Monday, January 30, 2012

That's What On My Carpet? Post #4

Rusty and I left my sister's before the sun showed any inclination to rise. Rusty tried to rebel. Apparently he does not share the same enthusiasm for the drive that I do. He hunkered down and refused to jump into the back of the Explorer until I became cross and woke up half of Sun City.

The sunrise was gorgeous but I had no time to stop and take pictures. I had to meet the carpet cleaner at 8:30 and after a stop to get coffee and another stop to buy Rusty a water dish (I'd forgotten to bring his from my sister's), I had no time left over. I called the guy to let him know I would be there and his response rattled me. "I'm not scheduled for today - that's tomorrow."

Rusty's new yard. "before picture"
I know without a doubt he was scheduled - I remembered the conversation - and after some debate, he decided he could get to me but would be a couple of hours late. That actually worked better for me since I could get the ceiling fans and window sills cleaned that were in the carpeted areas.

After Rusty ran around outside for a while, he plopped down in the middle of the living room and gave me the evil eye. He might be having a rough time figuring out where he should call home. He's a spooky dog anyway so all the back and forth has him rattled.

Our 'orchard'
I could have planted indoor gardens on the fan blades. Then I moved on to baseboards. All I can say is they're clean . And that will be the story for the walls too. I've told Lance and Christie that since they are missing out on all this heavy duty cleaning they will be doing a LOT of painting. I hate to paint. We had to paint every room in our last house so I'm not keen on it.

Laundry room looking into master bath.
At last the carpet guys showed up and started setting up. His first discovery - no water outside. What? How can that be? Luckily he could hook up in the laundry room. He then walked the house and informed me I had multiple doggie spots in several rooms. What? He was a bit perplexed because of the lack of odor. Believe me, if the house had smelled bad I would not have wanted it. I have had dogs and cats and cannot stand the smell of their messes. But I sure as heck don't let my animals use my carpet for their relief. So he pre-treated and made several passes over most of the carpet. I can only hope the spots don't come back but I have my doubts. I'm figuring I need to start a savings for new carpet in two years. What brilliant mind chose white carpet in dusty horse country anyway??! And then let their dogs use it??!

As the carpet guy left, Bob showed up at my back door. Bob is a neighbor. In his ball cap, jean jacket, boots and close-cropped, salt and pepper beard, slow-talking Bob fit my image of the horse owner neighbor. Nice guy too. He was just driving by and thought he'd let me know 'she' has my extra keys and I can get them from 'her'. He pointed to his house as he told me.

Christie and Lance
Back inside, Lance texted me to tell me he and Christie would be there in an hour or two. I jumped in the car and made a run into Chino Valley for a McD salad. I no sooner got in the house when 'she' knocked on my door. Turns out 'she' is his wife Jeannette. As quiet as Bob is, Jeannette is a talker. We walked around in the chilly wind, her dark hair dancing around her shoulders, while she explained the irrigation system of the well. I learned all about the well workings and enough about the neighbors behind me to know there's something unlikeable about them. I do have water outside. The carpet guy didn't give it enough time to start flowing.

I was famished by then, but Jeannette had so much to tell me. It looked like she was winding down when Lance and Christie pulled up. Christie had not seen our place yet so Lance walked her around the two and half acres while Jeannette waited to talk to Lance. Then we went through the well system again. As much as I enjoyed her, I had to finally beg off and go inside to eat before I fainted.

Down the hall is Lance & Christie's space.
Christie was so cute as she checked out the inside, thanking me profusely for doing the cleaning. She and Lance measured and planned how their half of the house would lay out. Then I found out it will be March before they can get out of their current lease in Flagstaff and move to Paulden. On one level, it'll be fun for Frank and I to have the time alone but on another level, I was hoping to begin the communal living adventure. I love Lance and Christie.

Lance, whose idea it was to live under one roof, is nervous. He said he hopes I don't end up hating him! Christie said, "Lance,there's no way your mom would hate you." His reply: "no, but she could hate you." LOL

By the way, my interview is up all week at TBR, and I'm giving away a night at the movies, 1945 style to a commenter. Please hop over there, too! Click here: To Be Read Blog

4 comments:

  1. I'm loving this. Don't know that I could be so brave or adventurous. We have red soil here in VA. It soils sneakers, jeans and carpeting. Eager for the next episode.

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    1. Thanks, Vonnie. I've been looking at doormats lately. Any advice?

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  2. Another great post and I'm glad it worked out for the carpet cleaning. Interested in hearing about the 'neighbors' 'she' told you about. ;^)

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    1. I do need to meet them, but I can tell you that we plan to plant some trees to block the view.

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