Catching Up......

Haven't posted anything for a long time. Hope I remember how. I am coming up on the 3 month mark at my latest job since our move to Santa Fe. Seems like this one is going well. I wasn't sure if I would be accepted by the people I work with as most are Hispanic or Native American. I have been adopted by one of the sergeants and he refers to me as his Hispanic sister. It is sort of like a large extended family with lots of joking and clowning around. The actual dispatching is much the same as when I worked in Ruidoso Downs with the exception of the tribal laws. I am working 11 am to 9 pm which are good hours for me since I can't go to sleep early and hate getting up in the morning.

My oldest schipperke turned 16 last month and is not doing well. He has Cognitive Disorder which is the animal version of Alzheimers and is not eating much these days. He is sleeping a lot more than before and doesn't want any attention as he used to. He doesn't appear to be in any pain, but I watch him closely. I hate the thought of losing him, but I know it is inevitable. I hope he will pass quietly in his sleep which would be so much easier for all of us.

We have done just about all that we are going to do on the inside of the house. The landlord had not finished off a lot of his projects, so Bob has been finishing up for him and we just deduct it from the rent. We have ceiling fans in all the rooms now, with the exception of the kitchen, and that is next. I have painted both of the bathrooms and of course, have put up mini blinds and valances in the bedrooms and bathrooms. I have some touch-up painting to do on the walls and especially the two kivas to cover the smoke marks from the fires. I don't think we will use the kivas much this coming winter as we now have gas heat and the fireplaces are really dirty. I am sure it is not good for Bob to be inhaling the smoke from the fireplaces either. I will try and take a few new pictures and add them to my next posting.

And So It Goes..........

Here it is, 4:00am and sleep is eluding me once again. That must mean it is time for me to post to my blog which has been neglected for sometime. We finally got gas heat the end of the first week in April. The electric bills were sky high because, as we all know, the small ceramic electric heaters make the meter spin and two kivas do not keep the house warm enough. About a week after the heat finally started working, the kitchen sink backed up and since the landlord was on his way to Colorado on business, I had a bucket under the sink for the week he was gone. Seems a tree root had grown through the 40+ year old pipes. The kitchen is part of the original 100 year old house. So along with having the backyard torn up to replace the gas line, the side yard was also backhoed to dig to the kitchen drainage pipes. I have my fingers crossed that nothing else will happen for awhile.

At least the house is starting to look like someone actually lives in it. We purchased ceiling fans for the livingroom and one of the back bedrooms as the ceilings had not been finished as far as putting in light fixtures. And after losing about half of my plants, my hibiscus has come back and has it's first bloom in the new house.

On the job front, things have been bleak. I left the security position after 3 weeks. Being a reformed smoker - but not one that lectures - I found that I couldn't handle the smoke in the casino. Apparently the building had been a school and was converted to a casino without making any improvements to the ventilation system. I never thought that I would be bothered but I guess when you aren't smoking it is a different story. I took a position with an E911 dispatch center in an adjoining county only to find that after being the lone operator at smaller police agencies for the past 12 years I am not fast enough for 911. The center is severely short staffed and instead of having 3 or 4 on a shift, there are only 2 dispatchers working. I could not concentrate on the 3 police agencies, 15 fire depts. and the various EMS units that were dispatched and take calls and type the information into the CAD all at the same time. I hope this doesn't sound like sour grapes, because it is not meant that way. I don't know that I could have handled this position 20 years ago, especially as short handed as they are.

So for the past 2.5 weeks I have been playing domestic goddess, working around the house. I finally got the small bathroom painted and replaced a few tiles that were missing around the bath tub. My next challenge will be to paint the master bathroom which has 12 foot ceilings. The ceilings are the wooden beams (vigas) and don't get painted, but there will be a lot of stretching to do those walls. I don't think there is any other major project for me to do, just the normal cleaning. Spring winds here are really something and blowing dirt is everywhere. Not to mention the amount of dirt that 4 little "pot bellied" pigs (aka schipperkes) bring into the house!!

The Casino

Another week has passed and still no gas hooked up. The plumber was a no-show at the landlords to pick up half of his money and at our house to hook up the new gas line. Something about this scenario reminds me a lot of trying to get things done in Florida !!
I have finished my first week in security at the casino and am enjoying my two days off. It was quite interesting. I am not a gambler and the closest I have ever been to gambling was on the boats that went out of John's Pass near St. Petersburg. I went out on them a couple of times when my son was home on leave from the Navy, but I always took my knitting and sat on the top deck and enjoyed the boat ride and the view. Needless to say, I am getting quite the education. I still have no desire to gamble - lucky as I am I might just as well throw my money down the toilet. The pay is decent and the benefits are good and kick in after 90 days. My son starts sometime this week. He should pick up his Gaming Commission badge and uniforms tomorrow. Hope he enjoys the job as much as I do.....
Here's hoping we get gas hook-up before summer !!

The Everchanging World of - Oh !! Us....

Last Thursday morning, March 6, this is what we woke to. This was supposed to be a dusting. Now I didn't want to go to work to begin with and this didn't improve my mood any......so I stayed home. Later that day I called and told my supervisor that I decided I didn't want to be a dispatcher for Santa Fe County Communications. I have always dispatched for small agencies where you know everyone by their first name - even when you don't want to. Although we did have a mayor at my last employment in Florida who always thought my name was Phyllis. After awhile you even begin to recognize the voices of the "frequent flyers" who love the police department. Santa Fe Co. Comm. or RECC as it is called, is very large with very unfriendly women working there. I would sit and listen to them talk to the people they were training and think to myself, NO WAY. Speak to me like that once and it will be the last time. So before that had a chance to happen, I left gracefully.

I did have a job waiting in the wings (thankfully, as the checking account is getting thin). My son and I have both been hired by the Pueblo of Pojoaque as security for the Cities of Gold Casino and surrounding stores owned by the Pueblo. The new resort being built is called Buffalo Thunder Resort and will employ 600+ people. I start tomorrow on the 3-11 shift, which has always been my favorite. I am really looking forward to this. Something different from sitting on my butt in front of a radio for 8 to 12 hours.

We still do not have the gas heat working in the house. The ground finally thawed enough for the landlord to dig the trench for the new gas line. The plumber showed up today and is going to do the outside work over the weekend. The interior work will be done on Monday. Hopefully by the end of next week we will have gas heat. As you can see, the kiva has been put to good use keeping the house warm, along with some small electric heaters. I also have a smaller kiva in my room.

So, life marches on. When we have the final closing on the house in Tularosa, I hope to be able to take a few days off after I have been with the Pueblo for 6 months and visit Florida. We will wait and see what happens.......

Home at Last ????

Well, today is supposed to be the last day in the motel. The landlord put an electric water heater in yesterday so that we will have hot water, if not gas heat. The ground is still frozen solidly enough so that his trencher can't get through to the old gas line. I am sure if the gas line were at the front of the house it would be easier, but sun doesn't hit the back until late afternoon. He says hopefully it will be thawed enough by the end of the month. So, we won't have a gas bill, but the electric will be high from the ceramic heaters. We also have the vigas that will be burning brightly tonight. We bought a cord of wood last week. Nice wood - pinon. Burns well and smells great.
Bob is leaving Tularosa sometime tomorrow afternoon with the last load of "treasures". There are a few boxes from the house, mostly kitchen things. Most of the load is from the garage. He has some last minute errands to run in Alamogordo before leaving so he probably won't be here until late afternoon or early evening. I actually start work tomorrow at the communications center. I'm not too thrilled about dispatching again, but at this point I need to generate some income. I will keep my eyes and ears open for other opportunities. Tuff - watch the mail for those reference letters and keep those lies flowing..........

Moving...................

Tell me again why at a nicely aged 62 - I am moving yet again !! The spirit may be willing, but my body has given up the ghost. The new rental in Santa Fe appears great - except - there is a gas leak between the meter and the house and the temps up there are the coldest in the past 10 years. We are leaving tomorrow morning and will be staying in a motel for at least a week, just unpacking at the house during the day. The 2 kiva fireplaces should keep the cold down to a minimum. Or I can look at the picture of the pellet stove in our house here in Tulie and remember. The landlord has hopes that it won't take longer than a week to fix.

And for those of you who don't have gypsy blood (something MY parents obviously neglected to tell me) I am sure you remember the joys of moving and sleeping on a mattress on the floor. Thank goodness there was Palmetto Canvas that made such a nice foam mattress when we lived on the houseboat. It has come in handy several times. Our little caravan is taking off tomorrow morning and hopefully all will go well. I still have to pack up the kitchen and shampoo the livingroom carpet. Oh - and the stove and oven. Joy !! The dogs will all be riding with me along with as many of the larger house plants that can fit into the Jeep Liberty. Keep your fingers crossed for us and speak with the Gods........................

Once upon a time, A long time ago, In a Faraway Place...............

It's amazing what one finds when packing.......I found a floppy disc holder with about 25 discs in it. We have 4 computers at our house and none of them accept floppies. I have spent the entire day (between dispatch calls) transferring pictures, etc. from the discs to my jump drive. At some point they will be loaded into my lap top and downloaded to a CD. I found pictures I didn't know I had taken and ones that I had completely forgotten about. Old times are the best with friends that we won't soon forget. Tuff - it's time for a visit. You will love Santa Fe and you can park the camper in the yard at the house.......Next excuse !!