Oh Those Home Repairs!

Another 37 degree night had me wandering the hallways of the house, Cooper right on my heels.  I think the cold got to me.  After that last bill for the gas heating unit, it got turned down, meaning the far bedroom that I inhabit gets cold as the dickens!!  I may take to sleeping on the couch!!

Bright and early, I was up and on my way to Home Depot.  Okay, not THAT early because it seems the older I get, the longer it takes me to get up enough motivation to get ready and head out the door.  I'm beginning to realize why I see older folks with crazy hair and wrinkled clothes!!

I had two things on my list.  Get a replacement for this light fixture that doesn't even have a light bulb in it because I don't need to light up my patio like the sun ..... and get some chew sticks for Jonathan.

Not having a clue what I needed, I found a nice looking guy talking to a gal in a corner office.  I'm guessing he was her boyfriend, but SHE had on the orange apron.  They both took me to the light section where nothing looked like what I needed.

This is what she handed me.  Ummm this looks like a return to me!  Here's my problem.  That old light is from 2005.  They don't make them any more.  Now you can only buy these lights in an LED variety where  it's all one piece.  There is no bulb.  So every time it goes out, you have to buy a whole new fixture for twice the price.  You see where this is going?  

So I took it to the front to pay, but told the cashier guy they should not be selling returns in this bad of shape.  I wanted a guarantee I could return it myself if it did not work out.  Not only did he say okay, but he gave me $2.00 off the $19.00 light.  Nice of him I guess ... but that means if any of my lights go out, instead of a $9.00 LED light bulb, I now have to buy a $20.00 fixture.

Here it is, along with the NEXT problem.  They told me you just take the wires from the old one and push them into that orange thing, then stuff it into the hole in the ceiling.  Ummm what's the green wire for?  Truly, I see this not ending well.  I've been staring at it on the counter ever since, thinking maybe I'll just glue the old one back in the hole and call it good.

While there, I wandered to the far side of the store, probably 3000 steps, passing $2,000 refrigerators and cheap $300 dishwashers.  It's weird how I always knew anything I bought there ... washer, dryer, fridge ... would last a very long time and work without exception.  The way things are made now, it seems they have to be replaced every five years.  Our country's quality has gone to the dogs.

I was looking for some wood to keep Jonathan's beak in tip top condition.  These wooden slats work really well and are very cheap at $1.50 for a four foot piece.  I cut them up with my garden shears since using a saw takes too long.  

I dropped one in his cage and Jonathan chortled like crazy, making a beeline to grab it.  Watch your fingers!!  One piece may last three days.  Yes I could buy harder wood, but he wouldn't chew on it.  

Lunch was delicious!  I didn't really WANT this for lunch, it was just a snack.  This is one of those can't-stop-eating things.  I won't buy any of this again unless I can get the tiny little bags.  This is SO not good for me.

TA DA!!  Lookie here ... my quilt wall is EMPTY!!

Well not exactly, the quilt was sitting on the ironing board ... which is a good sign.  Of course I made yet another mistake.  Apparently I flipped one of the strips while sewing.  It's hard to keep everything in the exact order you want when taking it down and putting it up sixteen times.  The two crosses ended up next to each other.  

I'm going to say I MEANT it to be like that so they would stand out.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.   Luckily I had enough fabric to make the 2" border, with 3/8" to spare.  I measured for the last border and I need 1.3 yards of fabric at the very least.  They gave me 24 inches for that one.  I don't know what they were measuring, but they didn't come close.  SO maddening!!

That means another trip up the State to the only quilt store within 50 miles to buy border material.  Oh well, it will give me a chance to exercise the van a little bit.  By the way, the trickle charger is working GREAT!!  I'm so excited not to have THAT to worry about!!

With this quilt done I should be able to whip out a few quilts for Veterans.  There's a Guild meeting coming up and they asked me to attend.  I'm guessing they want donated quilts.  You never know ... maybe I'll meet some nice ladies to hang out with.

Here's to a nice warm sunny day!!!