Bat Party

Bat Party

Please note…that Mom’s phone has been disconnected and now the only way to contact her is through Teresa’s cell. If you do not have Teresa’s number…email her at teresabuster@live.com and she will send it to you.

NOW…..

The Estate Sales are over. Yay!!!  We were quite successful at trimming down. Furniture was sold, knickknacks carted away, the RV was sold and the garage is cleared. We met a lot of nice people who were very pleasant and just a couple of lookieloos who would not have been missed. Overall it accomplished what needed to be done.

Roger and Elena came down for the weekend. Roger participated in the 2011 Tuna Tournament that helped support the Food Bank and he brought us home twelve pounds of fresh Albacore.  Teresa arrived home Saturday after working for the week in Phoenix.  We picked her up at the airport and joined Roger for a steak dinner following his tournament. We had a very nice evening laughing together and enjoying each others company.

Sunday after the meeting, Mom’s Congregation gave her a Going-Away Party. Roger and Elena joined us, as well as Ryan, Kaila, and their children. We all gathered at Lake Marie, where Roger barbecued the fresh Albacore…IT WAS DELICIOUS and everyone raved about how moist it was. Burgers and hot dogs were also cooked and everyone shared in the feast that everyone had contributed to. Elena, Teresa and I all collaborated on a fresh Peach Crisp that turned out really yummy and was received quite well at the party. Everyone enjoyed the afternoon immensely. Roger and Elena went home after giving Mom, Teresa and I really nice long hugs and promises to visit in Ventura soon. (THEY HAD BETTER).

Friends referred a really nice family to rent Mom’s house, so that is a big relief…and things have been moving along pretty smoothly. It’s kind of ironic how things have been falling into place.

Until today….

Today Mom, Teresa and I were running around like chickens with their heads chopped off. (Stop for a second, close your eyes and visualize that…got it?)

Our plan is to move on Saturday. The list of “must-dos” is incredibly long and we are going a little Bat-Crazy…as in literally. Now visualize this: bats have invaded the attic, so we were on a quest to find this special wire mesh to keep them out and of course no one had it. Finally, the seventh building supply place in Coo’s Bay had a suitable substitute. Teresa was ticked.

We also needed to get some paperwork done at the DMV … well it turns out the DMV does not handle what we needed anymore, so we had to contact another Governmental office … and you know how red tape goes….sticky, sticky. (Turns out it wasn’t so bad). More chickens running around took place.

So all in all, our errands took us to seven building supply stores, one lawyer’s office, the DMV, one office supply store, a pharmacy, two Dollar Stores and three grocery stores…and one stop at an automotive place for a battery for the Ford … and oh yeah … one stop for lunch and another later at McDonald’s for some sweet tea. That’s a heck of a lot of running around.  I think we finished our list for the day…Yay. Now there is the list for tomorrow, Thursday, Friday and we are off to Ventura on Saturday.

So, helpful friends from the Reedsport Congregation, (Mike, Brian, Sarah, and Jonathan) showed up to combat the bats tonight.  Chuck and Myriam Harvey & Larry brought some fantastic chili verde, spanish rice and beans…we contributed enchiladas and salad and wham bam we have a bat party, complete with cheesecake, with blackberries. The guys and Sarah got up on the roof and took off the ridge, let the bats fly away at dusk and then went back up and stapled down the elusive mesh.

Larry Fitz & Chuck Harvey

Myriam Harvey

 

Jonathan, Mike & Brian

Do yourself a favor and do not visualize the next few sentences. The wonderful volunteers reported that there was a plethora of bats who left a hefty residual of deposit material that Sara said smelled like stinky musky poo. Brian said it is not as potent as old cow manure in a pile, but like cow poo that has old straw on top of it. Mike says it smells like bat poo, just plain old bat poo, which has a distinctive smell all its own. Well…we are grateful that our friends are so willing to help…and that their sense of humor remained intact. Hopefully the bats will now fly far, far away and poo somewhere else.

Sarah & Mom

So instead of beavers and ducks today….we had headless chickens and bats. Now let’s hope tomorrow is a little less hairy. We are almost done packing and cleaning. Randy will be here on Friday to drive the Moving Van down to Ventura and we are leaving on Saturday.

In true Cook fashion…we are sure to have more stories coming your way.

Object Lesson

Up in Oregon, Mom and Teresa are busy prepping for their move by having their second yard sale. (I will be there tomorrow to join the fun.) Teri is lamenting over arranging all the odds and ends that are now ready to belong to someone else. We had giggled together over what Mom would sell and what she would want to absolutely hang onto and wondered how much stuff that we would need to haul down to Ventura. Much to my surprise, Mom is clearly ready to let go and move on. She actually is selling her huge cup collection as well as her dolls that she spent so many years collecting. In Mom’s case, I believed that she enjoyed the hunt, more than the ownership of things.

Have you watched that show, Hoarders?  It’s like a train wreck that you can just not avert your eyes from. I am so glad that we do not have to deal with that disease. ARGH… Dad was a frugal man and did not buy a whole lot of stuff…which is a very good thing; because he probably had everything he ever bought in the garage….tools and such. Fortunately, most of that stash is gone Teri reports, thanks to men who probably got the what-for from their wives when they took it home. Hee-hee, one man’s junk is another man’s treasure and a thorn in the butt of that man’s wife.

Sweet Relief — No hoarders in the Cook Clan.

While sorting through things, Teri had asked what we wanted from Dad’s possessions. There were a few items, none of cash value, just sentimental. I heard that Tonja got some ties for Jason, Marta took a few items for Skye & Shae, and Brandon took Dad’s work boots…stuff like that. When she asked me, I told her that the boys would like the harmonicas they had given Dad when they were kids. I think it is so sweet that they will find comfort in those items and I think Dad would have been touched by that. Dad was a man who was rich in love, rich in experience and he had a wealth of knowledge. He was not a land baron, did not have a magnificent stock portfolio, or millions to divide among his progeny. He gave us the gift of family…and harmonicas, boots and ties.

There is one object that Dad kept and must have loved, a possession that Dad has had since the early sixties, (in addition to the tools and stuff in the garage) and that is the FORD truck.  There are too many Ford stories to tell now…let’s just say that it has been a fixture in the Cook kids lives FOREVER. We all have memories that include this now rusty hunk of junk truck that has been sitting in their driveway for eons and has probably been a thorn in Mom’s butt all these years.

Dad and my son Chris made a pact many years ago when Chris was a wee young lad, that one day  the Ford would go to Chris. For some reason, Chris has always loved the truck, even though it was already old and rusty when he was little.

Fishing with Poppy

When Chris got his license, Dad discussed giving the truck to him then. After weighing the pros and cons, he decided to wait. He thought it would be a great project for Chris to fix it up and a good way for Chris to learn his way around engines. Yet he worried that it would take all of Chris’ time and money that should be spent in better endeavors. He went back and forth, but decided that it wasn’t the right time…and at that time, he was still using it to tow his boat to the lake. Dad loved that truck.

Poppy Showing Chris the Ford Woes

Chris is now older and somewhat wiser… the kid is no dummy. He understands what is involved in possessing and fixing up the Ford. On visits to Oregon, Poppy schooled Chris as to what it needs…and Dad tried to tell Chris he did not have to take it and assured him he would not be offended if he refused the keys. Still, Chris wants it … and even got Liz to agree that it could go in their driveway. It’s not worth anything other than what it could get at the scrap yard…but to Chris it is so very valuable and desirable…It was Poppy’s. When he looks at it, I imagine him replaying a video of his memories of Poppy, fishing, and the Ford. Those are Some Truly Precious memories.

Conner, Chris & Poppy & RUST

The rusty, hunk of junk Ford from Poppy, is a treasured object, a token of love and worth so much in the eyes and heart of his Grandson. It warms my heart to know how loved our Poppy is by all of our children.

I think about all Dads’ family and try to visualize each ones memories. We had so many great times with that man. I wish there was a way to transfer those memories to DVDs so we could all watch them together.

If Chris ever does get that Ford shiny and bright again, that will truly be a vehicle full of Poppy love. There is no doubt that memories are definitely more important than objects; yet sometimes, certain objects can be the vehicles for recalling good times, good people and reminding us how good the bond of love can be. Poppy may be gone, but his lessons for us live on.

The Fords Future?

Mom Said A Bad Word

GARAGE SALE UPDATES from Teresa

I’m kind of hard pressed for positive when I’m up to my eye balls in price stickers and a guy wants to know if he can purchase the drive way for the marked price of 10 cents. Ha, after this move I’m convinced simple is better. The only allowance for mass is shoes, I say.

Must add though…Even with the work of packing, cleaning and selling there has been a lot of help. Roger came up two weeks ago and got the motor home running, fixed the garbage disposal again, the broken dishwasher and hauled away the Mercury to sell. And he’ll be up again in a couple of weeks to help us finish up a few things around the house. Just so he’ll have plenty to do, I broke the kitchen faucet last night. It stills works with duck tape if I only want a dribble of water. Otherwise it shoots a spray half way to the living room. More work. Oh well.

The other help has come from friends who manned our estate sale last weekend and are coming back again tomorrow to help Tonight I learned I’ll have a whole posse of helpers. Great! Because there are plenty of price stickers to go around.

Last week’s sale generated a lot of interest in the property and several other things Mom has wanted gone for quite a long time. The “beast” has been spoken for and the new owners are coming to get the spiffed up motor home tomorrow. Yep, that was another thing that had to be cleaned and pressured washed. Thanks go to Chuck and Angela for that chore since I was sorting through a ton of tools in the garage at the time. Screw drivers in one pile, sockets in another, saws on the wall and buckets and buckets of nails, and nuts and bolts. Man… men will buy anything. Most of that stuff I‘d have tossed in the trash but the men were hauling it away by the arms full. More kudos for Chuck since, he managed to fill Mom’s coffers with a pretty pennies in fair trade.

I’m gonna say it because it’s the honest reflection of my thoughts…THE LORD WILLING, even the semi seems to be on its way out of the yard. Four new batteries went into it this afternoon and John will be back tomorrow with his own helper to try to get it moved from our home to his. With bated breath I’m praying that goes well.

How’s Mom doing in all of this? Until the faucet broke, pretty well, I think she said a bad word when that happened. But she’s fine now. She’s got friends coming over in the morning early so she’s gone to bed and she’s telling me to do the same. So I’m gonna listen to my Mom and turn out the lights.

An Invitation From The Cooks