70 this morning, clear and humid after some heavy rain yesterday.
What a whirlwind week it has been, but it certainly hasn't been boring. Thursday started early, as I needed to have blood work done for my semi-annual doc appointment. We were out the door by 8am. Got my blood drawn, a thing I absolutely despise having done, then went out for breakfast. After that, off to one of our booths to unload that heavy flatwall cabinet. We have learned some tricks to moving heavy stuff, thank goodness, but it still isn't easy.
Then we were off to northeastern Ohio to pick up a great enamel top table which I am going to put in my kitchen, as it is larger than my current table. I do love my table but when we have 5 or 6 people over it is just too small. Our granddaughter wants my table so it should work out well. The new table needs work, so Larry has started on that.
We also picked up a cute small metal table and t matching chairs, and stopped at a yard sale being held by an 88-year-old man. I bought a few books and just enjoyed talking with him.
Next stop was near Columbus to get a wine cabinet from a sweet young couple who were living in his parent's workshop while they "got back on their feet". I didn't ask questions although I wondered what trouble had set them back. I hope they get the house they are hoping to buy.
After that another Columbus stop, then we were homeward bound. It was a long day, as these stops were far apart, poor planning on my part. Lesson learned!
We slept in Friday, but got busy as soon as we got up. I did some housework, then got my beets processed, ending up with 18 pints, and 4 quarts of greens for the freezer.
Larry cleaned the dryer vent and around the motor, etc, where dust can really build up. I finished up two furniture projects while he finished painting a porch swing to sell. In the evening we both did the stringtrimming around the gardens. The grass and weeds are growing fast with all this rain recently.
Yesterday saw us up early for another road trip, this one to southern Michigan to pick up two Tappan Deluxe stoves. I have a Tappan Deluxe already and love it, but some years ago I burned up the wiring to the back light and the red lights on the burners. I know it sounds silly but I miss those lights. The stove for sale had those lights working, and came with a second stove for parts. I was thrilled to find it for a reasonable price, as these vintage stoves are in high demand these days and can be pretty pricey.
It took 7 hours but we got to Battle Creek by 2:30. Then we hit a little snag: the stoves were too tall to fit in the van! Oops. Hadn't even thought that would be a problem. Aftef some cogitating, the guys decided to lay them down. But would they both fit?
Yes, they did.
We had considered staying overnight and had packed a suitcase, but Larry wanted to just drive straight back. I had wanted to drive another hour over to the shore of Lake Michigan and stay the night somewhere over there since I have not yet seen that Great Lake except from the air, but Larry wasn't keen on the idea. So back we came, stopping only for dinner, gas, and to pick up dog food so we wouldn't have to go out today. He really enjoyed a cold beer, too, at a small Ohio brewery. Then it was my turn to drive. Fair enough.
As you might imagine, we slept in again today. But we need to make space to store 2 extra stoves so we spent a couple hours in our workroom/storage room reorganizing, which led to also unloading and replacing a bookshelf in our log room, which we used for a TV stand, with a nice old oak dresser which we had stored away, intending to make this change "sometime". This meant I had to sort and make decisions about all those books, DVDs, and CDs that had been in the bookshelf! Goodness, the work we make for ourselves.
Now all is ready to move in the stoves; we are just waiting on our son Derek to come over and help because this is going to be more than the two of us can do. We will go over our "new" stove very carefully, and replace a few parts with bits from the parts stove, before we install it in the kitchen. Our granddaughter wants my old stove for her cabin, so that one will be stored away with the parts stove.
The rest of today I will spend on another project for the booths, or on shelling peas if we feel up to pulling the vines. I plan on an early to bed night too. I think we have earned it.
Phew! Imagine if you couldn’t have transported the stoves.
ReplyDeleteThat would have been bad! We could actually have got them in standing up, but it would have meant further dismantling them, so this seemed the best solution.
DeleteI am completely exhausted, having just read everything you pack into your week(s)! Where do the two of you find the energy? That's great that you have family who want to take the old items off your hands, too. Best of luck with your "new" stove! -Jenn
ReplyDeleteJenn, I wonder that myself. We certainly sleep well.
DeleteThat's a busy few days. Good solution with the ovens, that would have sucked had they not fit!
ReplyDeleteTrue that, Jim! As I told AC, we could have got them in standing up, but it would have meant more dismantling. And at 88 degrees none of us wanted to work harder than we had to!
DeleteYou'vebeen very busy. Glad to read that the stoves fit laying down in the van, that saved a big hassle. Everything seems to work out and that's good. Enjoy the new week.
ReplyDeleteTappan. That brought back memories. In 1971 when we got married we bought a ‘built-in’ Tappan double oven (9 kw in total) and had it for 27 years. We often wish we had still got it but the oven clock kept tripping off the electrics and we couldn’t get spares. Charmaine, UK
ReplyDelete