Treasure 2 Trash, Rude Ruud Furnaces, Family, Friends, Faith?

Okay, I lied! I had promised to do better with my posting, and I let Life happen. Again! But is this NOT what we are supposed to do? Well, from the title of this particular post, I could just say goodbye at this point, and those words could just serve all that has been going on, but then you, my few followers, would be left scratching their heads in total wonder. WONDERING if I'd completely gone off my rocker...you'd be correct in that ASSumption! LOL!
Well, without further ado, I'll elaborate...Hope you brought your pillow & PJ's, you'll need those, along with a meal or two! Oh...grab a tissue....I think that comes in handy a few times!

Treasure to Trash: I don't know where to start with this one...I guess I would have to blame this on a very new-to-me Blogger person that I have been stalking. OOops! I mean gawking at! Her name is Annie of Olde Annie Primitives... She and I seem to have a LOT in common...not only with our crafting abilities, but of the amounts of "stuff" we tend to have in our CraftRooms! We are also discovering quite a few other things we have in common, thru each other's Blogs and thru Emails. Hamburger Helper, for one thing. Long story, but we tend to remember when THAT was an entire meal-in-a-box, for a family. These days, I think you are lucky to feed TWO people with the amount that is in the box. What's with THAT?!??! So, Annie has also done something that I would have NEVER thought I would do, and that was completely and courageously shown her "mess" of a craftroom in TOTAL chaos...and for all intents & purposes, I understand her reasons for doing it. There was also a few words on how she intended to get it all organized. Guess What?!?!? She did! Go here, to see this amazing work....BEFORE & AFTER. Great Job, Annie!!! Now Pray for me, cuz I am going to be tackling my OWN room, and soon! But for the meantime...let's see if I can bare my existance in this room, which is totally on the verge of being condemned! Look for yourself! You may choose to click to Enlarge, but be very afraid!
This is the CURRENT look....I just took this one. Don't even ask! Maybe LATER, you will understand. There are LOTS of reasons for this room to look like this, and like Annie, I am in a Transitional Phase...possibly the LONGEST transitional phase I have ever been in, but again, bear with me, as you WILL come to understand WHY this room is looking THIS bad....worse, actually, cuz you can't see EVERYTHING in this pic. But it isn't without hope. Lots of HOPE....cuz I have been working on this, as you can see from more pics here...





The paint wall Before...
As you can see, there just isn't enough room for ALL my paints and Embellishments, Glues, Brushes, etc. So here is what I have thought MIGHT work better, and I am in the process of working this out, but now it looks something like THIS.....for now.
The crates help with making the color groups go together, and the Bin Boxes will allow me to keep more of those small items I use, a lot more accessible. I am ALWAYS misplacing small items, so this seems logical, except that the bins do NOT come with those little dividers, and you have to CALL for those....and I am waiting on those at this time. I hope they get here soon, cuz it is holding up all my progress! Okay, and the other reason for this huge mess, was that I broke down and called a Professional Organizer. Her recommendation was to "gather" all my items into one area....Yeah, right! And as soon as she comes, she is going to RUN LIKE HECK! LOL!
But hey, there is madness and mayhem in unraveling chaos, and I understand her reasonings. So that is the other reason this looks SO BAD.

Now, THAT being said, I feel embarassed, overwhelmed by my OWN pictures, and here are some OTHER things that have been going on since my last post at the beginning of the month!
Furnaces....THEY SUCK!!!! Ours decided to take a slow walk of death...just as we were expecting our Family to come to celebrate Christmas the weekend of January 16th! I still had to get the house "fixed-up" and the ordeal of "the furnace" is a week-long ordeal. I mean it!
AN O R D E A L! We have a new son, Josh....OOops, I mean Craig's right-hand man at work, and friend, came to help. This poor boy...he lives close enough to be here quick, and he is probably the most respectful, helpful, knowledgeable young man I have met in his age-bracket of 20-something! He has helped with our vehicles, MIL crap, and now he was there for us at this Furnace Ordeal! What was supposed to be an easy thing, turned into a nightmare of Murphy's Law. Here is Josh....He's such a cutie...LOL!
Anyhoo....for three LONG Nights in a row this young man, came to OUR home, after putting up with "bossman" all day, to help him/us with this Furnace Ordeal...I know, I keep referring to it as that...but as my Brother once said, It Is What It Is....I hate him for ever saying that. He's right, but I Still Hate Him For That! The furnace ordeal refers to the Lego Block system that THIS system seems to have been made available to ONLY knowledgeable HVAC techs....We are DIY'ers, so we thought (first mistake),
when placing an order for a 14KW Downdraft F U R N A C E, we would get a Big Box with a Big Metal Thing, that once Properly placed would provide us with HEAT!!!! (second mistake)
After a day of me taking on the LOGGER profession, and swinging an Axe in true Logger fashion to split wood and old pallet parts, and lugging this into the house, to somehow raise the temperature to a fashionable 66 degrees up from 62...well, I was SOOoooo looking forward to those guys coming in the evening with a NEW Furnace...a NEW 14KW Downdraft Furnace! Now, the part I haven't told you was the entire day had been passing by with NO LUCK in finding the part we needed to replace....about $60. By the late afternoon, we ended up, and up to our arsenals in debt to the tune of SEVERAL $100's! Now, I am not worried. Okay, I am lying. But the truth of the matter came later, once Josh & Craig had removed the old Furnace, pulling the NEW Furnace from it's box...and me nursing some very sore arms, shoulders, and back from chopping wood, I had decided to make dinner for all of us....and I start hearing words such as "but that's what it says on the box", and "let me look at the ticket", and "it says it's an optional/available package"....Can you understand that sinking feeling one feels at a point when the words being spoken do not equal having a GREAT DINNER IN A WARM HOME?!?!?! I was actually hoping I had possibly missed the better parts of their conversation, due to my pot-banking, water-running, recipe-hashing moments in the Kitchen, on the other side of the wall, away from the "boys" and the "furnace" and the other "furnace"...and the house was starting to get cold again, so I am really hoping this is NOT what It appears? Well, just how wrong that was! In just seconds, I hear my DH's voice go 3 octaves lower, and that familiar sound of him clipping words, and now I am understanding that the people that "sold" the furnace failed to give them the correct furnace, or Parts, or BOTH....and I am in PURE angst, as are the "boys". I mean, REALLY! Who knew that if you ordered/purchased/ a 14KW Downdraft FURNACE, that they charge you 500+ dollars for a metal box with NOTHING IN IT!!!! I am NOT kidding, folks! Truly, this is HOW it is, unbeknownst to us, LOL! So, what could be done? Dinner. It's always good to hash out something over Dinner. Why not have indigestion all night, cuz we are in debt for 500+ dollars and have a BOX that doesn't HEAT without OPTIONAL Package 1 that includes the HEATING ELEMENT! Geez. Go Figure! Furnace=Heat? Doesn't it? We learned this in MATH, didn't we? I thought that was how it worked, but apparently it is more like: Box 1=Furnace Holder + Optional Box 1= Furnace/Heat. But it is now 8:45PM and there is no way to get Optional Box 1 that goes into Box 1. So, for the rest of the evening til about 1AM, the boys, tired & plain discouraged, work on the Old furnace and got it "reconfigured" along with "reinstalled" and we all wait to see what happens when it gets turned back on....for the house to Blow Up or something....But it looks like it was a go, and called it a night after putting Furnace B back into it's box. The guys go to work the next day and pick up Optional Box 1, so they can start another night after a LONG day, to assemble said Furnace Holder and Optional Box 1 so that we may come to the sum of Furnace=Heat. Guess what? WRONG AGAIN!!! The boys...although smarter, this time, leave Furnace A in place, while reading instructions for Furnace B. Now, ya gotta know, this is just getting ridiculous at this point....Josh says, Uh-oh. And we all go WHAT NOW! He informs us that in order to "flip" the A-coil around, (an AC part that we can't even use), to convert this into a "downdraft" furnace (which we ordered), we need OPTIONAL BOX 2/CONVERTER 1. OMFG!!! Are you Kidding ME?!?!?! So...now we are all enraged...This is just purely unreal! Now mind you, we are NOW up to $600. in debt...cuz Optional Box 1 was an additional $100. I'm thinking we should just pack up and MOVE! Here it is Wednesday....NO HEAT, and we are in the COLDEST TEMPS in 15 years....FIFTEEN YEARS!!!! And no heat to speak of! Furnace A, in trying to heat, runs continuously, non-stop, and never reaches any desirable temp... about 66 at the most. In just a few days, we are to have a house-full of family, and the house is in horrible shape. And at this point, the guys pack it up AGAIN! and this is what I am thinking. Everyone is going to see THIS when they come to our home on Saturday....

Merry Friggin HoHo!!!...See Box A??? On top is OPTIONAL BOX 1...Lovely sight....I was tempted to Gift Wrap all of it...just to help Blend it into my already Late Christmas. Big Tag....To Robin & Craig, From Robin & Craig and the people that Screwed up your Holidays....Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men! Okay....so I am getting a bit out of sorts, but could you Blame ME?!?!?! All my concerned friends were saying DUMB things, well, not dumb, but they "bothered" me....it could be just the cold wracking my body, on a daily basis, but I would hear,"Didn't Craig check the box??!?!" Well, my snappy reply, was it was NOT his JOB to do THAT part....it is the SuPPLier's Job!!! Craig is an ELECTRICIAN, not an HVAC person...there was an ORDER for a 14KW Downdraft FURNACE...That usually means that an HVAC guy should KNOW what is needed, and have it ALL ready for pick-up...but nope. That's not the way it is anymore! I explained it like this: You realize you need a car. You pick out your car. You make sure it has ALL the details you want...For most, this is Radio, Heat, AC, Automatic Trans., Sunroof, and maybe some spiffy stuff like a spoiler and sunroof. They make you sign papers for an unbelievable cost, you go with your new keys in hand, sit in the seat, put the key in the ignition and turn it....only Nothing Happens....then the salesguy says, OH, you wanted an ENGINE with this?!?!?! You ASSUME it CAME with one...you do NOT assemble cars, but someone does, and the LAST car you bought came with one, so why doesn't this one!?! LOL! Well, that is the best way to describe it to all the people that thought my husband, Mr. Electric Guy, should KNOW how HVAC now works....he doesn't! LOL!
So....I'm getting tired, but let me just say, in all this, Craig & I decide the next morning, bypass all others involved in this dilemma & chains-of-command, call the supplier, and go RIGHT to the HEAD HONCHO....we/I explain, that we are FOUR days into trying to install Furnace B, along with Optional Box 1, and find that we are NOW in need of Optional Conversion Kit 1 and we are desperate for someone's expertise in the field to tell us HOW many MORE options and conversions we are going to need BEFORE we can call this thing a FURNACE, or much less, have REAL HEAT! Oh, and the Money it is going to take! The man apologized profusely, as he is in Electical and has NO IDEA of what he is Reading on our Order #, but he will go to HVAC personally and hash it out with them, call us back, and "fix this" for us. Well, we wait....and in the meantime, Craig sits down, ONCE again, with the instructions for Furnace B sitting in it's box, begging to be wrapped up in pretty paper, and he says,"Uh-Oh"....and at this point, I'm ready to pop anyone that utters those words...are theses really words? Uh-Oh....it certainly has a profound affect on one's heart rhythm's....Anyways, he starts some drawl of Electrical Lingo, about connector bars, breaker box converters, 2-wires, single poles, double digits, fingernails, tailbones and ham hocks....who the heck knows....but I got it. He is saying we MAY NEED yet SOMETHING ELSE in addition to the Optional Converter 1 and Furnace B and Optional Box 1 to get to Furnace=Heat. (Sigh) Mr. Electrical Dept. along with Mr. HVAC Dept. call back...yippee, in only about 15 minutes since I spoke with them. They have determined that we do, indeed, need the Converter Kit 1, and it is OUT OF STOCK!!! No Way! It can be shipped to us, by UPS, which I immediately say ABSOLUTELY NOT! (Another story, but involves my computer monitor traveling all over the eastern seaboard, for 10 days, by UPS, but was shipped at the same time as the entire computer system, that had been sitting in my house unusable, two days after I ordered the system.) So....now we have to wait till Friday and then Craig and Mr. Electrical Dept., start that Electrical jargon about the Conversion Bar Kit, in addition....and Lo, and Behold, INDEED, we NEED THAT TOO!!! Oh my...I feel a Calgon Moment coming...only this time, I think I'll drown myself! Calgon is NOT for de-stressing, it is for Drowning, and then being able to HIDE your body under the suds!!! LOL! But I am looking forward to my Lavender-Vanilla Calgon Moment....if the bathroom EVER gets warm! So Friday, comes, and Craig travels an hour away, like going to work, and he picks up Converter Kit 1, along with Conversion Kit 1 and comes home....Josh isn't available, and in fact I Believed he was in hiding! I wouldn't answer MY PHONE, either! But actually, he was having a Birthday Celebration that day, and he had changed all his plans to accomodate us all week....so Craig went at it all alone, and to make this short, but 9:45 PM, he announced that he was getting ready to "hit the switch" so be ready to RUN.....Are you Kidding me?!?!? LOL! Well, I had no doubts in his talents and abilities up to THAT point, but he's good! It worked! In fact it worked BETTER than the OLD one ever did, and it reached it's goal temp in short time! So, all said and done, by MIDNIGHT, he had it all sealed up, screwed in, tightened down, taped off, cleaned up, shiny & new. We now had less than 10 hours to get the house in order for our Family's arrival.....oh my! And so they came....

While "boy" (our nickname for Jason) was sitting across the room from me, I couldn't help but notice TWO things....he looked SO different than in October, at his wedding to Meghann, in the Bahamas, a wonderful time....But I couldn't place the reasons for the difference....then it hit me....Meghann mentioned his hair being longer.....Well, duh....Yeah! That was it....and then the other thing....seeing that Wedding Band on his hand....strange. Love it, but StrAngE!
See it?!?!?! Love it!
And Meghann, well, she looks so darned cute but Oh So Sophisticated with HER new HairBob!
She had on that Lovely looking Scarf, too, which really played up those Blue Eyes she has!

And yes, we had a great time, opening presents, and visiting with family....here is "girl",our daughter Christina....I bet she won't know that I "painted" her nails for her....LOL!


Here are the "kids", boy and girl, together, checking out Technology, which is ALWAYS the big thing with these two!
That's the new I-Phone that Jason gave his new wife, Meghann, for Christmas....it is a neat thing, but way too much for my needs.
And of course, Jason had to have his "moments" with the Pixie-dog....Notice that ring, AGAIN?!
We all love his hair like this....
Then, we of course had my MIL here.....Craig took the picture, and said something "smart", which explains my expression...but anyone that knows me, knows the story.....so the pic says more than I will say here....Brother Bill, ya gotta love this moment! Love ya!


Now look here, to see us LAST YEAR, about the same time.....GEEZ!!!!


Have we changed??? Yep!
Lots has changed....and on the last subject of this post, Friends....during our great time of distress, we had some horrible news that a Friend/Neighbor had passed away! Such a shock to the neighborhood and all the people around her. My heart goes out to her family, as I KNOW what it is like to lose a parent. I lost both of mine 15 years ago, and I can still break into sobs of grief, at times. So, in Memory of Jeni Faircloth, I say, Goodbye....may you find Peace.
To her family, I wish them Happy Memories Soon!