2024 Year in Review - Crazy year - Seniors - Cats - Estates - Hard Work

Who knew getting old was this much work! Now I know why people retire at 65, because one must take care of their aging parents and pets, file for social security, find new insurance, sell real estate and basically set up one's future so you can ease into it! I've yet to see the easing but the summation of this past year has been "one thing after another" but there is always a silver lining as so many people have come to my rescue this year!

The first few months of 2024 started pretty calmly and then snowballed into a complete nightmare. My husband was living in Tennessee caring for his 93 year old father and everything that could break at our house in Virginia did. We're big DYIers and rarely hire anyone because often it does not turn out like it should. In early Spring the power went out and I was hauling in wood for the stove. Things calmed down and were going along pretty well until the grass started growing. The belt on the lawn mower broke. I had someone tell me they were coming several times to replace it and never did so the grass kept growing - a lot! I had to find someone to mow the lawn which was a bit of a disaster. A kind gentleman showed up with a push mower for 2 acres. After 6 hours, 3 stop and start rains and the sun beginning to set, I let him go and there was still 1 acre left to mow! Retrospectively it seems like such an easy thing to work out but everyone already has mowing commitments and it was impossible to find someone urgently over Memorial Day weekend. 

During that time the water heater began to leak and the compressor on the Heat and Air broke. Next up was opening the pool which was totally not doable by myself. I don't even remember what else happened but I was bailing in a boat, sinking in a swamp -- totally losing it. Finally we decided enough was enough and it was time to either get divorced or move my father-in-law in with us. Of course he did not want to leave his home and that was another hurdle. We ended up proposing a 2 week vacation which at least got him willingly out of his house. It was frightening driving him 6 hours but we did make several stops (one being ice cream) and it went smoothly. After being at our house for 3 days, he told us he wanted to live with us and to sell his house. We all cried!

Bob is very little trouble and still gets around but can't be left alone. The biggest responsibility is that I have been managing his home located out of state. We discovered there was no insurance on the house! The first trip to check on this house was intense. I had a long list of tasks to accomplish to list his house with a realtor. The heat and air was not working when I arrived. A lot of time was wasted hiring a disreputable company that ripped me off straight away (my worst google review of 2024) but I did find a great company to fix it and also found a wonderful tree cutter who did an excellent job. My Aunt who lives nearby helped me and supplied FOOD so I ended up enjoying my time with her and the wonderful realtor that brought me coffee to seal the deal. Brittney Riddell has helped me in so many ways, letting people into the house to buy items and picking me up after selling Bob's car at Carmax. During the horrible rain that nearly wiped out Asheville several bridges were washed away near Bob's house. When the realtor finally could even get to the house she had to bail out the crawl space. A neighbor of Bob's has also helped me greatly, coming to my rescue many times! I am so thankful these angels dropped into my life.

To add more drama, when Bob found out that I was at his house he got angry that I did not take him with me and went on a hunger strike. After a week of preparing his house to sell; hiring an assortment of companies while cleaning, painting, selling items online, gardening, stuffing my car full and general craziness I was told Bob was at the ER. I was driving home and my husband called saying his Dad passed out from not eating. Luckily the home health care worker caught him. So I drove 6 hours to Virginia straight into the ER. Talk about exhausted. He remained in the hospital for observation for 3 days. 

After moving Bob to Virginia we had to transfer his Veterans healthcare which amounted to wiping the slate and starting all over. Setting up medical care, prescriptions, and home health care. The VA has some great benefits but the systems takes time and persistence to set up through the Richmond office. They have a wonderful VA Clinic in Charlottesville and after a few months we were assigned a geriatric doctor that comes straight to the house! He also hooked Bob up to a local day care program at JABA which he really enjoys. They have qualified caregivers, live music, meals, and programs to keep him active. He was even dancing the other day which we never thought we would see given the doctors said he would not make it through the year! Also through the VA we have home health care come several days a week to assist him.

The icing on the cake was my year end deadline to finalize my friend's estate that I've been working on since 2023. I really thought I could complete this process alone, but the complexity of her brokerage account financial statements got me in the end. No unsurmountable issues until the accounting struck. In the end I wanted to blow my brains out. I consulted with an accountant, watched tons of videos, and even attended an online Q and A session. I did everything imaginable but still could not balance the financials. How hard could it be? It's just MATH! I like math. It drove me to near insanity and finally with a week left in 2024 (after searching for a week), I found a CPA and handed my completed accounting over and ran screaming into the night. It was like giving up a child. I had invested so much time and energy into this. Apparently this last step is a beast and very few accountants will fool with it. I'm ending the year sweating as I've not heard that she has been successful. I hope she can find the error!

Another side project that I've been working on since the Summer is getting free solar panels installed. It is a pilot program through our local energy company and LEAP that ended in 2024 so the clock was ticking! They were turned on 12/23. It's a basic system and we'll only see 1/4 - 1/2 of our usage covered but I've been committed to solar for a very long time. It's a pretty exciting moment for me and a positive way to end a year of chaos and trauma. This is my annual environmental commitment that will last for 30 years! We'll be in our 90's when they pull the plug if we make it that long.

My mother has been living with us for 4 years now. She is still very independent and has her regular weekly drive route that she navigates safely. We volunteer for Friends of the Library and she mainly watches the chaos from afar. We upgraded her tablet at Christmas so she is amazingly tech savvy at 89. She also helps me package items for my online selling sites and it's a mystery how I continued to sell through thick and thin and had the best year ever.

In the Spring I discovered my long time vet had retired and had not been happy with the vet staff for some time so I switched my 3 aging cats to a new clinic. A frightening process but the staff is kind and the vet is excellent. Our cats have arthritis, 2 are on blood pressure meds, one has IBS, another is hyper-thyroid. $$$$. We have reminder alarms for pill management going off morning, noon, and night for people and cats!

Anthony ran into a technicality at the first of the year with his job working out of state and eventually had to retire a year earlier than planned. He finalized his Medicare and social security and will collect his first check January 2025. Because I'm not retirement age I had to search for private health and dental insurance. Adding another duty to the roster. We also have an insurance angel that helps our entire household. Thank goodness for Mr. Trout.

Being "the year of Bob", we ended it with getting him a Virginia license that allowed him to vote and get a fishing license. He really wants to get out this Spring by a Lake! 

Without the help of several key people, I don't believe I would be sitting here typing this. here were some kind souls that really bailed me out!

The happiest new year to all and keep the faith. Day by day, hour by hour, keep plugging. This too will pass, and it did, 2024 is toast!

~Rebecca

Ringing in 2023, my year in review

For some reason my year end blog was not posted, so here it goes a month late! 

Another page has turned in the big volume of life. 2023 will be the year when my husband signs up for Medicare part B. We're beginning to talk about easing out of pets and into our winter escape plans to the tropics. 

It won't happen any time soon but the thought of slipping down south for the cold months has its appeal. The low of 6 degrees in Charlottesville, Virginia last week has gotten us thinking of where to go.

I've ended the year with monitoring the heat set up in my new greenhouse. As long as the power stays on it's working great. 6 degrees outside and 49 inside - YES. Success. The first winter for the greenhouse is soon going to be over. Last year my husband spent most of spring building a lean-to so there was no time to use it during the peak growing season. We did have a bumper crop of greenhouse cucumbers in the fall from 6 plants, harvesting close to 100 cucumbers. We were distributing to all the neighbors while making pickles and Tzatziki. I hope we can get some cherry tomatoes and cucumbers going this Spring. In August I decided to lop off the tops of several cherry tomato plants, root, and transplant into the greenhouse planter box to get a head start on Spring tomatoes. All trial and error.

Mom is still happy to be in her lower level apartment in our house. It's working out well and it's nice to not have to drive 2 hours for holidays. We share the cooking duties, Mom creates some of her classic favorites and I bring in the fake turkey. She is independent at 87, having a regular driving route to the hair dresser and grocery stores. I feel like a big part of her independence at this age is her life long commitment to eating healthy, low sugar, and no alcohol. It's never to late to change your diet to minimize the age related ailments that can unfortunately arise.

We're down to only 3 chickens now, our little 14+ years old chicken is still with us. A miracle bird, approaching a world record age! Our cats all have issues, Sylvie with irritable bowel, Gus with arthritis, and Cesar with various ailments popping up. A friend came to visit for the weekend and Cesar decided to lick his arm nearly bald from stress. He is a freaky cat, it was a long recovery but we finally got him to stop after months of trying various tricks of the trade. Inventing the final solution.

One of my joys is to participate in the annual butterfly count for our county. I've totally changed the way I garden from 10 years ago. I used to cut back all the dead plant material from my flowerbeds and compost it. For the last 5 years I have been leaving all the flower seed heads for the birds to dine on over winter. Also leaves are kept in place so when Spring arrives, insect eggs hatch where they fall and the cycle continues. It does seem that we have more and more birds, butterflies and insects. We also plant more natives and I'm no longer interested in what I call hybridized fancy plants. We had a moment of plant fever and Anthony was up for planting many shrubs last year, 3 blueberry bushes, and an apple tree. Our paw paw trees bore fruit this year!

We continue to plan our final home construction project, connecting the house to the garage. It's all pretty simple for the exception of the roof. I do not want Anthony to even attempt it, always scares me. It's also a bit of an architectural challenge and the price of lumber is still elevated. For the time being Anthony has instead decided to insulate his shed, making it more functional. There is always some construction project happening here!

My arthritis is under control. I have a new rheumatologist locally, for 15 years I drove to North Carolina. I'm not thrilled about a new doctor, my old rheumy was the best. I will forever be grateful to him for bringing me out of my RA dark hole. An insufferable disease unless managed. I've been on Enbrel for many years and I'm taking a few supplements, D and Curcumin / Tart Cherry. It just might be helping my bad wrists which are more useable now than in years past. I do have to be very careful to not overdo or push them if I feel any pain. It will require lifelong management.

I have a beach trip scheduled with my oldest friend. If all goes as planned, we'll feel some early warmth come April.

Happy 2023, here it comes!

~Rebecca

Recycle Reuse, Buy vintage this Christmas and Holiday Gift Giving Season

Renaker vintage collectibles for the Cat Lover, ForsythiaHill

It's that time of year again where we try to find that perfect gift for family and friends. Amazon seems to be the go to place for buying new items and Ebay has long been the place for collectors. The growing trend is vintage gift giving. I've always thought it more personal and definitely more unique to buy a nicely cared for vintage item. Not just another throw away but something they might want to hold onto and treasure because of its uniqueness.

Warm vintage Angora Hat, ForsythiaHill

I've been selling vintage for family and friends for 10 years now and my buyers really are excited about their purchases. Totally unique one of a kind items that they comment about in their online product review after purchase. I love matching old items in new homes to be appreciated and adored.

Art Nouveau early 1900's Gold Jewelry Box, ForsythiaHill

Etsy is a fun place to shop as they have combined a wide range of artisan items with vintage. You can set your search setting to only shop for art or vintage if you like. The stigma that a gift can only be new in order for it to be appreciated is fading, year after year. Shoppers are becoming more conscientious about saving natural resources by gift giving a previously used item. More and more online resale sites are popping up as the ease of selling a used item goes mainstream. I'm seeing newer used items on these sites while authentic vintage items (more than 20 years old) are still being found mainly on Etsy and Ebay, along with a few more less popular sites such as Bonanza and Ruby Lane.

Large fabric printed 1980s Rabbit, ForsythiaHill

It's trendy to gift give vintage but maybe not as cool to give a new used item as these items can still be found new. The key to success is to find a unique item that is difficult to find, one that brings back memories, something that can be physically used or something kitsch. An item that never gets old is vintage Pyrex. Who doesn't love and use Pyrex! One year I gifted an adorable retro cat hand towel to a friend. She loved it! Ornaments are also a fun item to give.

Amazing vintage Poodle Pin, ForsythiaHill

I love selling vintage because of the history each items holds. It's a treasure hunt often for me as a seller just to locate a similar item to date it or determine its authenticity. Over 10 years I've found homes for thousands of items and I've seen the trend expand from just personal buying to shopping for a gift.

Gardening books, these for the Rose Lover, ForsythiaHill

I also like selling vintage because I like being a part of the reuse, recycle movement to help our planet which by all accounts is failing. Not only does no new manufacturing go into the products I sell but I also only pack items using previously used boxes and packing paper. I don't know too many sellers that go to this extreme but it is personally important for me. I've never once had to buy a box or paper! Friends bring me boxes, an optical shop saves boxes for me, and I get bubble wrap and paper from freecycle. The only shipping product I buy is tape. I also am conscious of the delivery method I use and even have my postal carrier's cell phone number. Nearly all my shipping is done at my house, I rarely drive to the post office.

I hope you will consider shopping for vintage this holiday season for a host of good reasons! Right now I'm running a SALE in my vintage shop, ForsythiaHill during the Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday sales. I also sell on ebay, ruralreality. Go check them out, I thank you in advance!

~Rebecca

Life Pledge #3

My Gus and Cesar fresh from the Animal Shelter.

Actually, this should have been my Pledge #1 because it has been my commitment for the past 15 years and I feel very strongly about it.

I Pledge to never purchase a pet through a Pet Shop, Breeder, or Online Seller.  I exclusively will adopt from a reputable Animal Shelter, Rescue, or by "discovery".  For the sake of not making this post too long, I am going to talk specifically about dogs but I feel even more strongly about cats. 

Wonderful hound, a typical breed found in local shelters.

Thankfully over the last decade, Animal Welfare groups have taken on the cause of shutting down inhumane Puppy Mills.  The battle is ongoing as is the battle for safe food, fair taxes, and the like.  There always seems to be someone making a buck that is fighting tooth and nail to continue their vice at any cost.  This is the case with Puppy Mill owners.  They will do anything to keep their cruel moneymaker bringing in the cash.

I have seen first hand the misery caused by Puppy Mills.  While the Director of a Humane Society located inside of a county owned kill Animal Shelter, there were many instances of abuse as a direct result of Puppy Mills and irresponsible Breeders.  Personally, until there are no more pets killed in U.S. shelters, I choose to not adopt from responsible Breeders as well.  It's simple economics... Why would I trade the life of a shelter pet for one purchased from a breeder?  I wouldn't. 

A "vicious" shelter Pitbull & PCHS Pres. Rita.

Let's get to the numbers.  You may think only small numbers of pets never make it out alive of Animal Shelter Agencies.  Think again.  In 2011 in the State of Virginia, almost 80,000 dogs and cats never found their new home.  Nationwide in the U.S. up to 4 million are euthanized each year.  The numbers are staggering and to think they have actually improved over the last decade due to the hard work by Humane Societies, SPCA's and dog Rescues Groups.

A growing trend is to hide the cruelity by selling pets on the internet masked by cute or heart wrenching websites.  You may think that "others" are doing their part and picking up the slack for your decision to adopt from an unknown online dealer -- NOT...  According to Wayne Pacelle, CEO and President of the HSUS, only 1 in 5 owned pets are adopted from a Shelter or Rescue.  More people need to face the facts and the numbers that animals are dying directly because of their purchase decisions. 

My sweet doggie Simba, my first shelter pet.

Being part of the humane movement for years gave me that first hand look into what is good and bad.  I can attest that Puppy Mills and breeders, breeding purely out of greed, diverted charity group resources toward animal rescue instead of animal prevention services.  Funds are always limited and can easily dissolve when animals are so mistreated that they require medical care at the charities expense.  Compound this problem with the arrival of 50+ abused and neglected Puppy Mill dogs and you are looking at a huge expense and housing problem.  Many agencies are already maxed out on both fronts.

While I was in the midst of pet madness as Humane Society Director, I often wanted to scream at the top of my lungs (and actually did) for people to take this issue seriously and NOT PURCHASE A PET but ADOPT instead!  Irresponsible breeding takes such a physical and mental toil on the good souls that are trying so desperately to help our little furry babies.  Kindness and love has totally disappeared from the souls of Puppy Mill breeders... it's time they were put to a stop and you can help by making thoughtful and humane purchase decisions. 

-Rebecca