Friday, September 08, 2006

Of Crocs and Cinder Blocks

I was stunned (and I know I'm not alone) to hear of Steve Irwin's (aka Crocodile Hunter) death the other day. My prayers go out to his family. My family has learned a lot from his show.

On to cinder blocks.
When we bought our house, we inherited all the 'sh**' that came with it: a pile of whole and broken cinderblocks, bricks and cement pieces under our front porch. Not to mention the FULL septic tank in the back, that no one knew where it was until it started to spurt up through the ground when I flushed the toilet. But, that's a different subject.

Last year, I had a vision of removing all the cement and bricks from under my front porch, which runs the width of the house, getting rid of the weeds, and laying down landscape fabric with a topping of decorative stone. I tried listing the cement on Freecycle, but I couldn't even give the stuff away.
Yesterday, on Cheapcycle (think Freecycle, but just a little pricier) I noticed a listing looking for cinder blocks, whole and broken. Of COURSE I emailed, trying not to get excited. After all, the person is from the city, why would they want to come to my little ol' town just for cement? Imagine my joy when I heard they DO want to come and get the cement.
So...I've just spent a not-so-enjoyable hour hacking my way through the jungle that replaced my front garden, then removing the blocks. I tell you, didn't take too long before I needed a break. Crawling under the porch and lifting cinderblocks from a squatting position is kinda tricky. I know my muscles will ache later, but it will be a good ache, and my vision of a cleaner looking under-the-porch area is one step closer! A big step, btw!
Wish I had taken pictures of the jungle...I'll have to suffice with a pic (coming soon) of the two piles of vegetation that will be destined for yard waste pickup.

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Just Stuff

Stormy's back! The little devil was found in a neighbour's garage. Neither of us can figure out why she stayed in there (and Stormy's not saying!), since the garage door has been open quite a bit. The only thing I can think of is that the construction next door to us spooked her, and then when it quieted down, the neighbour was working with a jackhammer breaking up cement.
She is a little thinner, but doesn't look dehydrated, leading me to believe she wasn't in there the full 2 weeks. Uh...just the fact that she's alive leads me to believe that!

I'm working on Hallowe'en stuff, and am on a roll. I've been working on more Pet Rock people: these ones sport Hallowe'en costumes. I'm on my third, and have a few more ideas, so think I may create some for October's patterns, they are fast and easy to make up. They'll be available (as well as a Hallowe'en tote, my Striped Tote, and a Witch toilet tissue cover) at introductory prices September 5th.

The weather here is cooling down, and drizzly lately, but I love this kind of weather! Fall is my favourite time of year, although this year, it's not the same, now that they tore down most of the evergreens beside my house. Darned town. We offered to buy part of the land next door IF they were thinking of selling. Oh, yes, they were thinking of selling, but they ignored our letter voicing our concern over the loss of the trees, and sold the property to the Youth and Family Resource Network. I still think 4 duplexes on that lot will look crammed in, but that seems to be the way. Chop down trees, put up houses close together, stick a couple of twigs in the yard (preferably twigs that won't grow higher than 20 feet), and THEN complain about smog days in the summer.

Oooh, wanted to share this link: http://monstercrochet.blogspot.com
I LOVE Dem Bones, and hope she finishes writing up the pattern, I would LOVE to wear that to work!! Did I mention...I LOVE this time of year???

(adding little more here...just visited Monster Crochet)

Sometimes, these 'name' things are kinda fun! Sorry, printing is kinda off, it's their code.

My pirate name is:
Captain Mary Flint
Even though there's no legal rank on a pirate ship, everyone recognizes you're the one in charge. Like the rock flint, you're hard and sharp. But, also like flint, you're easily chipped, and sparky. Arr!
Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
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