I just realized I haven’t written a blog post in six months! The time has come to renew my domain if I choose to do so. While contemplating my decision, I decided to roam around my site and read a few past posts. This journey …
Well, it’s been a while since my first post about the house that we purchased. There has been a lot work done on it and I meant to post along the way, but life has been busy. I actually wrote this blog post several weeks ago and I am just getting around to putting it on now.
There were so many little things about this house that I loved. If I could, I would’ve kept every single little quirky aspect that gave her so much character. Unfortunately, some things have to change. In this post I will pay homage to all of these things and give them the respect and attention that they deserve.
1. In the entryway there is a window composed of thick glass blocks that allow light but are not see-through. Translucent? I think that’s what it’s called. I realize that this type of blocks can be bought anywhere today, but these are special. In my previous blog I mentioned that a tornado had destroyed the home that sat on the property prior to this home. The tornado destroyed much of the southside of our town back in 1958. 13 people were killed, 80 injured, and many homes were destroyed. Also destroyed was Skelly elementary school. These particular glass blocks were found in the rubble of Skelly elementary and used to make this window when the house was built a year later . This window was non-negotiable. It will be staying as is in the home for as long as I live here.
2. When we purchased the home, there was a unique black and white tile floor in the entryway in the hallway. I love this floor so much. To me, it just screams 50s style. Although I initially stated that I wanted to keep this at all costs, I have resigned myself to the fact that it just won’t work with the flooring and remodel plans. I had asked if it may be possible to keep even a small portion, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. I am comforted by the fact that this floor will remain underneath the new flooring, so it will always be there. Sidenote…. I am one of the few people that actually likes these floors, ha ha!
3. Retro bathrooms. You’ve all seen the tiles and old bathrooms like this. One bathroom is totally pink with pink tiles, and the other is a bluish gray. Although I love them, they are in very very bad shape. We will be redoing the bathrooms, but I have already saved some tiles for a project to keep their memory alive in the home.
4. There are built-in shelves in the hallway. In our contractor’s initial plans, he intended on taking the shelves out to utilize more space for the bathroom remodel. Because I feel like they add so much to the character of the house, they are staying. Yay!
5. Sitting openly in the large unfinished basement is one single working toilet. I’ll post a picture of this toilet just to show you a before, but it’s a little bit embarrassing! I’m not sure what the purpose was, but it’s staying. Well, it is not staying but we are replacing it with another new toilet in the same spot! Hey, who knows, we may need to use it from time to time!
6. There were some adorable wooden cabinets in the kitchen. Because the kitchen is being totally reconfigured and remodeled, and because these cabinets aren’t in great shape, they won’t be staying. I do believe they are keeping a few of the drawers and I have some ideas for some projects to do with those.
These are just a few of the things that helped make this home so special. Although I love retro and preserving a homes history, I know that the changes we are making are going to be great and I am still doing all I can to somehow keep or incorporate these bits of character into the home. They were a part of this homes history, and I hope that they continue to be so for a long time, one way or another.
More updates to come!
This story begins way back in 1983. I was in high school and had been assigned the duty of prop manager for our drama/theater production. For a particular scene, we needed to find highball drinking glasses. My good friend David suggested that his grandparents could …
If walls could talk, I wonder what kind of stories the Great Bend Taco (formerly Taco Hut) would tell. That place has been around for more years than I have been alive, and today they closed the doors. I was born in Great Bend, …
Okay..the title says janitor, but my husband is a custodian. It’s the same job, just a slightly better word for it.
My husband worked over twenty years as a truck driver with great pay. He drove mostly local routes but did a few years of over the road type work. Did he like it? He did not, but with seven kids he stuck with it for the pay and good benefits.
When 2020 stormed in, many things changed with his job. He took a voluntary furlough for several months, and when he was brought back things were not the same. The position he had occupied for the past few years was now combined with a much less desirable position, as several employees were laid off permanently and the ones that were left had to perform double duties to cover for these losses. After talking it over, we decided it was time for him to move on.
2021 and half of 2022 were years of new beginnings. He began a job as a correctional officer at the prison, but due to unexpected health issues and hospitalizations he was unable to continue this work. He worked at several other jobs over the next year, and we actually joked that the man who had worked twenty years for the same job with only one sick day taken was now “job hopping”!
Truth be told, the job hopping wasn’t a big deal. He just needed to find something that he enjoyed. I had come into some money, and his main reason for working was now just to make a little bit and to have insurance coverage. We had also started Door Dashing for fun but found this to be very lucrative as well. When I saw there was a position as an evening custodian at a school just a few blocks from home, I encouraged him to apply. The job didn’t pay well, but offered great time off and insurance benefits..plus was not overly physically demanding and would work fine with his health issues.
Now, my husband doesn’t get very excited about anything (except the casino and his grandkids, ha). When I asked him how he liked the new job a few months ago and he said “it’s not bad”, I knew he liked it. Of course, I do hear the little complaints about kids not picking up their crayons, pencils, trash off the floor and leaving it for him, but he still likes the job.
Today I was scrolling through Twitter and I saw a tweet from someone (a doctor, I believe) saying that they always make it a point to speak to the janitor, because they were once a janitor and very few of the employees acknowledged or spoke to them. After reading that, I asked my husband if he ever felt “small” in his position and if the teachers and staff treated him any differently. He told me that many of the teachers speak to him every day and most do acknowledge him. I was glad to hear that, but that post on Twitter was really thought provoking for me.
Everyone is important in this life…janitors, housekeepers, fast food workers, even door dashers! That McDonalds worker may have two Masters degrees but for some reason chose to work fast food at this time in their life. That janitor may have more money than anyone else in the office but enjoys that type of work. That door dasher may not need a job, but does need to get out of the house and interact with people to keep up their mental health. The waitress might just be working two jobs to support her kids because she wants to be a good role model for them.
We all have a story and nobody is better than anyone else. Remember this, and just be kind and respectful. It’s really not that difficult.
Happy 2023! I had a blog post written already and planned to post it, but reading over it I decided to scrap it and simply speak from the heart. Basically, 2022 sucked. I had physical health issues, my anxiety went into overdrive..complete with …
I’d like to begin by giving credit where credit is due for the title of this post. I recently started exploring TikTok, and found a delightful woman that lives, collects, and dresses in a vintage style. As I have mentioned in my last blog post, …
Where do I start? I guess I’ll begin by saying that I recently started seeing a therapist for my mental health. No shame. I truly needed it and I do believe it is helping me. I mentioned to her this week that I have a blog but haven’t written for quite some time, and she suggested that I do so. I think this was the push that I needed, so here goes nothing….
I retired from my job in December. Many people realize this, many do not. When I decided to retire, I was excited about my future. My sister and I made plans to take trips together. I planned on devoting more time to my blog, relaxing, and simply enjoying life. 2021 had been a stressful year, I’ve had a stressful life in general, and I was ready to focus on myself more.
A couple of months into the new year, I began to experience severe anxiety. I’ve always had some anxiety, but NOTHING like this. My doctor tried me on an anxiety medication that only made things worse and I stopped taking it. I still feel like I had a bad reaction to this or something, because life changed so much for me. I began suffering from panic attacks. One attack in particular was so terrible that I ended up in the ER with a BP of 218/104. I was CONSTANTLY on edge, feeling like I was ready to crawl out of my skin. Trying to get through each day was a full time job in itself. I worked for years with people that suffered from debilitating anxiety, and now I realize that I never fully understood what they were dealing with. I do understand now.
Have any of you ever suffered from health anxiety? Oh, my…this has been awful. During times of stress I found myself clenching my jaw so much that I now have tmj issues. Of course, I didn’t realize that was the cause of my headaches, dizziness, neck and ear pain, etc. A visit to the ENT diagnosed this. Once I figured this out I have been making conscious efforts not to clench, and it has gotten better.
TMJ hasn’t been the only issue. Gastric issues, severe Gerd, globus sensation..just a whole slew of things. Of course, I often find myself going down the Google rabbit hole and obsessing over all the things that could be wrong. When this happens, panic sets in again. It’s a vicious circle.
Because of my constant health anxiety, there actually have been a few very real things discovered through tests. I learned I have moderate sleep apnea and will soon be getting a CPAP. Maybe I’ll get better sleep and be more functional during the day.
I also was FINALLY able to get a CT of my abdomen. Twelve years ago during a CT for a back issue, I learned that there was a mass on one of my adrenal glands. In the last couple of years my drs had attempted unsuccessfully to get a CT approved to follow up on this. My insurance at the time would not approve it. With the anxiety/adrenaline rushes of recent months, we finally got this done. I don’t recall how big the mass was before, but according to my primary care provider it is a decent sized mass. She referred me to the endocrinologist for further tests. Hopefully it is still benign, as it was many years ago.
I also received a positive Cologuard test, which means I will be having a colonoscopy very soon. Hoping for the best in this situation as well.
There have been several things in my personal life that have caused enormous stress on me as well, but I won’t go into detail. It’s just been one thing after another. I am sure that all of these things have manifested into physical problems for me, but through therapy, meditation, and self talk I am getting through them.
In a perfect world, everything would be peaceful and calm…but I am vowing to try and find my own calm and joy in the midst of all of life’s storms.
Even though life has been a bit crappy recently, there are others that have it worse and I continue to pray for them daily. If any of this has resonated with you, feel free to comment or message me. I’m always available, don’t hesitate to reach out if you need someone to listen.
This afternoon I found myself really craving something sweet. Since it is early in the new year, we don’t have much in the kitchen to satisfy a sweet tooth (you know… resolutions and all, ha). I did, however, have a bag of chocolate chips. Perfect …
