Not so fun times, birthdays

We had a couple of incidents over the extended weekend that were not the best memories. I hurt my back pretty badly on Thursday and am still recovering. I got to see the chiropractor on Friday and he adjusted my spine which only intensified the pain for a couple of days, but I should be on the road to recovery soon. The biggest problem is that we still have to complete our move.


As we were unloading boxes at the Jennie house on Saturday the dogs got into the pen we had set up for the chicks and killed three of them before we could stop them. It was a cluster of errors. I did not put up very high walls to pen the little birds not thinking about anything other than them getting out – not realizing I would have to keep my own dogs out. For some reason Victoria insisted on bringing the dogs on that trip over to the house and Mama – even after Rosie had gotten into the pen once – walked off and left the dogs unattended. It was not a happy moment and Ketzie and I had a moment of instruction that I hope left a lasting impression on her. Mama did not let me near Rosie.

Earlier that afternoon we checked the mail at the Fairfield house and we had received a ticket from one of the camera monitored intersections. Mama knew she was “pushing a bit on that light” but the camera shows her running it flat out. The ticket was only for $75 but it is an offence leveled against me since the car is registered in my name. If it counts against my insurance I will be even more upset.

Another thing that happened is that I got a $500 bill from the dentist for work that should not have cost any additional payment after insurance. Mama will be calling to find out the particulars today but it is upsetting to find a good dentist only to discover that we cannot afford them. I will still have to use them to fix a filling Mama is having a problem with – it will probably result in a crown being used at an additional $500.

Lastly, I found out that the radiator Grandpa installed in the car is leaking at a weld in the top. It is a brand new radiator. I hurt my back replacing the hose on Thursday morning only to have the leak I thought I was fixing continue to spill fluid from the radiator as badly as it had been. We took the car to a shop and asked to have the top clamp replaced and they did so. I was hoping the problem was still with the hose or the clamp. Since they had the car they redid the pressure check of the cooling system. That is when they found the leak - another $500 repair.

All in all it added up to a pretty sorry weekend.

On the brighter side, Mama and Chase had birthdays on Thursday and even though my back was killing me we went out for lunch and enjoyed the meal together. Chase, Victoria and I got Mama a ring and a set of earrings that she liked very well. I cannot take credit; it was all done by Chase since he has to spend so much time at the mall. His present from us will be gotten in New Jersey after Christmas. We are giving him to money to buy some new suits; doesn’t seem like much for his 18th birthday but he liked the idea.

We had a surprise party for him on Sunday afternoon. It was a small group but he enjoyed it.