Last week was a bit hectic culminating in the remodel version of The Marx Brother's Night at The Opera as I had various workers coming in to do various stuff as well as a visit from the cable guy to move my modem and router from my bedroom where it had been originally placed when I moved back in October 2018 and still didn't have the room divider built which houses the television servicing the den/office and "living room" My room divider houses what I call my stripper pole television as the TV is mounted on a pole which turns so I can watch television from either my den/office or from the "living room". And of course the television in the bedroom was disconnected from cable and so he has to make another service call this morning. The electrician was here to hang the chandelier in the dining room as well as change switch plates to black and add some smart switches for my bedroom. Naturally when he got here, he didn't like the smart switches I ordered and convinced me that I should go with the Lutron Caseta hub so he'll be back. All this to have the digital equivalent of a "clapper" - if I'm in bed, I don't want to get OUT OF BED to turn off the sconces in the bedroom :-). Because my ceilings are concrete it isn't possible to move any lighting junctions in the ceiling and the one over the dining room table is not centered so it has to be swagged. Probably when my condo was built in 1965, swagging was considered the height of elegance but not so much anymore. My designer had recommended a sock and so I thought okay but when I saw what it actually looked like it seemed ridiculous to have what reminded me of Seinfeld's "poufy shirt" covering the chain. To my "non-designer" eyes the cure seemed worse than the cure so against the objections of both the electrician and designer, I had it removed. The chandelier is an old Art Nouveau chandelier that originally had small chains swagging from the bottom and over the course of time some of these had just fallen off. Amazingly what seems like a simple item to procure requires four months for the lighting people to get. But the chandelier is hung and presumably the decorative chains can be added when they come in without having to take down the chandelier. I had the carpenter who did all my cabinets and other wood stuff fabricate a medallion for my bedroom chandelier. My designer had found one which I loved but the company never responded - oddest thing since there is both a website and EBAY presence. At any rate, I am so glad I held out for this one as I absolutely am in LOVE with it. It's got an Art Deco feel and so even though the chandelier is Rococco Revival, it ties in with other design elements in my room since my sconces are vaguely Art Decoish and my wood furniture is my old Art Deco Waterfall furniture. Anyway long winded Saturday morning missive but if we can't share with all of you on this thread, who else can we LOL? I think the angle I shot at - I was in bed - doesn't do it justice This is the chandelier with the new medallion This is the sconce which is on either side of my bed This is the bed with the sconces - I still haven't finished in terms of the bed treatment. I got a faux mink bedspread which I should start using to finishing it off. This is a shot of the room divider which houses my television as viewed from my den/office. You can actually glimpse my chandelier over dining table to the left completely with tacky swagged chain :-)

Yes, happy St. Patricks’ Day! 🍀 We are cooking our corned beef. I buy this uncured corn beef from Earth Fare that is super tender. So, now we need to add the vegetables soon. I normally don’t care for it, but this brand is super good, Garrett Valley Farms. JoJo, glad you are listening to your body and following up with your doctor. DH and I did some yard work today. We got a new garden bed, but I think I finally found someone to do the deck so we had to move many things away from the deck. So, that was my workout today. But hopefully we can get ready for the planting season. People are planting, but it is way too early. Our last frost is April 15. DH needs to refresh the beds, and we need to do a lot of weeding. OTOH, our chives, two types of parsley, and mint are back after going dormant for the winter. I could not refill my Zepbound because CVS is having supply issues. they told me to check back tomorrow since they usually get shipments on Mondays. So, if it’s not in, not sure what happens other than I try to call other pharmacies like Harris Teeter or Costco. I’m also supposed to see the weight management clinic this week. I got my blood results back, cholesterol is good, but A1C is unchanged at 5.7. But I’ve only been on the intro dose and not the therapeutic dose. I’m supposed to move to 5 mg this week and that’s what I can’t get. At least I managed to get into Pilates group class Friday thanks to a last mintue cancellation. I did Zumba step yesterday and then the yard work today. Back to school tomorrow. Time went by too fast for break. Now I have boatloads of grading and advisign to do. Have a good evening, everyone, and I will report back after the doctor.

Jojo - I am sure you are experimenting this week and I hope you find some successful foods. I will say, oatmeal is the first thing that gets either skipped for breakfast or modified a great deal when people first start wearing a glucose monitor. It is known for its sudden glucose spike. Accompany that with two pieces of toast and the sudden spike followed by a sharp fall could certainly have you feeling that way. I do best with fat, fiber and protein for breakfast, but sometimes I will have oatmeal. But only 1/3 cup mixed with 2 T chia seeds and some cinnamon and walnuts, along with breakfast chicken sausage for protein. I'm trying very hard to minimize my processed food, and it is so hard for me. I really do enjoy eating out and snacking. I need to cook more, but it takes so long :) And I can never figure out what to make. Today I thought I was doing well, but I still had a Papa Steve's Bar for breakfast and Masa chips with my avocado. Now, technically papa steve's has no junk and the Masa chips are made with beef tallow instead of seed oils, but they are still processed in some manner. I will keep trying to eat more whole foods! I am very good with fruit and nuts, so there's that :) I have been walking this week and got in several hours of pickleball and one strength training workout, so that part is going well. The podcast I listened to today said 20 minutes 3 times a week for strength training, and after that the returns start to diminish. I can do that - 20 minutes is nothing in my day. I am going to try harder to be more consistent with that.

I understand your pain/frustration. I had to have my shower redone because the contractor did not build it correctly. My contractor did a bit better than yours - but he still had some of the major issues like you have (example - screwing through the Durock on top of the curb = penetrating the pvc liner - I bet there are also screws on the inside of the curb which is also not allowed). It also looks like the pvc liner is flat on the subfloor (mine was also) - there needs to be a pre slope underneath the liner - then another layer of deck mud goes over the liner. If the liner is flat, then the water that enters into the deck mud underneath your tiles/grout will just sit there - instead of being directed to the weep holes of the clamping drain. My contractor gave me the ”I’ve been doing this for over 20 years” speech - but he was still doing things incorrectly. You need to have him stop before he installls any more tile. He needs to explain why he failed to do a flood test of the shower pan. He needs to explain why there isn’t a pre slope under the pvc liner. He needs to explain why he punctured the pvc liner on top (and probably inside) the curb. Why did he use two different types of waterproofing on the walls? I have no idea if they are compatible - and honestly, it makes zero sense to me. There will be a statute that covers this type of residential renovation that has been enacted in your state. Some of these statutes require the homeowner to allow the contractor the right to remediate issues = you can’t just fire him if you want to try to recoup the money you’ve spent. ACJN (I think that’s the right user name) made several posts regarding how she handled similar issues w a contractor - and the steps needed to recover $ in small claims. As an attorney, I remember that the post contained very helpful information. I truly am sorry that you have to deal with this. I know that it’s uncomfortable to confront your contractor when he’s the ”professional” - but he’s not acting like a true professional. You really do not want to let him move forward without resolving all of the current issues.