It’s a Back Massager……Really

I removed this post - it was funny ,but when I thought about it, I decided it was simply too crude to keep up.    ;)

On Perspective, Time and Blogging

If you have been reading this blog, you have most likely noticed that most of it is not written in ‘real’ time.  My story begins in the summer of 2010 and currently I am in the process of ‘catching up’.  There are several reasons for this.

I formulated the idea for this  blog a while ago, reserved the url and then let things percolate for a while.  I had – and still have – difficulty with any position that involves tipping my head and neck and unfortunately using my laptop falls into that category.  Presently, I write bits of a single post in spurts, save them and after several sessions finally publish. Daily posting is difficult.  Additionally, due to my physical limitations as well as the amount of sheer junk, progress on the basement was slow not to mention tedious. On most days there would not have been much to write.

Quite frankly, I wasn’t going through things with the best attitude either.  I was resentful and angry about having to deal with the amount of clutter and collapsing basement, not to mention the other million-and six-repairs that needed to be done because things were neglected for far too long.  Just sorting through a few boxes made me feel physically awful which, in turn, had quite the negative effect on my attitude.  It was, and still is, a  ‘catch 22’.  I couldn’t – still can’t - manage the house or negotiate stairs, need a ranch condo, but I had to fix the basement in order to sell the house and was under a time crunch to do so.*   The junk had to be cleared out before work on the basement could begin.  Daily rantings of F the basement, F the stairs, F the house, F my back, F my neck, etc. weren’t exactly what I wanted to post.

Which brings me to the present. When the major repair work on the basement began, I slowed down my already slow pace and am taking some much-needed breaks.  (Nice breaks, not “Shit I need to go lay down and ice my head/hot pack my neck and back again.”.)  As I was puttering around and writing this week, I listened to the news of the tsunami and resulting escalating disaster in Japan unfold.  The photos and videos of the destruction were almost beyond comprehension.  Those lucky enough to survive lost everything, including family and loved ones. Now, the explosions and fires in the Fukushima nuclear reactor and potential for dangerous levels of radiation fallout make the situation dire.  Hell, at least I have a basement.  And while the house still needs an unbelievable amount of work, it’s still standing.  Though they no longer live at home, my kids are safe and in one piece.  So, while I have been in the middle of my own world listening to news of Japan, I think of what people there are going through and wonder how they are managing to cope with daily life against overwhelming odds.  

Still, this is my blog and I will continue to tell my story.  However, when events outside my small corner of suburbia inspire me pause, to think and reflect, I will blog about that too.

A brief, but excellent explanation of the Fukushima nuclear reactor leak can be found at:    In graphics: Fukushima nuclear alert

* The basement was slipping off of the foundation and had developed numerous cracks including mid-line horizontal cracks.  Most people don’t realize this, but winter is a dry season; precipitation falls as snow and does not penetrate the ground until spring when it melts.  The added moisture in the soil from the melting snow and spring rain will cause the soil to expand and this in turn increases pressure on the walls and pushes them in further.  In November, I had one wall that was pushed in at exactly one inch and could be repaired successfully without a ‘dig’  (See the post ‘A Crack Primer’).   Had I waited until spring, the wall would have caved in more than one inch necessitating a ‘dig’ and the cost would have been greater.  (And, though the cost of repair was fair for the amount work done, it was damn expensive as it was.)

 

A Crack Primer

Weeks turned into months before we were finally able to haul out most of the junk from the basement. 

Even though most of the walls were covered with paneling, without the distraction of the mounds of clutter something about the parts of the basement walls that were exposed became glaringly obvious to me.   The floor to ceiling crack in the corner had opened up again, less that a year after it was repaired.  To make matters worse, upon close inspection, I noticed mid-line horizontal cracks on the adjacent walls.  After a bit of research online, I knew it was time to call in a basement inspector.   

So, we tore down the paneling and I called in the inspector.  The final report wasn't good.  

To make a long story short, the types and location of cracks indicated that the basement walls were shearing off of the foundation as well as collapsing inward at the horizontal cracks. You name the type of basement wall crack, it was on at least one of my walls.  Here are the pics of the cracks in my basement and the significance of each:

Horizontal mid-line cracks indicate that the wall is being pushed inward at that point. A deviation of one inch or less from the base - to midline - to the top of the wall can be resolved by bracing the wall with steel bars spaced at aprox. 36" intervals. Note: The marking on this wall shows a displacement of 1".

Inward movement of greater than 1 inch necessitates a "dig" to resolve the problem.  (We are talking 8 ft deep trench dug on the outside of the house.)  Notice the displacement on this wall.  

The original crack on the SE corner that kept getting bigger.  This is where the foundation problem began, the walls are shearing off the foundation at this point.  (Note: Shear cracks 'tear' their way though bricks instead of cracking along mortar lines.)   

The secondary shear cracks on the south wall that formed to relieve stress on the wall caused by the original shear crack. 

Last but not least, the step  crack (runs along mortar lines) that connects the two shear cracks.  The base of this wall (not shown in photo) is shearing off of the foundation by aprox 1".

For further information - and really cool diagrams -  check out Tom Fezia's article in the ASHI Reporter:  Basement Cracks and Leaks

In Appreciation

The furnace room.  I'm sure it's in there somewhere.

Slowly my kids and I managed to make progress going through the smaller items and the basement began to look better.  Not much better, but there was a noticeable improvement.  Even so, there were boxes piled haphazardly on top of one another and more boxes and junk spilling out of shelves.   To make matters worse, these were large, heavy boxes.  We were getting there, but we needed help. 

Now, I am not exactly what could be considered young.   Though I don’t like to think about it, AARP began soliciting my membership a few years ago.   So when I looked at my neighbor’s teenage son CJ, a muscular 6 foot 4 inch, blond-haired, blue-eyed, football and basketball champion and all around great athlete with a winning smile and several college scholarships to choose from, I was not thinking what the girls in his high-school senior class were thinking.   I was thinking, “Hey, I bet this guy could take on some serious heavy lifting!”.  

And so it came to be that we enlisted CJ’s help.  And what great help it was.  CJ lifted, he hauled junk up the stairs, he loaded my car full of items designated for goodwill, and even filled up HIS family’s van and took our junk to the dump.

I would not have been able to clear out the basement or get as much accomplished in the garage if I had not had CJ’s help.  In addition, I don’t know how many times I have looked out my window during the past year to find CJ or his dad mowing my lawn or shoveling my driveway before I ever had a chance to ask.  It doesn’t get much better than that.   

Burn Baby Burn

Almost a zen like experience

There is something liberating and empowering about clearing out and getting rid of clutter.   When the piles of junk take over the house, removing them has the effect of clearing ones mind as well as the physical space the junk occupies. 

I decided to begin with the boxes and bags of papers and save the heavy lifting for days when I had help, reasoning I could carry small amounts up the stairs and sort through them in batches while watching TV.   It was by far the most tedious and brain-numbing task I undertook.  I did  find a few nice mementoes and $50 cash, so at least there were a few perks along the way.  (I also developed a bit of an addiction to Dr. Who and quite a major one to Top Gear, but that’s another story….)

The one satisfying part of that process – sitting on the picnic table on a warm summer evening with a glass of wine, the dog for company and our portable grill while disposing of old documents.  Ahhh….Burn Baby Burn!

A Few Words About Clutter

I am by nature, a messy person.  I will never, ever have one of those 'model homes'.  You know, the kind that would be eligible for a magazine spread.  I admit that I keep things for too long before they go in the Goodwill pile, and I have yarn, beads and material I will probably never get around to using.  There is always a project of some sort laying about in my living room.  BUT, there is reasonable amount of clutter and then there is - ahem - the clutter that overtook a good portion of my house.  The basement was by far the worst, though the garage runs a close second.

I don't mind a little clutter, in fact, I think it's healthy.  My self-worth has never been wrapped up in material things; however,  when things get very cluttered and messy my productivity is hampered and I find it oppressive.  I simply do not need to search for literally 30+ minutes to find something I need because it was dumped somewhere.  Nor do I need to negotiate piles of boxes to get to the washing machine.  (Not to mention, my spine does not need to do the bending, lifting and stairs in my house.) Trying to keep up with things took a toll on my back & cervical spine and, after a while,  I physically couldn't do it any more.

What can I say?  I can ask, request, demand or just plain get angry, but in the end, some people will do what they do.  While I can list many, many wonderful things about my family and am very proud of my two children, minding my requests for a bit of organization was not in that list.   So, reality is reality and I am doing what I can to clean up this mess.  I do need to acknowledge that my children, though late in the game, have stepped up to the plate and are helping whenever they can.  Ahhh....maturity!

Some of the things I found when cleaning out the basement:

• Yarn & material I purchased 10+ years ago.  Off to Goodwill.
• Kids toys I wonder why I ever saved. Goodwill.
•  My lesson plans using overheads from back in the day before everyone had PP.  In the Trash.
• Crap I didn't even know I had.  Trash.
• Furniture I will never repair.  Goodwill / Trash
• Clothes so old and outdated that even poor people would refuse to be seen wearing them.  Trash
• Boxes to every cell phone that we have ever owned. Trash
• Literally boxes and boxes and grocery bags full of old bills (presumably paid) and junk mail spanning twenty years (I had no idea...).  Burn/Shred

and...... 

The strong box.  Hallelujah!  Could it contain what I'd  been looking for?  With anticipation, I opened the box and....

• The house papers - not there
• The car titles - nope
• The insurance papers - nope
• Other important papers - nope
•  Awh hell, 50 cents even - nope

                                                           However....

• Old springs, nuts, etc - check
• Paycheck stubs dating back to 1973 - check
• Bank Book from an account closed before the Berlin Wall came down. - check
• Notes and memos that pre-date the the end of the Vietnam war. - check
• FML - check

Entering Hell

The view from the bottom of the stairs. 

Looking to my left.... 

....and to my right

It was time to face the basement.  I took a deep breath, braced myself, opened the basement door, descended the stairs and entered  hell.



Then I swore, ranted and raved, picked myself up and with the help of my kids and neighbor to do the lifting began the process of clearing out.







 We kept slogging away at it and slowly things began to look better. Though I do admit on more than one occasion, during moments of weakness, the solution of a gallon of gas and some matches crossed my mind.






It was the sheer amount of it!  The way it was all strewn together made me want to give up. Physically it was doing me in - even with the help.  I should explain.  I've had four back surgeries, three of them on my cervical spine and experience quite a few unpleasant symptoms with bending my neck or head. My lower back is better than it was, but it is a bit dicey and I need to be careful.   I couldn't keep up with the mess years ago, how was I supposed to do it now?  Damn it!  So, I ranted and raved and swore some more, then went to get the ice and hot packs and a glass of wine (anti-inflammatory properties, you know).