My Tireless Retirement - Week 78

 

Hello my lovelies!  We have had some fall weather, that is for sure.  Overnights in the 40s and 50s prompted me to get out the flannel sheets and add a blanket to my bed.  My joints are already beginning to feel that all too familiar arthritic ache, so I know the warm daytime temperatures are not for much longer.  Now that it is October I begin my countdown to see how long I can go before I need to turn on the heat.  I can tell you right now I am not looking forward to those bills.

 

At the beginning of the year I made a half batch of my homemade laundry detergent and then added the little bit that was left over from the previous batch on top.  I felt at that time it would probably be enough to get me through the year and as it turns out I think I’m right.  I recently dumped what was left in the half gallon Mason jar into a pint size jar and it is pretty full at the moment so I expect that will carry me through to the end of the year.  I got out my supplies and made another half batch and filled up the half gallon jar again and put it away in the linen closet so it is ready for the new year or whenever I run out of the current batch.  I used up the borax and soap and added that to my shopping list to replace the next time I run errands.

 

Grated laundry bar

I took an inventory of laundry and cleaning supplies and topped up the stain treatment spray bottle in the laundry room.  I have plenty of stain spray left in the refill jug, washing soda, powdered detergent and scent beads for my next batch of laundry detergent as well as a bottle of liquid detergent and several boxes of dryer sheets.  At the rate I use dryer sheets I’m pretty certain I have a lifetime supply.  Once those are gone though, I have no plans to buy them anymore.  After taking inventory I will be adding a big refill size bottle of dish soap to my list as I’m getting low with no backup on the cleaning supply shelf.

 

I picked a day to run errands and was able to pick up the borax, a new bar of Zote and a big jug of dish soap so my household supply shelf is completely restocked now.  On the way home I stopped at the feed store and pick up a 50# bag of chicken feed as well as a 40# bag of horse pellets for the bunny’s litter pan.  Those were the last two items on my pet supply list.  Now my pet food and supply area in the garage is completely stocked for winter.

 

I managed to get a major item knocked off my “to-do” list and I was extremely happy to get to mark it that one off.  Last spring, when I mustered up the courage to get up on the upper roof and cut the cables off the satellite dish, I noticed I had a shingle that had torn and come loose after one of our many windstorms we had been experiencing.  My heart sank because it meant, not only did I have another item to add to my “to-do” list, but I was also going to have to get back up on the roof again (groan).  I also needed to get to pick up a tube of roof patch because I didn’t have any.  None of this was anything I was looking forward to.  With it being fall now and winter fast approaching I knew it was time.  I could no longer procrastinate, I had to get it done.

 

I had put off this particular job, not because I was being lazy about it, but for a number of other reasons.  It’s an easy and inexpensive repair, not a problem there, but in the summer that roof gets scorching HOT!  I also needed to purchase a supply to do the repair, but more importantly, I am EXTREMELY afraid of heights, it’s no joke.  It takes a lot for me to climb onto that roof.  Now that the weather is cooler the roof is a safer temperature to be on (I don’t know how roofers do it in the summertime).  While out running errands I had picked up what I needed at Lowes and all that was left was for me to do was to get courageous, which for me is truly the hardest part.  I gave myself a deadline, acquired what I needed to do the repair, now it was time to put on my big girl panties and get brave.  Last week I mustered up the courage and got myself back up there on that roof and in less than ten minutes, start to finish, the repair was done.  Phew!  I had the knowledge, I had the resources, I just needed the guts.  Understanding the true nature of what procrastination really is helps me so much to break it down and push through to accomplish the task.  By taking my time it was much safer for me too.

 

I may have acquired something new last week
More about that is coming up!

After the roof repair I pretty much took the rest of the week off and played.  I went on some bike rides, did the usual household chores and spent a lot of time with my chickens and kitties.  It was a really nice week.  How about you?  How did your week go?