The new house is great. There are beautiful laminate floors (fake wood) throughout the downstairs, which makes cleaning up dog hair much easier than vacuuming. The only problem is that really only one of my huge beasts fits on the couch at once, and the other is relegated to the floor. Usually, that’s Bruno. He doesn’t like it, for obvious reasons, so he goes out in search of a softer place to rest. Unfortunately, he wants to be on my roommate Rick’s couch. He leaps over the back and rests on the cushions. Trouble is, Rick’s couches are cloth, not leather, and that is not good. Those couches dirty up quickly.
So, several times a night, I get up and make Bruno jump back over the couch. My intent was to get a dog bed, but the only one I found at Kmart was too small. This weekend, I heard they had larger dog beds at Costco, so last night I went looking. I found an ortho-bed, complete with memory foam and a cooling pad. $50 later, I was on my way home. I brought it in the house, and Bruno sniffed it out and then climbed on. And there he stayed, in the same spot, for several hours. There was not one hint of him trying to go on Rick’s couch. I am beyond pleased.
Speaking of Rick, we had an interesting night on Saturday. Around 10pm, we were talking about the alarm system, and how even though it isn’t working (neither of us want to pay $60/month for the service), it still beeps every time the front door opens, and sometimes when it doesn’t. It bothers the dogs, and they end up barking at nothing. Anyway, we were talking, and he was messing with the control panel when all of a sudden it goes off! Shrill bells pealing throughout the house. We try to stop it, but neither of us knows the code. He tries a few random combinations, and then decides that even though it’s past 10, we should call the previous owner. Of course, she doesn’t answer, and we are no closer to stopping the incessant noise. Since the emergency buttons are on the control panel, I suggest calling the police to see if they can help. No dice. We look on the cover of the wall unit and find the number to the alarm company, thinking we finally have the answer, but no, they can’t give us the code. Only the previous owner can do that.
We looked around and found that the loud beeping was coming from a smaller box plugged into the wall. Rick unplugged it and muffled it on the counter while he unscrewed the back and took out the batteries. What a relief to have the blaring stop! There was still a soft beeping coming from the control panel, but by holding down a button, we were able to stop that as well. After agreeing not to open ANY doors until the morning, we set off to our beds. I got a text from Rick the next day, giving me the code. Phew!
Now, about my plants. I have a lot of potted plants. A lot. My dad was exasperated during the 2 moving days, stating that I had “at least a hundred plants!” I disagreed, thinking he was exaggerating. I had somewhere between 50 and 60, but no more. Well, two nights ago, I started moving plants up against the back wall of the yard. It was a grueling process, and took me a little over an hour. For fun, I thought I’d count my plants and have an official tally. I gave up on the 50-60 range when I reached 40 and realized I wasn’t even halfway done counting. Grand total: 99 plants. And that didn’t count the several more that still had to come over from the other house. It’s not cats; I am officially the old lady with too many plants.
What’s more, there are the cuttings I took. You see, I planted some plants in two flower beds in the front yard. These babies have been with me for the better part of 15 years, through several home changes. I got many of them from the 99-Cents Only store when they were just babies. They have since flourished, and I couldn’t bear to leave them behind. I have no place to replant them at the new house, but I was determined to take them, so I took some cuttings from each. And then there was this big succulent. It is one big bloom, about 3 feet across, and I so wanted to take it with me. The two men who were there landscaping watched me try to pull it up, but I couldn’t figure out where to get my shovel in, so I sadly gave up. I went to my car to get my phone and take a picture so I could get another at Home Depot (wouldn’t be the same, but still…), and when I came back, I saw the one of the men had dug it out for me. I was so appreciative! My heart welled with gratitude for the man and love for my rescued plant! When I got home, I put my cuttings and my big succulent up on the Jacuzzi, away from the curious jaws of my canine babies. J I would be heartbroken to come home to destruction.
So, several times a night, I get up and make Bruno jump back over the couch. My intent was to get a dog bed, but the only one I found at Kmart was too small. This weekend, I heard they had larger dog beds at Costco, so last night I went looking. I found an ortho-bed, complete with memory foam and a cooling pad. $50 later, I was on my way home. I brought it in the house, and Bruno sniffed it out and then climbed on. And there he stayed, in the same spot, for several hours. There was not one hint of him trying to go on Rick’s couch. I am beyond pleased.
Speaking of Rick, we had an interesting night on Saturday. Around 10pm, we were talking about the alarm system, and how even though it isn’t working (neither of us want to pay $60/month for the service), it still beeps every time the front door opens, and sometimes when it doesn’t. It bothers the dogs, and they end up barking at nothing. Anyway, we were talking, and he was messing with the control panel when all of a sudden it goes off! Shrill bells pealing throughout the house. We try to stop it, but neither of us knows the code. He tries a few random combinations, and then decides that even though it’s past 10, we should call the previous owner. Of course, she doesn’t answer, and we are no closer to stopping the incessant noise. Since the emergency buttons are on the control panel, I suggest calling the police to see if they can help. No dice. We look on the cover of the wall unit and find the number to the alarm company, thinking we finally have the answer, but no, they can’t give us the code. Only the previous owner can do that.
We looked around and found that the loud beeping was coming from a smaller box plugged into the wall. Rick unplugged it and muffled it on the counter while he unscrewed the back and took out the batteries. What a relief to have the blaring stop! There was still a soft beeping coming from the control panel, but by holding down a button, we were able to stop that as well. After agreeing not to open ANY doors until the morning, we set off to our beds. I got a text from Rick the next day, giving me the code. Phew!
Now, about my plants. I have a lot of potted plants. A lot. My dad was exasperated during the 2 moving days, stating that I had “at least a hundred plants!” I disagreed, thinking he was exaggerating. I had somewhere between 50 and 60, but no more. Well, two nights ago, I started moving plants up against the back wall of the yard. It was a grueling process, and took me a little over an hour. For fun, I thought I’d count my plants and have an official tally. I gave up on the 50-60 range when I reached 40 and realized I wasn’t even halfway done counting. Grand total: 99 plants. And that didn’t count the several more that still had to come over from the other house. It’s not cats; I am officially the old lady with too many plants.
What’s more, there are the cuttings I took. You see, I planted some plants in two flower beds in the front yard. These babies have been with me for the better part of 15 years, through several home changes. I got many of them from the 99-Cents Only store when they were just babies. They have since flourished, and I couldn’t bear to leave them behind. I have no place to replant them at the new house, but I was determined to take them, so I took some cuttings from each. And then there was this big succulent. It is one big bloom, about 3 feet across, and I so wanted to take it with me. The two men who were there landscaping watched me try to pull it up, but I couldn’t figure out where to get my shovel in, so I sadly gave up. I went to my car to get my phone and take a picture so I could get another at Home Depot (wouldn’t be the same, but still…), and when I came back, I saw the one of the men had dug it out for me. I was so appreciative! My heart welled with gratitude for the man and love for my rescued plant! When I got home, I put my cuttings and my big succulent up on the Jacuzzi, away from the curious jaws of my canine babies. J I would be heartbroken to come home to destruction.
http://www.returnoninitiative.com/