2019 needs to go away
It really started back at the end of April. We discovered that the bathroom between the kids' rooms had a leak and had caused Sam's carpet to get moldy. I called the insurance company to get things moving. This was April 28th. On May 1, Chris was let go from his job of almost 6 years for no other reason than the company had changed owners. We don't know anything else. I had to madly scramble to get new insurance for June 1. Virginia went to her final trip to Camp Cheley, Girls Trail's End, at the beginning of June. After sending her on her way, I sat in the airport finalizing our new, crappy HMO with the exchange and a wonderfully helpful insurance agent.
We had a great vacation over the summer. We drove to pick Virginia up in Colorado, went to see Crazy Horse, Mount Rushmore, and Dignity (a Native American woman statue) in South Dakota before heading to Minnesota to see my family. We got to visit Duluth and a bunch of other places before heading home early, to let the contractors in on Monday July 15th. They didn't show. A repair job that should have taken no more than 7 working days took 6 weeks! It wasn't done until the end of August. The tile guy sucked so bad that the owner himself showed up, looked it over, and sent in another guy to fix it. They had to suck up the cost of new tile to replace the destroyed stuff. And these guys had great reviews! Grrr.
So we finally had Sam back in his room with new carpet and repaired walls. No more sleeping on a cot in the girl's bedroom!
We adopted another dog in September. His name is Milo and he is about 9/10 years old. His previous owner died last December and the family turned him in to the Plano pound. He sat there until some time in the summer when he was adopted. Then they returned him, saying they were moving. I don't buy it. He is a pit bull and the sweetest dog. He does growl when he is tired but he will do as I tell him and go to his bed for a time out. I hope we will be able to break him of it. Otherwise, he is a sweetheart. He doesn't have much expression but his tail will wag like mad and it feels like a little bat when it hits you in the knees. He was well trained by his former owner and knows how to sit, heel, and stay. Once it got colder and wetter, we discovered he hates both. I have now done what I said I would never do. I have bought clothes for a dog. He loves his little shirts. He was so excited when he saw the first one. We also got him a nice coat with lights for when it is really cold.
Fall was a struggle with Virginia finally asking to be tested for ADD. And yep, it turned out that her brainwaves and test results indicate that she does have a mild form of ADD. I can't get her in to see a psychiatrist until the end of January because of our new insurance. Chris found a position at a staffing agency in August (goes through June) that provides insurance. Very expensive but it covers our doctors. We didn't qualify for a subsidy anymore so the insurance offered on the exchange was out of the question. It would cost just as much but cover less. Not worth it.
Then came November. On Saturday, November 16, my brother received a phone call. He called my mother who then called me.
My much estranged father passed away sometime before November 13th. Dad was found by police after a welfare check was called in by a woman who had interviewed to be a caretaker a month before. She couldn't get hold of dad so she asked the police to do a well check. Dad had been deceased a few days by then. Dad had 3 pets, a cockatile, a yorkie, and a cat. All have gone to rescue agencies. The police were able to get the dog and bird but the cat was hiding. My sister and brother, who live in Minnesota, have been dealing with the in town aspects such as the trailer and vehicles. I have taken on the bills since they typically require just phone calls. My sister works with a pet rescue and was able to trap the cat and it now has a good home. My sister spoke to the shelter that the dog and bird had been sent to. Both had been sent to different rescues. My siblings then began digging.
Dad had a sex change 20 years ago. I am going to try to keep the pronouns correct but it is difficult when you are the adult child to alter your method of address.
I am not able to do much from here so my siblings have been doing the majority of the work. The first day, before death remediation had been called in, they tried to sort the hoarder situation they found. As they dug through items, they found over a dozen unsecured guns and ammo. They hope they won't find any more but who knows at this point? Dad also had 2 storage units. They were quite large and filled to the doors. We are paying bills trying to keep things going while my brother applies for executorship. We don't expect much in the way of money but some family heirlooms are turning up, which is nice.
And then, on December 15, my uncle, Dad's younger brother, died of kidney cancer that had spread. His 3 children were with him. He will be cremated and buried with his parents this coming summer.
Then just 4 days later, I was told that my uncle, the one only 3 years older than me, the one that I grew up with, has cancer under his tongue. His surgery is scheduled for January. Luckily the MRI didn't find cancer in his lymph nodes.
And tonight, our 18.5 year old oven decided to die while Chris was cooking chicken wings.
I am very ready for 2019 to end.