House Mine

That tummy problem I had earlier this week might have been an intestinal bug that's going around the county. Nice.

Got some sleep, which was nice, and did not hurry to get to the new house. Dog and I went down 11ish. I know the house is now mine, but it still felt strange... The seller left all his garden decor and potted plants. He kindly left me a bag of pecans and a pecan shell cruncher. He unkindly left me a shed full of paint cans and...whatever else was in there. I may be able to make use of the paint if it's not too old because now that his stuff is out of the house, I can see where there needs to be painting done. He left stuff in the studio too, that I was not anticipating. I did not even look in the other shed, or in the cupboards. Not to be sexist, but he was a bachelor and did not seem to go to great lengths to keep things neat and tidy. At least he was out, and I could finally unload some of the things I brought down--dishes, pans, some special knick-knacks. Dog got to pee and poop on everything outside (and at one point I thought he might jump into the koi pond)and he adored the kitchen courtyard because it wasn't gravel, it smelled of other dogs, and he didn't have to be on a leash. He rolled and dug and sniffed, etc. He dragged in all manner of leaves and dirt. In any case, he seemed to approve of the place. On my end? There is going to be a bit of cleanup and decisions about painting and flooring. The studio is not really ready to be an office as is. Spent some time figuring out light switches, and I turned off one switch that did not seem to do anything. Dog and I left house and I realized the waterfall to the koi pond had stopped running. The koi looked annoyed and concerned. So I realized that switch indoors was not for a light, but for the koi's water pump.

From there it was back (rental) home to arm wrestle with the cable internet. I lost track of time and realized that it was past the time I wanted to leave for El Paso to pick up MelBob at the airport. When I took dog out before leaving, lady across the street pointed out hot air balloons in the air. I slept through this morning's rally, and some lifted again this afternoon. But I had no time!! As I backed the car out into the street, one of the balloons had practically set down behind my house, but there was no time to pause and take a picture. As it was, I made it to the airport about the time MelBob landed.

Once back in town, I actually found my way to a restaurant I wanted to go to just by making guesses about where I was, and where I needed to go. Intuition served me well. At the restaurant, we met a couple from Carlesbad who come here for doctor appts and such (3 hour drive). Turns out she is a fantasy reader and knew my name. It's funny, but when people ask me what I write, I never expect them to know or like fantasy, and certainly not to know my name.

Tomorrow morning we are going to roll out of bed way early (hopefully) to watch the hot air balloons ascend.