WD-40

Thanks for your messages and comments with advice about the basement and the house... First plan of action, I think, is going to be getting up on a ladder and cleaning out the gutters.  For some reason, the sight of plants actually growing in some of the gutters never seemed to perturb Jerry, and I followed his lead on that, since he was Mr. Handy and I was Ms. Definitely-Not-Handy, and I figured, if it doesn't bother him, I guess it shouldn't bother me.  But I think the time has come to see if the gutters might work better without the dirt and leaves and flora.  So when Laura gets here for a long weekend visit this weekend, assuming the weather cooperates while she's here, I'll have her hold the ladder and I'll try to put aside the fear of heights that's been increasing the older I get.

As for the basement: I moved the dehumidifier a bit closer to the walls that get wet and will see if it dries things out a bit more.  Meanwhile, Seamus is going to get me in touch with a contractor that they've been doing business with for years - says they might be a bit more expensive than some but are reliable, and if there's anything I've learned in the years we've been here, it's that it's worth the extra to find someone who actually shows up when he says he will and does what he says he will (one word: chimney.  The shit we went through trying to find a decent company to clean the fireplace and tuckpoint the chimney definitely brought that home to me - the people we use now for that might be more expensive, but I don't know and I don't care - they're reliable).  Anyway, I'm putting together a list of things that need to be at least looked at, possibly taken care of.  And I'll ask them for estimates.  And we'll see.

Tomorrow morning is the meeting with the lawyer.  I don't have death certificates yet, so I'm not sure how far anything can proceed, but it'll be good to touch base and find out what will need to happen.  Plus she's a real estate lawyer, which will come in handy at some point.

I fell asleep before 11 last night, just because I was so exhausted I really had no choice.  Seamus had been at the shop all night when I got there this morning, so he took off and I stayed and finished some drawer fronts for someone's laundry room; stopped off at "the Despot" on the way home and got some WD-40 to finally take the "Obama in '08" sticker off the car bumper... and then found when I got home that the sticker peeled right off, no problem.  Well, now I have WD-40, anyway.  Don't suppose that'll make up for all the handyman things I can't do.