Best Of

And the Lord sayeth, "here, hold my beer." (Could use a drink myself if I had a taste for alcohol).

I'm gonna be offline for awhile—early this morning we were awakened by the smell of smoke (the detectors didn't work, despite fresh batteries). I was in scrubs & rubber sandals, Bob was in his undies & barefoot. By the time he hung up with 911, the sirens were already blaring—we live 2 bl. from the fire station. 3 engines, all the neighbors were out (they were preparing for a yard sale that got rained out). House is still standing, everything intact except for the roof (they punched a hole to vent the smoke), the rear of the kitchen and the rear of the basement. But it's uninhabitable for an indeterminate length of time due to smoke smell. We packed up the cats and whatever we could manage and are in a suburban hotel for the next week & a half and then a long-stay suite hotel in River North till mid-July. After that, State Farm will look for a temporary house, townhouse or large apt. They estimate the repairs, de-odorizing, and repainting could take through December. 

It started in an outlet on the rear wall of the kitchen—it was old & ungrounded (was not replaced in the 1989 re-wire) , and the flames went down into the basement. The CFD put it out fairly quickly. So Bob & I and the kitties are holed up in a 2-bed room for the time being. They still smell of smoke, and the wipes I bought from Petsmart are not getting the stench out. They've just started grooming themselves, though they are eating, drinking, and excreting quite well. They are supremely bored—we did have to buy them a new cardboard scratcher (the ones we packed were smoky) and ball-track toy.

Amazing how much you think you brought with you at a time like this, but how much more you have to buy—all my OTC meds (we grabbed the strongbox with the Rx stuff and put the Mounjaro into an insulated bag with ice packs), all my makeup, all but one pair of pants each (Bob couldn't find long enough ones at Target tonight—we'll try Costco tomorrow), and whatever the laundry service dropped off last night, still in plastic bags. We are going to have to buy stock in the makers of Febreze. I did bring my computer and all my iPads & chargers; Bob brought one computer but still has to go back tomorrow and grab the office computer and the new laptop he's never used. We spent a bundle at Petsmart & Target (and since the hotel has no restaurant, just breakfast, we dined at Outback tonight—first thing we ate all day). I went to bed at 3am Fri night and we were out in the street by 6am—so "exhausted" doesn't even begin to cover it. Bob got to bed at 11pm and I had to wake him. He's snoring away to beat the band right now.

We move downtown the day after my excision surgery—and moving day is also the day of my mammogram. Lots of rescheduling, rearranging (mail, utilities, prescriptions, etc.) in order. State Farm, its restoration and temp housing contractors, and the Red Cross have been wonderful, as have our neighbors. 

Might check in once in a blue moon if I have a moment to spare. Oh, and our HK made it down to B'ham today—we were talking while she was pulling out of Louisville.

Catch you later—in everyone's pockets (espec. Betrayal & Puffin) for upcoming med stuff.