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Wednesday Hodgepodge



Is your home air-conditioned? If it's not air-conditioned, is that by choice? Did you grow up with air-conditioning? If not, how did you cope with the heat? Share about a time or place you remember as being too hot ... the temperature kind of hot, lest anyone be confused.

We do have air-conditioning ... four window units. Our house was built in 1918 and the central air-conditioning unit was a dinosaur. It went caput a couple of summers ago. As if replacing the unit wouldn't be pricey enough, the duct work that would have to be reworked would do us in financially. That's when we decided to get window units. And they work great. We have a high-efficiency unit in our dining room that cools the entire main living areas of our house. Then each of the bedrooms has a small 5,000 BTU unit that we can each control individually. It's kind of like sleeping in a hotel room. It's perfect.

Growing up we had a window unit in the far end of our house, in the family room. The bedrooms had no air conditioning on the other end of the house. But we had an attic fan. My sister and I had our twin beds under each of the windows in the bedroom that we shared to get in as much night air as we could. When we went to bed it was so sticky hot. But when my parents went to bed and shut the windows and door on the front of the house, a whoosh of cold air came through the windows and we were cool all night.

One time when I was a little girl we went to a lake property of some friends. My mom, dad, and I slept in an un air-conditioned cabin and it was miserably hot! Stifling! The people we were visiting slept in an air-conditioned camper, peacefully snoozing away. We were up all night, miserable! My parents said at one point I cried, "I wish it would snow!" I can't remember if we left in the middle of the night or stayed until morning.

What's something in your life right now that falls under the heading of 'up in the air'?

I guess the only thing would be our official start date for back to school. We have had such a crazy busy summer that I haven't felt like we have gotten that period of rest that we need before we start. Right now I am playing it by ear. We might start sometime in the middle of August, but then again we might wait and start back full time after Labor Day this year. I will know it when it's time. Right now it's not time.

Your favorite light and airy dessert?

My grandma's angel food cake. No one makes it as good as she did, and I miss it.

When did you last feel like you were floating on air?

I am not really a 'float on air' kind of girl, honestly. I had to think really hard about this one. The only thing I can really come up with where I felt absolutely elated, ridiculously smiling despite myself, was when I ran a mile straight for the first time. That was several years ago when we lived in Oklahoma. And I had our dog Crusoe on a leash with me. The one-mile mark was about 20 yards ahead of us and he tried to stop and take a poop. I said, "Oh no you don't!" and dragged him the last 20 yards. When I got there I know I looked like a goof the rest of the way home because I just couldn't stop smiling.

Airport, airmail, airtight, airhead ... which have you most recently encountered? Explain.

I have a lot of airhead moments. I call it my Early Onset Alzheimer's. I hope I have not jinxed myself by joking about it. I do crazy things like pour cereal into my cup of coffee, put the gallon of milk in the cabinet instead of refrigerator, pour tea into one of the kids' bowls of cereal instead of milk. The kids just always tell me I'm so old.

Have you ever been to the Alps? If so where did you go? If not, is this a destination on your must-see list? If you were headed that direction this summer, which of the following would be your preferred activity ... a gentle walk, a serious walk, a bike ride, a boat ride around one of the lakes, or summer snow skiing?

I haven't been to the Alps and it's not necessarily on my list of must-see places. But a walk around it would be awesome! Knowing me I would first want to do a gentle walk but it would turn into a serious walk. And if I'm going to go I want to go to Austria ... "the hills are alive ..."

What is one saying or phrase that was considered 'cool' when you were growing up?

Gag me with a green twinkie. I'm not sure how cool that was, but I certainly remember saying it a lot.

Insert your own random thought here.

We have neighbors who are renting their house who have a dog that barks half the night .. I mean incessant not-taking-a-breath barking for two hours straight sometimes. If I get up out of bed and go outside and yell at it, it stops ... until right when I get under my covers and relax. It's like sleeping with a snorer. Even when it stops barking I can't go back to sleep because I am anxiously waiting for it to start barking again. And it does. I mean, seriously, is their dog not keeping them up with it's barking?? Have some respect for your neighbors! I thought about going and putting a note on their door telling them to get their dog under control. But in our neighborhood, and in the world in general these days, you have to be careful about hacking people off. I have an air conditioner that runs in my bedroom all night and a fan right next to my head for noise. It doesn't even take the edge off that barking. So last night I turned on my white noise app on the fan setting, turned it up, and laid it right next to my head. That helped. Really I just want to strangle the dog, and its owners!

Comments

  1. There's nothing worse than trying to sleep when it's too hot--or in your case, when the neighbor's dog won't stop barking. It's a shame your neighbors aren't more considerate.
    I enjoyed reading your answers today.
    Kathy (from Reflections by Kathy)

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  2. I'm always afraid of 'jinxing myself' too when I say things like that. I enjoyed your answers very much! I have never heard of Gag with me a green twinkie. It is certainly descriptive!!

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  3. I really feel for you on the barking dark next door. Our neighbors had a border collie that would bark non-stop (high pitched) and sometimes would take a break JUST long enough for me to fall asleep but it would start up again. After 7 months of saying nothing directly, there was one day I developed a migraine that was so bad I went to the ER. When I came home, I was so wiped out from the meds and just needed to sleep. But for 45 minutes the dog (named Booty, whose booty I wanted to woop every day!) kept barking. I finally walked over there and knocked on the door. The owner's daughter's BF answered . I said in a cool, calculated voice of an axe murderer, "Your dog has been barking for 45 minutes. I just came home from the hospital and tried to sleep.If she doesn't stop, I will call the cops. I'm serious. She's been barking every day for seven months. It's got to stop. I'm serious. I WILL call the cops." I never heard Booty again; they gave her away (and I think the owner was glad because it was his daughter's dog). The boyfriend apologized and said he's hardly ever there to hear her, and the owner is hard of hearing .I would recommend you knock on the door, not leave a note. Have a conversation. Can't hurt to try. If it continues, find out who the owner of the property is. Is there an HOA? You can report to them and they'll be in touch with the owner. But be brave and as courteous as you can and be direct, not passive.

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  4. I know that feeling of completing something you didn't think you could do. As I trained for races, every time I hit a new mileage, I was so elated!

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  5. The airhead moments...... I refer to them as Momnesia. I do things like that too, I blame it on having children, and my poor brain simply has too many things to keep track of. I once caught myself almost pouring mouthwash into the washing machine instead of laundry detergent. Our washer is right outside our bathroom door and I store the detergent under the vanity. The mouthwash I keep on top ........ anyhow ....... gave the children a good laugh.

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  6. Ugh! I can't stand that about the dog. I hate it when people are out right rude! However, I don't blame you for not going over there. You can't be too careful these days.

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  7. Oh my goodness, the dog barking would drive me crazy. Our neighbor lets out their dog really late at night and really early in the morning, and I hate when it starts barking! I'm sorry you have to deal with that!

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