Wednesday, May 30, 2018

it's always something ~ but you gotta find the humor

Hard to believe that in my last post (May 21st), I said I had to turn the heat on. A few days ago, the weather slammed us with temps in the 90's. The humidity wasn't bad, so I actually enjoyed time outdoors in the morning, planting more flowers and cleaning the patio. The heat really pushed more plants into blooming, including the Columbine (the plants climbing the trellis)...


One day my peonies were mere buds...


and the next day they were full blooms! So amazing. This peony bush was just a little stick of a plant last year when my mom gave it to me, so I was thrilled that it's thriving and producing blooms this year.


Same with the clematis ~ one day just buds all over and the next day, tons of blooms. Both the clematis and peony bush are right outside my bedroom window, so when I opened my blinds in the morning, I was greeted by the sight of both these beauties. I had to do a double-take because I couldn't believe this could happen overnight.


Brian worked a long weekend, but had Monday off for Memorial Day. We decided to grill burgers and pork tenderloin for dinner. I was inside the house, prepping the side dishes and getting the condiments for the burgers set out. All of a sudden, there was a knock on the kitchen door, which is the side door on our house. I figured it was our next door neighbor. I opened the door, and there was Brian on his hands and knees! I yelled, "What happened?!" All I heard was something about bees, so I assumed he got stung. He said, "No, I ran from them! I have a bad Charley Horse in my leg!" I told him to walk it out and instead he sat down and was massaging his calf muscle. He got up and tried to walk and couldn't.


 We then knew it was more than just a Charley Horse. We ate dinner, I cleaned up, then went to a friend's house to borrow her crutches. The next morning, we went out to breakfast at the local greasy spoon, then it was on to the doctor. Brian has a pulled calf muscle - that much we had figured out. But it could be a tear. He's doing all the right things - icing and elevating. Now he needs to see an orthopedist.


And then today I was out running errands in the pouring rain and came home to find this:


That's our soffit and gutter on the north side of the house! No one was home at the time, so we can only assume it was the heavy rain that caused this damage. My neighbor across the street came over when he got home from work to make sure we knew and that we were OK. And my next door neighbor (the Nice One) called me to check on us, too. We put a call in to our home owner's insurance company and the adjuster is supposed to call us back tomorrow. I'm actually not that upset about it - except for my beautiful Weigela bushes. I'm just glad it wasn't on the other side of the house. That's where the patio furniture is, as well as a lot of plants and flowers. And our Nasty Neighbor's fence.

The Nice Neighbor joked that I could park my car under the overhang. I told him, heck, I was going to leave the damage as is so that our house would match the Nasty Neighbor's house. Nice Neighbor then replied that at least it would detract attention from his Weed Garden in his front yard. (He hates yard work and gardening.) Ah...if you can't joke around and laugh in these situations, you'd cry. I'll take the laughter.





12 comments:

  1. OH MY GOODNESS! They say, that when it rains it pours . . . the trim on your home certainly fits the meaning of that phrase. I do hope that your homeowner's policy comes through for you. Happy to hear that you are getting warm weather; your flowers look amazing. It's always nice when the hubby is out cooking on the grill . . . yum :)

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  2. What a week. Why does it always happen like that?? I hope Brian gets some relief soon and I hope your insurance deductible won't give you a headache. :(

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  3. When it rains it pours! (Pun intended). So sorry to hear about Brian. I hope it heals quickly. I can only imagine how shocked you were to see him come to the door. It reminds me of the time when we were on vacation and I fell and cracked a rib. It's not funny, but I couldn't speak it hurt so bad, and when Dan came into the hotel room and found me, I was on the floor and he thought I had a stroke! We laugh about it now, but it scared the heck out of him. And your poor house! But your flowers are beautiful!

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  4. Oh, Melanie. It's always something, isn't it? I'm sorry to hear about Brian's leg and I hope he won't need any surgery or anything like that. Hopefully rest will be the key. How irritating about the soffit and gutter. I've had something similar happen on our first house in New York; we had to have all the siding removed and sheathing and studs replaced underneath because the water had been getting in for a long time before everything just fell off. I hope that is not the case for you. We had a wider eave and deeper gutters put on to help the problem; for us, constant ice dams in the winter had been the main problem. I hope you have a good weekend! Enjoy yourself and relax.

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  5. I hope Brian is ok. Oh and your gutters, as you said you just have to laugh through it all. Hugs!

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  6. Your flowers are looking beautiful! I am sorry about Brian's calf and your soffit and gutter!

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  7. Wow. First I hope Brian did not tear anything and starts to feel better. That storm that came through did a lot of damage for a lot of people. Too bad it did not pick up your mean neighbors house and take him away! Hope your insurance will get you gutter ficed fast . Hopefully the bad stuff is over now. Have a great day.
    Hugs
    Kris

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  8. Wow! That photo of your house is scary looking! I'm glad Brian is okay. I've never had something like that happen. I was afraid you were going to say he's allergic to bees and had been stung. I'm envious of your Lamb's Ear and red trellis (at least I think it's red).
    Brenda

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  9. Good Grief! I hope that Brian will end up ok and the insurance will cover the damage!

    I had a peony bush years ago ( as well as an autumn clematis until the bindweed killed it) Well, I remember picking tons of peony blooms and bringing them in to put in to a vase ( newly married, young, not knowing much yet ) and later on discovering how much ANTS love peonies too! :)

    In years past around here I just get my peony blooms from the neighbor's bush but I check for ants first!

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  10. Oh my goodness, Melanie, tell Brian I know how that hurts because I ripped my calf muscle at my grandson's wedding a few years ago. Ripped it when I stood up to turn to face the bride coming in, fell back in my chair in pain and was the only one in the audience that could not go up and take communion during the ceremony! Could barely walk afterwards. Embarrassing and painful!

    I opted for no surgery and it took me about 9 months to not hurt while walking. I sure hope the specialist can help him. You must have been so frightened too. And then to come home to this damage at home, I'm so sorry about all of it. Please take care, both of you. Time for some rest and calm.

    Sit out there and enjoy those beautiful purple blooms on the peony and clematis while they're here. Purple is my new favorite flower color this year, can't get enough of it.

    Y'all be careful,
    Dewena

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  11. I feel bad about everything. But I am happy that Brian is smiling in that pic--a real trooper. I have a ton of problems at both houses. I'm trying to get the time and mojo to write a blog post. At this rate it will be an hour long read!

    Jane x

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  12. Oh, my goodness what a week, or weekend, dear Melanie! And poor Brian! I'd have to ask him for my forgiveness, thought, because when I first read all about that little commotion of him, hands and knees, the bees and the Charley Horse—oh, well, I just had to laugh thinking it was something else, plus you got me thinking of my own husband—I could see some similarities there… lol lol! I hope he feels better soon!

    Cielo

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