Events come and go so fast, that sometimes one or two that were horrific, was left out. So here goes.

I forget the date, but I know it was before my 80th birthday. It seems that those of us who purchased a Condo had a cheap form of hardware which meant that at no cost to us, all of our plumbing had to be replaced with copper tubing. ALL OF IT!

Now, remember, this is a small Condo a little less than 900 sq. feet. I was getting over some kind of ailment at the time, who knows what - I had so many, and pleaded that mine be postponed as late as possible. I went next door to see what was going on, and to my horror, there were pieces of wall with huge amount of dust everywhere. They also had to do the one that lead to the outdoor water faucet which meant the bedroom had to be available as well.

Now remember, I am alone, very short, and have boxes and plastic containers filled with art supplies everywhere. My son came for one day to help me move the sewing machine (never used) and the cabinet beside a huge bird cage and the playpen on top of a small cabinet which almost touched the refrigerator. I have very little storage space and put as much as I could under sinks, all of which had to be removed. My neighbor then across the way allowed me to store things on his patio, and I removed my car from the carport to put the rest that did not fit on my patio. I put plastic over many items on my dining room table (still there, by the way) and my large box of flatware (gift for my wedding) and very heavy was carried to the piano bench as well as my mother's large bowl and electric mixer - too heavy for me.

I made arrangements for my bird sitter (the last time she ever took my bird) to remove her from all of that dust, and I went to the local hotel for the days they said it would need to complete the job.

I came back on time and to my horror, the frig was where the cage was,and huge plastic everywhere covered with dust and fragments. It was late Friday. I called the plumber and they could not come until Monday, and Cuddles had to come back Sat. I was frantic.I must say the young man that came Monday was very kind, and I put Cuddles in her small cage and I sat in the small den where the computer is while he finished up. He helped me put the large items back and naive me thought- well,that is over. WRONG!

The shower in my room would not turn off and the toilet had very hot water in it. They came and broke a piece of wall to find out they attached the boiler to the toilet and had to come back and break into my walls again. Cuddles and I stayed another two days while they repaired their mistake.

Suddenly, I saw water coming out of the floor of the second bathroom (next to the den) and saw the toilet had cracked. HOT WATER AGAIN!

Sooooooo, another couple of days breaking into walls, getting a second new toilet and after fixing the plumbing waiting for the walls to dry, another two days held up in the den.

All in all for nearly a month they broke my walls, replaced bad materials and left me in a very dusty mess!

To this day, many items under plastic table covers, are still there. My bath tub is filled with plastic boxes containing art materials. Do you wonder why I will not allow anyone to come in? As time went on, and I broke my arm, no way could I remove the boxes, and with the help of one or two people I begged, have been bringing these items priced for our one a year swap meet held here in the village with hardly any advertising. I am slowly, reluctantly, giving things away.

My friends, THAT HURTS! I hate to ask for help, but I have no choice. Starting the end of this month I once again will select a few cartons and containers, mark items there (never used) and try again for November's Swap Meet.

So, again, I say: how could I forget? Oh, the worse was taking things off the shelf over the kitchen sink when suddenly, the shelf with the TV, VCR, some valuable cups and small elephants fell right on my legs. Both legs still are dark from that injury. A dear friend (who has since moved) came right away and glued down the shelf. Yup, everything broke!

Think I am still a Mess? You are so right! HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN THAT TRAUMA?

Next chapter? More stuff to come. Trust me, when the going gets tough, I watch my "banter" downloads of Clay, or reread his book. IT HELPS BEYOND DESCRIPTION! You ALL also bring much joy with your wonderful comments. Guess I am lucky at that.

Back soon with more, and I do so thank you all for sharing my crazy life.

Marian