Sick day delays, small messes

I stayed home yesterday. I was not feeling well but the main reason to stay was that there was a crew coming to replace the carpet in the master bedroom closet and Mama did not want to be alone during that time. I did need the time to rest because I have not been feeling well for several days now. Most of the symptoms point to a bout of diverticulitis but since the flu season is upon us I needed to take some time away and exercise some extra caution. I feel better today; but not by much.

Mama and Grandpa worked on the hog building Tuesday and have it very nearly ready for Mama’s pets. We have yet to build the yard but no one was interested in staying out in the thirty mile per hour winds to work on that yesterday. All of us felt a little guilty about not moving forward on the projects that are delaying our final exodus from the farm in Bowie, but with a wind chill at 13®F it was better to feel guilty and stay warm.

Today Mama and Victoria are going to Bowie to help Grandpa get the last few large items out of the trailer. Grandma and Grandpa have rented a storage space to house their items until they can arrange for a space of their own. Grandma is lamenting not having access to a place of their own but ultimately it will require me and Mama to provide that and I feel no urgency at the moment.

As Mama and I sat in the living room yesterday we both suddenly realized how filthy the floor was. Kira is shedding hair rapidly enough to cover the floor of that large room in about two days. I know it had been longer than that since Mama or Victoria had swept so I got out the shop vac. (The Kirby is over at the trailer with Grandma.)

As I started on the floor I was not careful enough with the hose and I bounced a full cup of hot tea onto the sofa from the small table that Mama had set it on. That created an additional mess for Mama and me to clean up – both on the couch and the floor. Fortunately the shop vac is a wet/dry vacuum. Unfortunately, using it on the couch only served to clean the mass of hair from the head of the vacuum. So we had a third mess.

In reality it was not all that bat, but it was pretty upsetting to move from one frustration to another. When it was done, we had a clean vacuum, a clean floor and a wet couch. It will have to dry before we can finish cleaning it.

It did highlight the battle ahead of us as Grandma and Grandpa move in with us. They hate having a dog in the house – especially a big dog. One that sheds as badly as Kira does will only exacerbate the issue. And Grandma is not one to let anything like that go without a constant reminder of her disapproval. At least it will give her a focal point to talk about.

Mama and I are gearing up for the constant “helpful reminders” but I don’t know if either of us are really ready.