This day . . . . Hectic, expensive progress. A lot more to come. Shares needed.

Photo copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved.

Good lord, this day. Half the time I can barely stand right now, and yet I had to be literally on the run from about 8:30 onward. My blood pressure is not doing so hot, either (or, rather, maybe too hot), given the butcher's bill for the plumbing/septic. You can't hear the sigh that just escaped, but believe me, it was epic.

So. A little over $15K yet to be paid to the plumbers, for everything. We knocked $2,500 off that today with a check, but the rest will have to be paid soon, too. So basically, we can pay them not-quite-all-of-it and be at a standstill (and still owe them some), or parcel this out over a longer term and get, you know, the rest of the work done so we can move in. So we're going with the latter approach. I'm hoping we can give them another $2 grand by this weekend/early next week, which will take care of one component of the overall bill, but that's not definite. On the plus side, they finished off the grading and fill where the land was so badly torn up, and you can see the results in the photos above and below. When I took the one above, it was storming, which is why it's so dark, but it gives you a wide-angle view of just how much work they did to flatten it out and distribute and grade the gravel. Here's a close-up of the new drain into the pond:

Photo copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved.

The tank itself is now completely sealed and locked and ready to go. I learned a couple of things about it today that make me feel better about the added expense. With our current septic tank (the one that was misinstalled back in '99), we have to get it pumped every six months, on average, at roughly $110 a pop. This tank will only need to be pumped once every two years. Yes, I'm sure the cost will be higher, but it'll save in convenience too, and also save the land, given that that monster truck won't have to drive onto it as often. The other thing that is especially good news? When they installed the French drain, they had also shifted to a different kind of evaporative system to deal with the groundwater. Originally, they'd planned to use one with an electrical hook-up, and I was concerned about both the power drain and whether there'd be a spike in electrical costs (and I was afraid we'd lose all the savings we're gaining on our current heating costs). But given the height of the groundwater, they were concerned that, during monsoon season, at a minimum, it would have to be on virtually nonstop (rather than kicking on only when the water reaches a certain level and triggers it), and that would burn out the motor much faster. So they switched it to a natural aeration system that works both with and against the groundwater, with the French drain diverting the runoff into the pond when it reaches a certain level. This means that there will be absolutely no electrical power associated with the septic system, which means no added costs, which means that these $500-800/month bills we've been pulling in the cold months? A thing of the past. Last month, we finally got our electric bill completely current for what may be the first time ever since we got stuck in this tin can. If we can get into the house before the cold really settles in, it should stay that way.

There was more going on than just plumbing stuff today, though.

Photo copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved.

Tony and Reynaldo got all, count 'em, all the baseboards in upstairs.

Photo copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved.

Sherm and Marcos started setting the bases and anchors for the deck posts.

Photo copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved.

And Marcos 2 and Junior 2 started installing the light fixtures. Those are the porch lights. Inside, they got a good share of the downstairs done:

Photo copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved.

That's the living room; they also got the coat closet, laundry room, dining room, two of the kitchen fixtures (it's a series of small inexpensive lights), and the side door exterior. The kitchen sink, pantry, stairwell, and most of the upstairs (including one between the upstairs exterior doors) remain to be done. They think they'll have it finished tomorrow, but I'm betting Friday. Once it's done and live, Ismael will come out to test the hot and cold water and turn the water heater fully live. Tomorrow the woodstove guy is coming out to spec installing our stoves. And at some point, Floyd and his crew will be here to start the tile.

And I am so fricking' beat, I can barely string together a coherent thought. you have no idea how long this post is taking me, because I keep screwing up my sentences. My body was not ready to have to do anything on command today, and it wasn't given a choice, so I'm wiped. I don't know how long this flare is going to last, so that may not change anytime soon, given our circumstances. So bear with me, because I'm going to be missing things right and left. For now, here are the links (and if anyone wants to know, Home Depot cards are far and away the most useful thing right now, although eventually the plumber's are going to demand their cash):

• Wings's site, for sales;
• Lowe's cards (the physical version) via our Amazon wishlist;
• Lowe's e-cards (delivered via e-mail) here; and
• Home Depot cards via the company site. The e-version using my e-mail address is great; I take the tablet to the store with me, and they scan it off the screen.

Please share them all, as much as possible. One large sale would go a long way toward making up the difference (the water heater is paid in full, but now there's all the other stuff, including the softener that has to go in before hook-up; yes, it's expensive, but it's going to save us a ton in the long run). Like last night, I'm going to limp out to the chicken coop and try to get all the little monsters in for the night before full dark. Then what passes for a shower in this thing, and I think I'm done. Well, it doesn't really matter what I think; my body's done, and that kinda governs. Love and thanks to everyone.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Aji, 2017; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.