, poor Peter had to take a call in the car because of the level of CHAOS around us. But literally while I was attending the second webinar, a neighbor came over and literally sat down to talk with me on the porch. This would never happen in my DC townhouse. I have a great deal of privacy in DC and in DC, people know to keep their distance. Which has its pluses and minuses! But I was very frustrated today and literally the neighbor who came over is what I deem the town crier. Though NOT a good listener, and does MOST of the talking! Therefore, he learned little to nothing about us. Fine by me.

Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2009. Mattie was home between treatments and was sitting on our floor concocting bug soup! Several friends sent Mattie plastic bugs over the course of his illness. It makes sense since Mattie not only liked bugs, but we helped to explain his bone cancer to him using a bug analogy. He may have liked bugs, but he did not want them crawling inside of him. So he understood that the chemotherapy and surgeries were meant to kill those bone bugs. To this day, I have many of the larger bugs Mattie received as gifts, still in his bedroom. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins.

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 33,936,945
• Number of people who died from the virus: 608,013

Today was the perfect storm! How Peter and I did not absolutely lose it is beyond me. Why? Because we lost Sunny for two hours. Sunny was in our backyard, which is completely fenced. A contractor went out through our backyard gate and left it OPEN! Despite us telling him the gate has to be closed because of Sunny. Literally when I saw the gate open, and Sunny did not respond to our calls, I PANICKED! Peter and I mobilized forces. He jumped in the car and went down every street in the neighborhood. I began walking down the streets that he and I walk on our daily routine. No sign of him! He wasn't responding to our calls. Peter and I spoke to neighbors and we must have looked frantic! Sunny is a rescue and the terms of his adoption is that he must be on a leash at all times in public spaces. While running around, I kept kicking myself, as I knew I should have left him DC, as the house has way too much going on in it. 

While Peter was driving around, I was calling our vet, the Fairfax County pound, I contacted our neighborhood listserv and I even did a posting on Next Door. 

Sure enough a woman on Next Door wrote to me that her neighbor saw Sunny on Miller Heights and Cranbrook. Not around the corner from where we live. It was a hot day, Sunny was without water, and to get as far as he did, it meant he crossed streets. She said that Sunny wouldn't allow her friend to approach him, and instead took off. Thankfully, he took off for home! Unlike me, he has a sense of direction, and about two hours later, we saw him poking around in our neighbor's bushes! HORRIBLE DAY and it is a miracle he is still alive. Peter just ordered a tracking collar for him, because I never want to be scared out of my mind like this again. Sunny has a microchip in his tooth, but that isn't used for tracking, just for identification!

Meanwhile at the farm..... the painters found a problem with the roof. As water is getting in over the living room window. I swear I am going bonkers with this house, and as we do one thing, 12 other things pop up. It wasn't only the painters today, but we also had the plumber back for another full day, and a contractor about putting in window wells. Given the day I had, the painting company was the recipient of my stress. As they promised me before I signed the contract that we would be given ONE team to work with us until the job was completed. Today the story changed! Now no one remembers saying this to me, and instead the house is going to be like a turnstile for different painting teams coming in each day. I lost it, and told them that was unacceptable and that if they said this upfront, I would have gone with a different company! Get the picture on today!?

These stressors remind me once again why I rented our townhouse in DC for 26 years. Whenever I had a problem, the complex's team showed up, got the job done, I had no headaches, and I did not have to pay for it either. Now I have the joy of paying for this nightmare. 

Tuesday, July 13, 2021

Tuesday, July 13, 2021 -- Mattie died 615 weeks ago today. 

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2009. That day a friend dropped off a gift for Mattie. It was a figure of Sponge Bob make out of wood. The joke between Mattie and me was that I did not like Sponge Bob, so naturally that made Mattie even more curious about this TV character. In any case, Mattie was trying to mimic Sponge Bob's face/expression, so I of course snapped a photo to capture that moment in time. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins. 

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 33,908,153
• Number of people who died from the virus: 607,715

Another crazy day on the "farm." Since the house is located on a street that has Farm in its name, we have gotten into calling the house, the farm! Seems rather fitting given the early hours and non-stop work. Today was no different! In between juggling the alarm company and the roofing company, I decided to finish lining the kitchen cabinets, and I cleaned all the cabinets and drawers in the laundry room and all the bathrooms. 

From initial view, the roof on the house looks new. In theory it is new, however, it is clear that the roof replacement was not done by a roofing company. I suspect the former owner used a contractor friend, and as such, issues have already turned up. The roofer today walked me through each of the problems, which was no easy task since it feels like over 100 degrees outside. We have gotten multiple estimates on just about every issue we have, so that we can make some intelligent decisions about next steps. 

Tomorrow the fun begins. The painting team arrives and for the next three weeks, we will be spending less time at the house, since I don't want to get under foot of the painters nor do I want to smell paint. In parallel, the tile floors are getting professionally cleaned and sealed, and the first floor wood floors are going to get sanded, re-stained, and sealed. A lot is going to be happening over this next month. However, I am not sure what is worse! Cleaning out the house, to get it ready to move in, or cleaning out our home in DC. We have lived in DC for 26 years! I really think the latter will be MUCH harder, as this means I have to go through Mattie's things again. Over the 12 years since Mattie died, I have pared down many of his things, but I have to be in the mood to take on this difficult task. Frankly right now I am tired and going through things to decide whether to donate them or throw them away seems down right daunting. 

Monday, July 12, 2021

Monday, July 12, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2009. Mattie was home between hospital treatments and was playing outside in his frog sandbox. Mattie loved that sandbox and spent a lot of time in it, regardless of the weather. To this day, Mattie's sandbox is outside our deck in the commons area. Other children play with it, and all of Mattie's toys are inside the box. I remember shortly after Mattie died, I was mortified when other children came over to play in his box. Over time, I have had a change of heart. I am no longer mortified or angry, now I feel like Mattie's memory and his love for his sandbox lives on with other children. 

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins. 

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 33,878,496
• Number of people who died from the virus: 607,415

Today was quite the day. We got to the house at 8:30am. At 9am, the plumber arrived and he was with us until 5:30pm. He had a big job, and returns on Wednesday for more work. He had to replace our hot water heater today and add a water filtration system. Which means that the water to the house was shut off for most of the day. I wasn't thinking too clearly, because I decided to tackle the fireplace today. Once we move in, we will get a professional to evaluate the gas fireplace. But I couldn't take looking at the junk in the fireplace. The previous owner burned all sorts of papers and junk in the GAS fireplace. Soot was all over the place and I wanted that cleaned out before the painters start on Wednesday. 

I am not sure what I was thinking because I used my hands to touch the faux logs inside the fireplace. They were covered with black, black soot! Once my hands were covered in soot it dawned on me...... I can't wash my hands! There is no water in the house. I was frantic. Nothing was getting that stuff off my hands. Literally Peter came to help me by opening up bottles of water and helping me rinse my hands. Needless to say, after that ordeal, I went to find work gloves and proceeded to shovel out soot and sand. Yes sand! It felt like I was at the beach, there was that much sand. Not sure if that was originally for decorative purposes, but it had to go, as it was covered in ash. After shoveling, I vacuumed, and then the vacuum got dirty and had to clean that. It was a comedy show, except it wasn't funny. All day, I looked like something out of Mary Poppins, you know the chimney sweep people!! There was no way to get clean until I got back home to DC. Literally I walked in the door and headed right for the shower. 

In addition to cleaning the fireplace, I cleaned all light switches, as each one was grimy and covered in dirt. Truly disgusting. I walked Sunny, dealt with the pest control fellow helping us manage ants, and then met with a contractor to create window wells for our basement windows. He and I both can't determine if wells every existed, as the windows are practically buried in dirt. Therefore, someone is coming over on Wednesday to dig a two to three foot trench, so we can see what needs to be done to safely seal these windows to prevent water from getting into the basement. Truly a manic Monday and Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday aren't looking much better.

Sunday, July 11, 2021

Sunday, July 11, 2021

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2009. Sitting in the background is Brandon, Mattie's buddy. Brandon was diagnosed with cancer around the same time as Mattie. Though Brandon's treatment was over by that time, he came back often to the hospital to visit Mattie. That day they worked on the creation of Dr. Crazy Hair. The doctor's hair was made out of feathers and the doctor had all sorts of things in his pocket, such as a big shell, which Mattie said represented a toe nail! Dr. Crazy Hair stood in our living room for years, before I dismantled him.  

Quote of the day: Today's coronavirus update from Johns Hopkins. 

• Number of people diagnosed with the virus: 33,852,037
• Number of people who died from the virus: 607,150

It was over 90 degrees today and extremely humid. Yet I knew I had to tackle the garage, as it was a big project that I wanted done before all sorts of contractors start working at the house next week. The garage is filled with cabinets and also a workbench space for Peter to do fix-it projects. I have wanted to put things in these cabinets, until I looked at them! They were filthy! Inside and out! So I spent hours today vacuuming them (as they were filled with dirt, cobble webs, dead bugs, etc) and then washing them all down. I am quite certain that everything this former owner touched, needs cleaning! Do you remember pigpen in the Charlie Brown series? We clearly had our own pigpen who lived in the house. 

By 4pm, we both needed a break and I committed to Peter that we would try the pool today! So we made that happen. I know I haven't been in a pool in a LONG TIME. At least 14 years ago. The last time was before Mattie had cancer and we were teaching him to swim.

Peter literally jumped in today and unlike him, I have to adjust to the temperature and take it step by step. Sunny hates water, and is actually quite frightened if he hears people splashing around in the pool. 

I guess I forgot how lovely it feels to be in water. I thought it was very therapeutic today and the only reason I deem the pool safe to go into is I like the fellow who cleans the pool. He takes his time at each visit and he text messages us updates about the pool's status each week. 

Though Sunny doesn't go into the pool, he LOVES sitting on a lounge chair with me. He is my boy!