Val's Penchant For Hanging Around Trash Cans is Purely COINcidental

Any week is a good week when a penny is found. So this week was triple good.

WEDNESDAY, November 30, was very good. On my way into the Backroads Casey's, I saw a penny waiting for me by the trash can.

 

Looks like that trash can has seen better days.

 

This was a face-down 1981 penny, with a nice coppery patina. Perhaps there was more copper in the coins that long ago.

Once inside, my good (Future Pennyillionaire) Fortune continued:

 

No, not the rumpus nor the untied shoe of the man ahead of me, but the penny lurking under the counter.

 

It was a face-down 2007 penny, ready to go home in my pocket and plunk into my penny goblet.

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FRIDAY, December 1, Val once again had her head almost in the trash, this time at the School-Turn Casey's.

 

This Casey's has a prettier wall, and a better-maintained trash can.

 

This version was a face-down 1998 penny. Welcome to my collection.

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That's 3 COINS this week, for 3 CENTS towards Val's Future Pennyillionaire Fortune!

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2022 RUNNING TOTAL

Penny          # 113, 114, 115.
Dime            still at 20.
Nickel          still at 7.
Quarter       still at 7.

 

2021 FINAL TOTALS

Penny        124
Dime           14
Nickel           7
Quarter         6
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Back In Trouble At the Hovel

Let's hope the Double Hovel doesn't turn out to be a never-ending story. It's not really the Hovel's fault. It's just a Hovel.

Hick saw a neurosurgeon on Thursday about the discs in his lower back. According to Hick, he has always had a fracture in one of those vertebrae. I don't see how this is possible. He had a dune buggy wreck when he was a teenager, and got thrown out on one of the local chat dumps, which are giant hills of tailings from the lead mines. He said he hurt his back then. But according to this doctor, that had nothing to do with Hick's current problem.

"He said there ain't nothin' I did to it. I told him about my wreck, and about falling off a ladder a couple weeks ago. But he said I have always had it, and that maybe age and weight have something to do with it getting worse lately."

"So you're saying you were born with it? A little baby born with a fractured vertebra that never healed? That doesn't sound right."

"Well. That seems to be what he thinks. I always had it."

Anyhoo... it looks like Hick will be headed for surgery. Of course that's how this doctor makes his money! He didn't even offer Hick a shot of cortisone or any kind of steroid, which his own nurse practitioner had said she could give him to relieve the pressure and hopefully the pain. 

 

AND this is the surgeon who put the titanium plates in Hick's neck vertebrae many years ago. Who revealed that this lower back problem showed up way back then, but he didn't propose to do anything, because Hick was not complaining of any problems with it.

Also, this surgeon told Hick he could do what he felt like doing, even though the radiologist had advised Hick not to lift anything over 10 pounds. Because, you know, radiologists will sometimes toss out advice on things they're not supposed to discuss.

The main point, in case you've lost the narrative, is that the Double Hovel might have to wait a while for Hick to do its makeover. 

After one day of working on the Double Hovel, Hick revealed that Old Buddy had sawed through a wire. Good thing the electricity was off! Hick had told him to come to the bedroom side of the wall so he could see exactly where Hick wanted the cut. But Old Buddy did it from the bathroom side, and sawed through a wire they could have used with a slight repositioning.

"Now I'll have to go up in the attic and drop a new wire. Well. OLD BUDDY will have to go up in the attic to drop a new wire. I ain't gettin' up there. This one would have been long enough that we could move it where it needed to be."

"Oh. So sad. Now that will take extra time, and he's being paid by the hour."

"It ain't like that, Val. He gets in a hurry. He used to be a concrete finisher. So setting up and taking down forms is what he knows. He's not a finish carpenter. I have to watch him pretty close. Even BEV noticed that about his work!"

I guess it's pretty obvious, then! So we'll see how much Hick and Old Buddy can accomplish on the Double Hovel before Hick goes under the knife. Which won't be until after the first of the year. He says they need to tear the siding off the back of Hovel One, to patch a hole. And that depends on the weather.

And So It Begins: The Double Hovel Makeover

Hick started work on the Double Hovel on Tuesday. He and Old Buddy tore out part of the existing bathroom of the bigger of the two buildings, and moved the fixtures where they will be installed.

 

Here's the outside of the main house. 

 

 

And the bathroom as it was, with an entry off the kitchen:

 

 

The location of the toilet next to the tub:

 

 

And the wall across from them where the washer/dryer were hooked up:

 

 

Hick moved the toilet to a space under the window, and cut a door to the bedroom in the area where the toilet used to be. 

 

 

He moved the bathtub to the opposite wall. Hick says it looks usable, with a good cleaning. He also said he could paint it. Or get it refinished. We'll see how it cleans up.

 

 

One area that needs revision is the mess of wires where the washer and dryer used to be. Now Hick has covered that area with the tub. Not sure if the new washer/dryer area will be at the end of the tub, or where the tub used to be. Hick also bought a pedestal sink, like the one in The Pony's half bath, from a buddy for half the store price. It will go in this bathroom. 

 

The project might take longer than originally anticipated, since Hick has an appointment with a neurosurgeon on Thursday, concerning some disc degeneration in his lower back. At least the Double Hovel is bought and paid for. No interest charges to worry about. 

 

As Hick would say, "It ain't eatin' nothin'." Except $6.27 for the electric bill last month.

Sorta Like a Backroads Midas

Hick scores more free stuff than any person I've ever known. NOW, it seems to be rubbing off on Old Buddy, his paid helper. I got a text from Hick on Tuesday, about a change of plans.

"I'm running Old Buddy out to Nick and Bev's house. They're giving him a couch and chairs. So I'll probably be home around 3:30."

Well. This was a bit disconcerting, because Hick is under doctor's orders to not lift anything over 10 pounds. I'm pretty sure a couch and chairs weigh more than that.

"You shouldn't be lifting."

"I'm not."

Of course I had to wait until Hick got home for more details, since in the middle-er of nowhere, nobody can read your text. They were already on the way.

"How did you load the couch and chairs if you didn't lift anything?"

"Nick came home from work early. So him and Old Buddy did it."

I didn't ask how it got unloaded. Old Buddy usually has several people living at his house, so maybe they did it.

There are perks to working with Hick. Like free stuff.

Hick Does Some Home Work

Mark your calendar, people! Hick did a handyman job around OUR HOUSE!

 

Let the record show that it took five minutes. And that it was his own idea, and nothing I had asked for. Baby steps, people. Baby steps.

 

The job involved our washer. Hick pulled it away from the wall, and checked the cold water hose. Cold water entering the washer has slowed to a trickle over the years. Takes a long time to wash a load of clothes. I have nothing but time. It didn't really bother me. But Hick is a man of impatience.

 

You may recall that Hick does his own laundry, after expecting me to pick his dirty clothes off the floor of our bedroom in my $17,000 house during our first year of marriage. I told him I'd do the laundry that was in the hamper, but I was not picking it up off the floor. Rather than conform to my rules of washing, Hick declared that he would do his OWN laundry. Alrighty then. It was not exactly a punishment for me.

 

Anyhoo... I guess Hick doesn't like waiting too long while sitting in his recliner on a Sunday evening watching Yellowstone while his wash is sloshing around in the laundry room. So he announced that he would be fixing the washer's water connection. 

Of course he also said he would be doing it while I was in town, because he didn't want to hear me complaining. About what, I'm not sure. However, he showed up two hours before I left for town, right after I'd put a load of towels in the dryer. He forged ahead and fixed the hose while I was sitting at the kitchen table with HIPPIE.

Now if I could only get Hick to decide that the basement stairs need a rail...

The Pony Has a Soft Spot, and It's Not In His Head

Conversation at the Thanksgiving Dinner table turned to how lucky The Pony is.

 

"I'm so glad you have your little house, so you're not wasting money on rent. Now it will be yours. And it's so close to work, you hardly spend any money on gas. No commute to waste time. Your job is secure, unless you start stealing mail! And you have insurance and retirement benefits. Plus, you're pretty much on your own. You don't have to deal with anyone. Just go in and get your stuff done. You can listen to music or podcasts while you're on a walking route. And if anybody wants to complain, they're probably not going to tell you to your face. They'll call the office!"

 

"I know. And when people want to talk to me, I have an easy way out. I just say, 'I really have to get back to delivering. I'm on a schedule.' So that ends it. But yeah, they don't complain to me. Just talk. Old ladies, mainly."

 

"You might be the high point of their day. Waiting for the mail to see if they get anything. And the added bonus of somebody to talk to."

 

"There's one old lady who must have had knee surgery, or hurt herself. She was on one of those scooter things."

 

"That's not a knee. More like an achilles tendon, or ankle injury."

 

"Anyway, her mailbox is by the road. Down a hill! So I've been carrying it to her, and she thanks me. She said next time she makes cookies, she'll put some in the mailbox for me."

 

"That's a sweet thing to do."

 

"There's another old lady who must have the fattest dog I've ever seen in my life. Next to Sparky, your Favorite Gambling Aunt's dog. This one's a chihuahua. She's always waiting by her door. I take the mail to her, too. I try to help, but I can't take too much time."

If I didn't know better, I might think The Pony is developing a slight case of caring about people.

This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Visits to the Convenience Store for Gas and Lottery

Friday I went to the Sis-Town Casey's to get gas for T-Hoe and scratchers for myself. I always park at the pump, and go inside to pay as I get my tickets. I don't like using a card for gas. We're a cash household for incidental stuff like that, unless going on a trip.

On my way back out to pump the gas, I was dismayed when a small car pulled into the striped walkway where I must descend from the sidewalk. These old knees don't like uneven surfaces, and even on a ramp, I must creep down slowly. Anyhoo... this car blatantly parked RIGHT IN THE RAMP AREA as I was gimping towards it.

I resisted the urge to give the driver my teacher stinkeye. You never know who's packin' these days. So I limped down the sliver of ramp left available for me. Didn't even slam my fist down on the hood of their blue compact car, which was also an urge.

Once back to T-Hoe, waiting for my gas to flow in, I took a picture for evidence! These were not people in need of a ramp (which they had blocked). It was two young gals. In fact, the driver remained in the car! If her companion had needed the ramp, or to be let out near the door, she could have parked there momentarily for the disembarking, then moved her car and come back for the pickup. But no. They were obviously entitled to park in the striped walkway.

 

As you can see, there is a parking space available one car to the right. Which would leave the handicap space they also blocked, as well as the striped walkway, available for those who need them.

 

I suppose they thought they could avoid the $100 fine for parking in the handicap space, though clearly they are preventing anyone else from using it. Nor could anybody get a wheelchair up that sliver of ramp they (probably unknowingly) left available.

 

Two tires in the handicap space, the rest of the car in the striped walkway. No excuse for that.

My standard practice is to block out any license numbers, because people don't ask for their personal information to be exposed on my blog. I'm not making the effort this time.

These two were kind of asking for it...