So up I get and go about the business of getting her dressed and then feeding her breakfast, which was juice, a banana and some cereal with milk.  Then it was toothbrush time.  She does her own and really doesn't do too bad a job of it.  But, when I wanted to help her brush behind her front teeth and on the inside of her back teeth, she told me (very firmly) NO!  This was with her finger up and pointed towards me.  She had told me last night that I didn't do it right (don't know how her mother does it but I guess she would know) so she made the attempt herself.  I told the Princess about that when she came to get her so she had to know what Chewlee meant but she just laughed.

After that, I sat and drank my cup of coffee, peacefully.  Then it was time to make up my bed which, thankfully, didn't take long.  Second cup of coffee and I did my Trivial Pursuit and Crossword Cove games for the day.  Then came the tough part.......getting all the Christmas boxes and the packed tree up into the attic.  Luckily, the Beast was there so he was able to give me a hand.  He tried to get the tree up there on his own but I gave it a push so he could get a better grip on it.  About that time, the Princess showed up needing to use our printer so she could send back the windows she had bought for Johnnycakes.  It turns out they were the wrong ones.  But, she jumped in and helped the Beast get the rest of the boxes up into the attic so it was an easy chore....for me. 

But....I will say this much.  This baseboard heating is incredibly nice.  The Beast has it all wired in and running now.  If only it weren't so warm outside so he could feel he was giving it a real run.   Like I said yesterday, what I like is the evenness of the temperature.  Haven't had that in a month of Sundays, that's for sure.  You got used to it in Florida because you didn't use your heat much anyway but the cooling was always great in our homes.  Thanks to the Beast on that score.

This is going to be a short post today.  I made salmon patties for dinner and I need to clean it up before Chewlee gets here.  The Princess is dropping her off for a few hours, I think so she and one of her work friends can go out and do something.  Tomorrow is her day off and the baby has a dental appointment and then the Princess has a parent-teacher conference after that.  Busy, busy, busy.    I'm sure she would rather be washing clothes (which is a job she hates) than have to go to a parent-teacher conference when she really doesn't have an answer about what to do for the problem.  It's tough raising a kid without an instruction manual. 

I kid you not.  There isn't even a *cold spot* (I'm sure you know what I mean) when you walk through either room.  It was cold in here this morning but, within a short time, it was nice and toasty.  I went from my hands being like ice to feeling very warm and flexible.  Even my feet are warm.

It heats by convection.  The heat goes up and the *convection* pulls the cold air from the floor area into the heater.  It's amazing to me to see and feel it work.  I'm impressed and I truly hope that the Beast isn't just beating his chops when he says it WILL lower our electric bill.  I'm sure he's got it all figured out on paper somewhere but I don't care.  I just know it's more comfortable.  I told him so and he said to me, *I'm just trying to make it nicer for you before I die.*    I told him he'd better not die before he finishes because I don't know where I could get someone to finish it for me. 

I was ready to kill Baron today.  First of all, I caught him with my flannel sheet IN HIS MOUTH where he was chewing on it like a pacifier.  Yes, he did tear it up but he didn't take any of the material off it.  *Sigh*  So tomorrow I take the sheet off and put a patch on it.  Second of all, I found another spot where he had done the same thing but this one on my patchwork quilt.  I became a mad woman at that point and told the Beast that the dog is NOT ALLOWED on our bed any more.  If he wants to suck on something, he can suck on either of his two beds.  Yes, he has two.  One is kept next to the Beast's recliner and the other is next to our bed.

The Beast has been letting Baron get up on our bed as long as he stays down by our feet.  Of course, during the night, he slowly creeps up until he's stretched out between us.  The only reason he's let him is because we have a wood floor in there and our heating has NOT warmed that area....ever.  BUT....with these baseboard heaters, there will be no reason to worry about Baron getting too cold during the night.

Me?  I'm just sick over this.  I really thought Baron was over this chewing thing he had as a pup.  God knows the Beast buys him enough toys and rawhide things for him to chew on.  I just don't understand what the hell is going on with him.

Today has been a catch-as-catch-can kind of day.  Neither one of us has been hungry at the same time.  I DID make the Beast a grilled cheese sandwich (which he requested).  He always makes his own cereal in the morning.  He doesn't like the way *I* make cream of rice.    Me?  I prefer oatmeal anyway or my Honey-Nut Cheerios.  At least, that is this weeks choices for me.  Next week, I will probably go to my Rice Chex as a change.

Well, the Beast is making corned beef hash for himself and I told him I would make his eggs when he was done.  I can tell he's almost ready for them so I will sign off for now. 

After he took his bath, complaining about his RIGHT leg even getting so it was giving out on him, did he stop?  Hell, no!  He sat and watched some TV with the hot pad on his left leg (since that one is the really bad one) and then got up and installed the baseboard heaters into place in my computer room and the guest bedroom.  He had already installed the one for the dining area since that is actually at the far end of the main room and abuts the kitchen.  We have the fireplace at the opposite end so I think that's a room that is well-covered as far as heat goes. 

I did linens (change, wash dirty ones) and the clothes in the hamper.  I also dust mopped and swept the wood floors then took a wet Swiffer to them.  Actually I only got about half of it all done because it was senseless to do it with the Beast and Baron going in and out and dragging dead grass and dirt across the floor.  I'll finish it tomorrow or the next day when I'm sure it will ALL need doing once again. 

The Princess was telling us that Chewlee is actually going into the dentist on Thursday.  It seems she found a black spot that isn't a poppy seed on the back side of the baby's front teeth.  She doesn't know what it is but wants the dentist to take a look.  If it's a caries, she hopes he can just put a kind of patch type filling in it because she doesn't want the baby to end up losing that tooth before it's ready nor does she want one of those gold foiled teeth on her.  We both think that's tacky, regardless of the price. The weird thing is that the baby is constantly wanting to brush her teeth, even if she hasn't eaten anything.  When she's done, she lets mommy (or me) finish up the brushing by getting the teeth in back and also the backside of the front teeth.

After that, she has her first parent-teacher conference.  Yes, the baby has NOT been good.  It's not that she isn't bright but she can be a stinker when she wants her way.  But, what's funny is...if she's put in a corner, or stuck out in the hall with her face to the wall, she stays there.  She cries but she stays.  I gather she was taking away the sippy cups of some of the younger kids because she wanted them.  Just shows me that I have to take it away from her HERE, too.  Her mother took it away from her at home a couple months ago but, tender hearted but dumb me, I gave it to her when I was watching her while she was sick.  After that, I figured I could baby her one day a week, right?  No.  I guess not.  Doesn't work that way until she is just a bit older and then it will have to be sugar, sugar and more sugar.  **Insert evil laugh here**

Every couple of months it seems that Baron and I have to go through this *dance* about who is where in the pecking order.  I have no idea what sets it off but it has to do with when the Beast takes him to this one area where he lets him run.  Since the weather was so nice today, when he ran out to Lowe's for more parts (of course), he decided that Baron needed it.  So, off they went and the Beast let Baron run free to his hearts content for about 20 minutes or so.  After they got home, it started.  I'm not going to go into detail about it but I really will be glad if it ever stops.  Maybe by the time he's fully matured (in about six months or so).  It's so damned annoying and I have to stick with it or he gets unbearable and I end up fighting him over damn near everything.  You have no idea how bossy an upstart doberman can be until you own one.  Or should I say when HE thinks he owns YOU.

I tried to find out what is different about these times when he starts that crap with me (is there another dog there?  a human he interacts with? a kid?)  I know it has to be something because it's not EVERY time the Beast takes him there.  The Beast, however, is like, *Huh?*  Totally clueless.  I could strangle him at those times.

We had such beautiful weather for most of today but it started clouding over around dinner time.  I guess we have some crap heading our way but it doesn't necessarily mean rain.  Just lots of clouds, wind but warm temperatures at least.  I've been losing my Internet off-and-on since then so I want to get this posted for your reading pleasure (?) later.

By saying that, I knew I needed to put on my slippers and grab a light jacket or sweater.  End of story.  I guess he HAS learned something. 

And, yes, he pulled the wiring he needed for the baseboard heaters.  He had to wait until he actually got them and found out what he would need before he could do that.  That is also why we haven't made it to Sam's Club yet.  He becomes single-minded once he starts a project.  You can't divide his attention in two directions.  I'm sure there's some medical name for his behavior.  If he were a neater person, I would think it would be OCD but that can't be it.  Oh well.  It's not really important.  It's all behavior that I am familiar with over the years we've been married.

So he's been busy all day long, off and on since he takes time to rest because he's being very neat and very careful at doing all this electrical work.  It was kind of his specialty as an AC Contractor.  No one understood wiring or how all the various components work together like he did.  Even the union considered him one of their finest that ever came out of their school.  What they never truly understood is that they just helped develop it.  HE had the natural talent to begin with.  Other than that, I wish they had taught him to be compassionate, good natured and how to be a good father.  To me, that would have made him valuable.  I would have given kudos to any place that could have done THAT!

Oh shoot.  I'm going off on a tangent now.  This wiring stuff is going to take him DAYS.  I'm not holding my breath about our trip to Huntsville to stock up on things we could use.  The longer it takes, the longer my list becomes. 

It seems to have stopped raining here.  I don't mind it when it's a gentle one like ours has been but I'm glad it's stopped.  The sky is still cloudy so I need to get this ready for posting before I take the chance of losing my internet connection. 

The Beast and I had a problem yesterday that had me mad as hell at him.  He asked for my help and I asked him what it was he wanted me to do.  He got all pissed off and started screaming at me that I never want to give him a hand (which is NOT true).  I yelled back at him and told him that I wanted to know if I needed to put a jacket on or not.  He had stormed into the garage so I, to push the argument further, opened the door and told him, *It WAS not an unreasonable question and you are totally WRONG for reacting the way you did*.  He then just looked at me and said, very quietly and calm, *I really DO need your help.  I can't do this on my own.* No outright apology.  Will never happen in my lifetime but that is about par for him. So, I put on a light jacket and went out to help him.

What he was doing was running some electrical lines up the wall of the garage, across the attic and down the opposite wall inside some pipe.  There were five wires that had to be kept from twisting.  I was on the outside wall feeding the wires up into the pipe while he was pulling them with some gadget or other on the opposite wall.  With just a few stops to untangle the wire at my end, we managed to get the wiring through and that was it for his day.  He had already done the installation of the new circuit, put all the piping together and getting the wiring through was his last *job for the day*.  I've told you before about that little quirk of his.

Once he has decided he is going to do something, he can't wait to get it done.  Of course not.  This is NOT something that needs doing now.  But, once in his head, it becomes something he HAS to do.  The wiring will be for two different things.  #1 is the separate circuit for the heat strip on the heat pump.  #2 is for the baseboard heater he intends for our bedroom.  That means more crawling underneath the house.  *Sigh*  I know I'm not the one doing it but it's like I said.  Sometimes he is his own worst enemy.

I finally got the guest room done and ready.  Not that I am expecting anyone but it'll be ready whenever.  All I have to do is dust it each week.  But the linens, blankets and spread are all nice and clean and ready.  I also stuck a fabric softener sheet in each pillow (to keep them smelling fresh) and one under the top sheet.  That way, even if it's a couple months before it's used, they will still be fresh.  That a little Heloise hint I have always remembered.  I just have to remember to turn down the bed and remove the fabric softener sheet plus the ones in the pillows.  Since I have been doing this for several years, that's a no-brainer. 

Okay, now you are kind of caught up on things here until I post what's been going on TODAY a bit later.  Love you all and hope you are having a better day than we are.  That rain the weatherman promised us for the weekend showed up today.  Not any heavy rain but a steady light one.  It's the overcast that gets to me.  I'm a sun person.  So all my lights are on everywhere to help keep the house bright.  The Beast isn't complaining about the bill either so he has to feel it, too.  TTYL all!

I was wearing a long-sleeved flannel top and a pair of fleece lounging pants.  The Beast looked awful and was so pale he could have passed a test for white socks.  He went back to bed shortly after I got up so I knew our trip to Huntsville was not going to happen.  I went and laid back in my recliner and watched the History Channel for a while until *I* fell asleep for a short time.

Later on, after the Beast woke up, he ended up putting some more insulation around some of the duct work under the house and doing some caulking that hadn't been done where the duct work connected to the heat pump.  Meantime, it got warmer and warmer.  Okay, now I realize that's a relative term but....the temperature kept rising until it was over 45 degrees and still going up.

I dustmopped and, as always, after I was done plucking out clumps of hairs from the edges, I went outside to beat the rest of the shit out of it.  It was while I was outside on the deck doing that I was struck by something.  I actually felt comfortable with the temperature.  I didn't feel the need to run inside quickly and thaw out.  It was only 50 degrees and I felt like it was spring weather. 

I actually stood outside after cleaning out the dust mop and enjoyed the day.  So guess what *we* decided we were going to do?  We used the new grill and made some steaks up for dinner.  I stood outside while the Beast seared them on the special searing plate and then transferred it to the cooking side.  The end result was sheer heaven.  All of the looks and taste of a steak barbequed on a charcoal grill without the taste of the lighter fluid. 

Dinner was great.  A nice spring salad with onions and cucumber I added (he had Zesty Italian, I had Hidden Valley Ranch), our steaks with sauteed mushrooms and some Texas toast and we were set.  When I finished (and there is steak left for sandwiches tomorrow), I felt like I do after a great Thanksgiving dinner.  The Beast and I both took naps. 

Even after eating, the Beast and I went outside to recover the grill and we both sat down and breathed in the fresh air and enjoyed the stillness and quiet.  I was still only dressed in the long sleeve flannel top and the fleece leisure pants.  I DID, however, have socks on my feet.....just so you know I'm not a total idiot.  But it was enough.  And that is what is so amazing to me after just three winters here in NE Alabama.  It was enough.

In Florida, if the weather dipped down to below 70, I would be dressed in sweatshirts over shirts and heavy pants and would STILL put on a jacket.  Of course, our cooler weather in Florida always seems to be accompanied by gusty winds and high humidity but still.....!  At 50 degrees in Florida, I FROZE.  Those times that we went down to almost freezing, I literally hibernated and refused to go outside for any reason.

My dad, bless his heart, always said that 50 degrees in Florida felt colder than 30 in Chicago and he thought it was the winds and humidity too.  I remember times talking to one of my sisters or brothers in Chicago when I would be claiming how COLD it was and they would laugh and say things like, *Hell, that's t-shirt weather here!* or *We would be breaking out our shorts or just using a light sweater at THAT temperature*.  I always thought they were being facetious.  Now I finally understand what they meant.  It's all in what you get used to.  Perspective, pure and simple.

I realized for the first time that I was more driven by my perception of the cold by what the temperature was than by *testing* out how it actually felt to be out in it.  A rather strange feeling for me to finally admit.  Even the Beast, who had to be down under the house with the protected but frozen ground, felt it was so much warmer when he came out into the open.  I'm sure the sun shining helped but he wasn't running inside to warm up like he had when the temperatures only got up to maybe 32 as a high and the wind was blowing.  Today, there WAS no wind to speak of and, if I had clothes to dry, might actually have put them on my clothesline.    I know!  Weird but true.

Tomorrow (Friday) is my doctor's appointment and I need to drop off a package to go to my sister, Bratfink IF I remember to bring it with me.    I'm just sending her some stuff for her rag rug plus something for her to use to help keep things neat on her desk or somewhere.  I'm also sending her some medication that I hope helps her out for a while until her insurance kicks in and she can see her own doctor.  Right now, I'm really getting worried about her health since she's been sick for an awful long time.  I know part of it is she isn't sleeping well at all but I haven't seen her be offline for as long as I have this past week. 

It's time for me to try to finish cleaning up the kitchen.  The dishes are all in the dishwasher but there's some stuff that needs to be straightened up and my table is a mess from just pushing aside the Beast's various projects to clear a space for eating.  I'm going to get it cleared once and for all.  Well, for a day or two anyway. 

The Beast has taken care of these buildings for many, many years.  She moved them from company to company whenever the Beast changed employers.  He had *magic hands* when it came to them and could keep the AC/heating systems of them working with little down time.  When he said equipment HAD to be replaced, it got replaced.  He never said it unless he saw it would be a no-win situation with the cost of replacement vs. the cost of constant servicing and parts replacement.  In other words, he gained her complete trust.

He has kept the service costs down even as a consultant due to the fact that he works WITH the service people there.  He has even interviewed companies and made recommendations as to who should be given which buildings.  The Beast's reputation remains intact in South Florida. 

The bad thing is......when there is a problem with the system, even a small one, Gloria panics and he suddenly is getting a shitload of phone calls even to the extent of not allowing the maintenance man to replace a battery in a thermostat unless the Beast okays it.  All a waste of time as far as the Beast is concerned.  I've told him that HE made that monster (Gloria) by making her rely on him and trust only him.  He was ALWAYS honest with her whereas others tried to BS her.  So now he has no reason to complain if she STILL feels that way.

Her poor assistant (most don't make it past two years with her due to her anal retentive personality and her expectations that things should be like she wants them, not always as they are in truth) is made to constantly call the Beast when he knows the reason for the call is dumb.  But, since she is the boss, he will comply. 

In the meantime, I have to listen to his complaints on this end.  Sometimes, he gets annoyed...no, make that pissed...because I don't even stop to listen but walk into my room and shut the door.  I tell him she is HIS monster and that's all I ever say.  The problems had with the one building were relatively minor.  After the tech touched base with the Beast, he told him what needed to be looked at and then what to do if thus-and-such was the case.  Turns out some idiot had disconnected some critical wiring in one suite (where the tenants insisted on THEIR own AC tech) and that was the reason they were freezing from no heat.  The Beast knew what was wrong without even laying eyes on it.  It was kind of funny.  He knows the building and equipment THAT well even after all this time since his strokes.

I'm just glad that we are going to Sam's Club (finally) to do some of the stocking up he wanted us to do ...what?...two months ago?   Yeah, I get my procrastination honestly.  It wore off on me.  At least he will have something else to occupy his mind.  He did manage to get the gas hooked up to the new barbeque *kitchen* and he ended up going through all kinds of hell with the faucet he needed to replace (the hose bib out back that was leaking).  He made a note of all the fittings he needed and how much pipe and found out there is no pipe to be had anywhere in this town and three others surrounding us due to all the people who had them burst with that low, low we had a few days ago.  Or was it a week already?  Sheesh...time flies.  Anyway, we now have no hose bib out there (temporarily) but we do very little watering in the winter so the Beast has it capped off until spring or he has nothing better to do after piping comes in to the various stores.

He proudly lit all the burners and the searing plate to show me.  It IS a neat gadget, I'll give him that much.  But...since tomorrow's (today's for those of you reading this on Thursday) weather is supposed to be either the high 40's or low 50's, he wants to make some steaks on it.  Since he's going to cook them and does a good job, I figure I will let him.  I went and picked out a nice porterhouse for him (aka T-bone) and a nice ribeye for me.  I love a good steak but I don't eat a lot of red meat these days.  I did pick up some stuff for a good salad to go with it and some fresh mushrooms to saute for the steaks.

He really should know better than to send me to the store for *a few things*.  I ended up buying some boneless, skinless chicken breasts to make some recipes I have tried (and love) and one that I just was sent that sounds good so I want to try it.  I usually prefer dark meat of chicken but will, on occasion, eat a breast if it's not just plain baked or fried.  The recipes I like are either casserole types with cheeses or have a good sauce.  Bye the time I got done, I had bought enough meat for us for the next two weeks.    Oh well.  That's usually the most expensive part of shopping.  Everything else seems minor in comparison.

I'm going to set this up for going down the *interwebs* as Bratfink often says.  I plan on an early night tonight since we are going to Huntsville tomorrow.  Pray for decent weather since the Beast is driving AND we will be eating steak after we return.  I just don't want rain ruining it for us.  The weatherman lied about it not getting really cold.  It got down to 17 degrees (again) last night.  Right now it's at 32 degrees but it's only 9pm here as I write this.  I don't believe it will get that cold tonight but I could be surprised.  The Beast CLAIMS he is leaving Baron home while we got to Huntsville but, if so, it will be the first time he's been left alone as long as we will probably be gone.  We shall see how long THAT lasts.