Dad dropped a bombshell on me and my three older sisters over Christmas… he told us he’d been diagnosed with prostate cancer, and was lining up surgery to have it removed.
Well. A bit of a shock, there.
He had his surgery a couple of weeks ago. He’s 75 years old, so we were all concerned about major abdominal surgery, but he came through OK, and the surgeon believes they got all of the tumor. He keeps wanting to push his recovery; just the way he is. And he wants to be recovered because Mom needs surgery… back surgery to correct two degenerated disks and spurs on two vertebrae that have been causing her back pain for a couple of years.
On the home front, I’m slowly getting the new place straightened out. I was pleased to find the first month’s power bill was only $62! Waiting on the gas bill to see what that’ll be. Heat is the only thing I need gas for, as the water heater and stove are electric.
Although, the stove… the landlord, who otherwise seems to be an OK guy, brought the stove in after I signed the lease. It was a couple of days before I noticed something wrong with the display… was a segment of the display burned out? No… no, that’s a cockroach between the front glass and the LED display.
Great. The landlord brought a stove infested with roaches into the house.
Lots of roach bait planted under all the counters in the kitchen and bathroom. Then I noticed the display shutting off randomly… damnit. Took the display and control board apart, cleaned out the dead roaches and roach spit, and put it back together. Nope, apparently the damage is done; the display shuts off at random times, although the elements still work. I can purchase a new control board and fix it, but that’s the landlord’s job. Maybe for some off the rent next month.
Otherwise, I’ve got half the the front yard raked… there’s two huge old oak trees, one in the front and one in the back, and it doesn’t look like the yard’s been raked in a couple of years. A little at a time. I’ve got a spot for a veggie garden marked out.