Raccoons Gone, Light Installed, Progress

 It took three weeks and ten visits from my raccoon wrangler before the mother raccoon decided to take the remaining baby (or babies) and exit the chimney on her own. He said she was the most difficult mama he'd ever dealt with. We had a chimney trap set, without success, for three days, when I became worried they would die in there and I asked him to remove it. He did so, and we waited for her to leave. She didn't leave after two days. But I asked him to set a ground trap next to the tree she used to access the roof (I saw her climb that tree), and then wait four or five days. That took us past Mother's Day weekend. I noticed no sound from the chimney for several days, so I contacted my guy. He discovered she had vacated and with video inside the chimney confirmed there were no more little animals inside. He installed the chimney cap to prevent any future residents.

Meanwhile, the landscapers wrapped up their work and then my guy came back and turned on the sprinklers and repaired what was needed. I didn't start watering right away because we are in a serious drought. But I finally had to break down and water for awhile last evening as the lawn was getting pretty dry.

But things in the yard have started growing, and I've picked up some annuals for planting. I need more for my patio pots. My granddaughter has offered to help me with planting, and I'll take her up on it so I can get it done without too much pain. I'm eager to have the yard looking lovely again.

I finally replaced the chandelier in my entry way. I found a good local electrician who gave me a quote. I ordered an inexpensive fixture from Amazon as my plan is primarily for staging my house for sale and not necessarily for long-term durability. However, once he had installed it yesterday, I found I really loved it both in its simplicity and because it echoed a design in my stair balusters. That ugly glass and brass fixture is gone

That wrapped up the people I had scheduled to help me with various jobs. I do appreciate people who help me. At the same time, I find that having people inside or outside the house feels invasive to me and it's a huge relief when they finish. I almost feel I need to walk around the place burning sage. 

It's a little funny now that I'm working through my to do list for staging my house, that it is possibly unnecessary. The lack of available houses on the market has brought new buying terms: buyers are waiving inspections, appraisals, repairs.But I've started down this path, and I plan to finish the items I want to fix up. In a way, I'm just proceeding as if I will continue living in my house for some time to come. I am not eager to get involved in a bidding war with Californians who are arriving with loads of cash in their pockets. I will probably wait to look for a house until the inventory of houses grows to more normal levels again and I will stand a chance of getting the house I want. In the meantime, I am fixing up and making my house the way I like it.

Other stresses in my life have moderated a bit. My 13-year old grandson got his first Covid shot yesterday, and we are close to having the immediate family all vaccinated. I am continuing to mask because I don't mind it and because I have liked not getting sick this past year at all. There are just over two weeks of school remaining, and I won't be needed to help out with transportation after that.

Mom had a flurry of visits from my siblings and their kids and grandkids after her bad week. And she has bounded back and has leveled off health-wise and mentally; more like where she was a month ago. She wanted to plan her own final arrangements and we made her an appointment with the funeral home that handled my dad's funeral. She seems to have one foot in this life and one in the next, and says daily that she is ready to go and wants to go. Her doctor said that allowing her to live alone at home is fine with daily morning and evening help and with occasional visits from a home health nurse, and not to rush her to the hospital unless she is in pain and needs help with that. Will she live a week, a month, a year? We have no way to guess. We'll just carry on as we have been. We are as prepared as we can be. I don't mind visiting a couple of times a week, but I really hate the drive getting there because of major road construction along every route between here and there.

So, I am just continuing on, trying to fulfill my responsibilities to family and trying to complete goals and projects. At age 73, I wonder if my life will ever be more simple.