TheCapeBlog

I painted the last of the folding doors and staked some plants. Cleaned up a bit as well; Lizzie kept me company for a while. Back yard is starting to look better.

Did an hour standout for Michaela. Cool and a tad windy. Had a brief chat with a former special ed executive about adoption and foster care. She’s typical, blames the child’s genetics or prior experience when failure to engage happens, not of course the sainted adopto-raptors. She also has never observed narcissism in adopto-“mom”s.

Sigh.

Ron did a load of laundry, including one of Lizzie’s blankets.

Since I was already out, made the bagel run to Shaw’s and got some nice two-fers, including soup, ice cream and peanuts.

Did a bunch of work afterwards including tying up bushes and replanting the poor Roses of Sharon. Ron did help by digging/pulling out a rebar that was bent in not one but two places.

Ron trekked to Home Depot yesterday for wood stain. We didn’t see the painter, but we can always do this ourselves if necessary.

I enjoyed the Orange Day standout at the rotary last evening. The gang was there.

It was beautifully organized, a sea of orange shirts and flags. The Tribe held a dinner afterwards, but I went home.

Did some cleanup of the “oval” and “U” areas yesterday. If we were staying put, I might even have put a small patio with firepit and chairs in the cleared area.

Michaela cancelled this morning’s standout, so I get to work some more in the yard.

The crew from Quinn’s installed the D-box yesterday and the Town okayed it (thanked the Health Department).

Stood out with both campaigns yesterday morning, nice chats with all.

Steve the painter from Jamaica came by, gave us a bid.

In touch with Jen, she thinks their property is okay post-Ian. Must have been frightening but sounds like they got through it.

The septic got pumped today and we have our “System Passes” inspection report!

Hoping for a quote from a landscaping company on repairing the lawn.

Did some research on protected and open space land in Mashpee. It appears to be well below the 50% claimed in the SB campaign.

I finished washing the front siding yesterday. It was easy and not so easy. It’s recommended to do this every 2-3 years.

Made a thick soup for yesterday’s supper: zucchini, onion, garlic, white beans, eggs, cheese.

Got another set of folding doors painted today. Ron wants to repair a third set before it’s painted.

He went to Beltone for his repaired hearing aid and loves it.

I washed the gutters in the front of the house. Muscles gave out at the end so I left the big ladder for Ron to put away.

Michaela turned me on to MEPA and Environmental Justice data. In Massachusetts, an environmental justice population is a neighborhood where one or more of the following criteria are true: the annual median household income is 65 percent or less of the statewide annual median household income. minorities make up 40 percent or more of the population.

We have two of these in Mashpee.

Yesterday, Ron refused to eat until late afternoon. His driving scared me – one too many near misses – and I insisted on taking over.

He argued with me constantly over everything from his prescriptions to the cost of gasoline.

The latest political campaign in Mashpee has gotten nasty. There’s a rumor that one of the Select persons complained to the Town Manager about door knocking in the Select person’s neighborhood. The complaint never went anywhere.

In Ukraine, it’s gone from cruel to unspeakable, with a UN report that Russian troops have been torturing children. One third of the population has left the country. Russian men of draft age are trying to escape to Finland, Armenia, Georgia, Montenegro and Turkey.

Got back a while ago from a two-hour standout for a SB candidate followed by a food shop and a trip to the bank to square away my Debit card, which had been frozen due to an overseas software purchase.

I washed the front siding with a Windex product and a soft brush. Surprised how well that worked.

Heard from our handyman. He’s lined up a painter to work on our railings. I asked if he’s going to scrape and wood fill; haven’t heard back yet.

The Rose of Sharon plants dug up during the septic inspection seem to be hanging on.

We have to replace the distribution box. Our inspector helped us line up an installer to take care of it. I made an appointment for another company to pump the system next Thursday.

Considering that I was prepared for a $10-15,000 replacement of the whole thing, I can live with that.

A realtor from Maine provided listings from a proprietary web app that gives a lot of information not otherwise available, including documents and specialized maps.

This morning, it looks like the properties that interest me are still on the market.

Received a nice packet of info from the Brattleboro Chamber of Commerce.

The Gorgon attacked again.

All three appeals court justices, Trump appointees included, ruled in favor of allowing the DOJ to move forward on their criminal investigation.

Meanwhile, the NY AG sued Trump and three of his kids for fraud.

Yesterday, Ron urged me to help rescue the Rose of Sharon that our septic inspector had to dig up at the distribution box.

I balked but he was absolutely correct. Rain started before we were quite finished, but we did get three plants set up in the washtub and another temporarily replanted before a monsoon-like storm hit the area.

I’m working on a pair of closet doors and the pole from Ron’s closet.

Hope to finish today or tomorrow.

Got an increase in my credit line to cover the septic extensions but at a substantially higher interest rate.

Pizza and salad last night, scrambled eggs with mushrooms and peppers this morning.

Town politics are making Mashpee a laughing stock of the County.

All four of our Select Board members have been publicly campaigning for the October 4 candidates.

So what happens if their choice doesn’t get elected?

One member of the Select Board had a temper tantrum over the Chair’s refusal to add an agenda item.

By the way, I think the Chair was wrong.

Ron is putting up the curtain rod for the second bedroom window. We received the new spread set and curtains.

I took down the kids’ young person artwork.

Spent the morning working on a transcript of last night’s Select Board Candidate Forum. Good questions and the candidates’ points of view came across very clearly.

Received a couple of calls from friends about the fuss at this past Monday’s Select Board meeting over approving a nomination for the Affordable Housing Committee. Downloaded a transcript and sent links to them.

Yesterday Tony and Ron carried the van center seat upstairs and put it in the truck. Ron and I brought it to the transfer station. I’d done a run earlier with yard waste.

Spread some mulch. Transplanted the little hydrangea where the semi-dead rose used to be and cut it way too low; stupid! Trimmed the nine barks and that was okay.

First the good news: it poured for most of yesterday.

Ron freaked out about “his” room, insisting that he needed to do more work before we could have photos taken.

In a way, he has a point. I ordered another set of curtains for the bedroom and a proper king size spread. Probably a good idea to clean the front door, too, and re-hang the bifold doors in the bedrooms.

We had to groom and scrub Lizzie’s backside. It was a horrible mess, but she was her usual forbearant self.

The electrician is here and the Mac repair person picked up Ron’s computer, which we finally decided needs a new battery. He put in an old still good one and charged a reasonable price for the part and his time.

Later:

Very pleased with the ceiling fan and light. Had a small dispute with the company owner due to a miscommunication but we worked it out. I actually overpaid him a little but that’s a different story for another post, maybe.

Mary called to ask me to take down comments I made about one of the Select Board candidates. I was bloody mad but did it out of respect for Mary. Lost some respect for our candidate; I can’t abide cowardice.

Picked up a set of solid wood bifold doors at the resale store in Falmouth for an unbelievable $20.

A handyman will be here tomorrow morning to check out what needs to be done.

Ron took down the crook that I’d asked him to install for a hanging plant.

After listening to him talk about buying them for hours on hours, I found shelf brackets in the attic for Ron’s closet project. I picked up D batteries for the stud finder.

Did more yard cleanup, more than I normally would before official Fall but wanted the property to look neater.