Monday, November 11, 2013

Life is Sometimes Ugly, but Always Good

Life is many things: good, bad, frustrating, and sometimes plain ugly. So you ready for the ugly? Don't worry, these aren't medically ugly or “not for the squeamish” pictures. They are rotten bathroom from the 70's ugly.

We've had our house checked for mold, because so many people said that maybe that's why I'm so sick all the time. Never found any mold, not even in the dank, dark, dungeon of a used-to-be-crawl space turned aquaponic room. Well, now we found the mold. Accidentally.

The Transporter takes a shower, and The Engineer starts screaming about the flood of water in the laundry room. An argument ensues. “I didn't do anything differently. I didn't splash against the faucet! I didn't splash against the corners!” These are spots that in the past have had leaks that The Engineer-Handy-Man fixed. So like any good engineer would, he investigates. And is able to just flick off some tiles around the soap holder. He keeps going. Finds this. The elusive mold.



Oh goody. A major remodel is just what our budget needs at this time of year and when medical bills are arriving like Harry Potter's acceptance-to-Hogwarts letters. Flying into the house through every possible entrance. Sigh.

We decide that IF we're redoing all the tile, we should take out the 1970's vintage “goldenrod” tub. Good decision. Here's what we found under it. 



The missing floor was so rotted it just sort of fell out, 



and what's left 



will take a bit more effort to remove, but by now The Engineer has been Demo-Man all day and stops.

So yeah, the ugly. Very ugly.

*****
Now for something good, and SWEET.




The wonderful Jo of Jo on Food, My Travels,, and a Scent of Chocolate  has gifted me with The Sweetest Blogger Award. She said some very encouraging stuff about me and it just made my day. I'm to answer the following questions, which is going to be quite fun since I'm hypoglycemic and can't eat sweets...and then pass it on to five sweet bloggers.

Questions: 
    1. Cookies or Cake?
       Pizza. I like artisan, weird pizzas. One of the best was at          Serious Pie in Seattle. It had roasted garlic, mushrooms,            arugula, and something else unusual which I cannot                  recall at this time.
  1. Chocolate or Vanilla?  Chocolate. I will sometimes sneak a very dark piece of chocolate with my wine. Then I have to go eat some slices of roast beef or something else to counteract the sugar...
  1. Favorite Sweet Treat?
    Another glass of wine. It's what I'll order for dessert in a restaurant.

  2. When do you crave sweet things the most?
    I've really gotten beyond craving them since it's been so many years. I crave shoe string french fries daily though...

  3. Sweet nickname?
    Pizzalatukit. The Engineer IS weird. But you already knew that.

Here are the five Sweet Bloggers that I'm passing this award to. Please go say “hi” from me! (This was almost impossible to narrow down to five...I realized how many truly sweet and wonderful people are part of my world. Love to ALL of you.)

Amanda at House Revivals. She doesn't do awards, but I can still tell you that her sweet friendship of 21 years means a lot to me. We met at church and she moved away, but thanks to blogland and fb, we're still close. 

Gary Pennick of KlahanieHe's the most generous and giving of bloggers, spending most of his “farcebook” time putting up links to other's posts, and of course leaving his witty and heartfelt comments all over blogland. A tireless crusader for the mentally ill, he's a treasure and a “sweet guy” for sure.

Hilary Melton-Butcher of Positive letters...inspirational stories...  I just can't say enough about her.  She's a dear friend, encourages me daily through chatty emails, often sharing hilarious personal stories to cheer me up.  Thanks, Hils.

Jeremy of Being Retro, and so many other places and endeavors. He's like a brother to me, and always cheers me up when I'm feeling down. His digital art is amazing, and his t-shirt shop is not to be missed. 

JoJo of Tahoma Beadworks and Photography. She's just such a fun person to hang out with (we banter on fb) and I love her photography and crafts which she shares on her blog.



~Tina, proving that life may be ugly, but it sure is good and “sweet” too :-)


14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh my, Tina! What a mess...now I know why I'm working on the backyard and not the bathroom or kitchen. I don't even want to know...

Congrats on your award! And to all those you shared it with too! :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Might be a major remodel, but glad you found the mold. It really does make a difference to those with breathing problems. And we replaced a toilet a couple years ago and found the floor around it in pretty much the same shape.

Unknown said...

Good Grief!
When it rains it pours!
I hope it helps improve your breathing.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Tina ... thank you so much .. just amazing .. I just do what I do - the main thing is to help people and you're doing way more than me ...

I sincerely hope that the mould (my spelling .. courtesy the Oxford University Dictionary!) is what is causing your problems ...

I also hope that you can get things sorted out .. a new bath room without any rotten timbers or mould spores floating around ...

Good luck with how things work out - now for the repairs ...

What good news in some ways?! cheers Hilary

Andrew Leon said...

Well, here's hoping that, at least, the mold removal will help with your breathing issues!
mold sucks

JoJo said...

Oh wow...your poor bathroom....what a pain! And it figures it couldn't just be an easy fix but at least the mold has been found.

Congratulations on the award and thank you so much for passing it on to me!!!

shelly said...

Ew...ew...and ew. Lastly, yum!

Good luck with that project and stay well.

Hugs and chocolate,
Shelly

Brian Miller said...

ugh, what a find eh? and hopefully it helps you to clear up a bit as well...i know its not convenient to recycle but...hey you will have a new bathroom...and better to catch that destruction and rotting now too...

Suzanne Furness said...

Oh no what a mess but at least you found that mold. Sometimes when you start a job around the house it turns into a much bigger one than originally expected doesn't it?

Crystal Collier said...

Yikes! I'm so sorry about your crazy mess--but I'm glad you'll be able to live in a healthier environment afterwards. Here's hoping the repairs go quickly, don't cost too much, and leave you breathing fresh, healthy air!

LD Masterson said...

I love your food choices, especially using roast beef to counter the sweetness of the chocolate. We could snack together.

Jo said...

How yucky, but it could well be what is causing you many problems. Just think, the floor could have given way whilst someone was in the bath/shower. Not an expense you need right now, but if it helps you feel better, maybe it will be worthwhile.

Didn't know you couldn't eat sweets, what a shame although, as you say, you are used to it. Although I have diabetes and am currently trying to lose weight, I still allow myself a little chocolate. At least you have wine.

klahanie said...

Hi Tina,

Good grief! All that glitters is not mold. Yuck and all the best with that bathroom.

Congrats to you on receiving the Super Sweet Blogging Award. Totally deserved and before I um dessert this site, I must finish off this comment.

And why not have pizza instead of cookies or cake. Or maybe put cookies and cake on a pizza as toppings. Maybe not such a good idea :)

Such an awesome selection of recipients you have bestowed the award onto. Nice to make a mention to your friend who doesn't do awards. Your notations about each person truly displays the ideals you share, we share, in the best attributes of the blogging community.

I'm flattered you would include myself in that list. Thank you, Tina. I'm grateful for your thoughtful words.

Gary :)

Unknown said...

Wow. Who knew you'd find something like that when you dig through the trenches? While the timing is quite off, a remodel would be something you'd need to get you off from being sick. At least when you get rid of the mold, you can start recovering. And you got a new bathroom out of it as well. Good luck!

Allen Hoffman @ Brewer Restoration