KSchlenker

I guess a closet is just a big box....

kschlenker — Tue, 06 May 2008 16:58:10 -0500

A New Photo has been added to OurCrazyCats.

Alyssa deployed to Iraq late last night....

kschlenker — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 23:29:26 -0500

We don't know her route, or when she will actually arrive in Iraq, but at least we finally got her official pictures. She has grown up so much, it makes me feel old. Her picture, which was taken in the last few months, is below:

Her beret is red because she is attached to the 82nd Airborne Division, though her job in Iraq will be as an MP.

This is very different from her other "military" outfits---dresses she wore to the Marine Corp Birthday Ball.

One of Alyssa's "uniforms" for the Marine Birthday Ball

Ronald and I have been married for 28 years as of March 1st....

kschlenker — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:55:02 -0600

It is strange to think of it, but we have been married almost two thirds of our lives. Maybe that is why I can forgive him, and he can put up with my medical problems. People usually forgive their best friend; people are usually willing to stand by a friend who needs their help and support.

We are both desperate to get the sailboat back on the water. We had planned on going sailing on our anniversary, but had a problem with the boat trailer. We went fishing instead, and Ronald skunked me, though just barely; he caught a striper that might have been 7" long and threw it back in the water. Though there were several fishermen beside us, he was the only one to land anything. I caught nothing, though I got a few weak bites.

Still, it was nice to be out with Ronald, just the two of us, trying to enjoy the day. He left his cellphone in the truck while we were fishing, a gesture I appreciated. Since he was named General Manager at the restaurant where he works, his work load has gone up a great deal. (He no longer works for Jack in the Box. He now works in a 'real' restaurant, that serves seafood, steaks, and mixed drinks. Not only is his job much better, so is his income....)

We visited Lake Bryan, and there was a bunch of little sailboats, apparently for rent during the season. That definitely interested us, because then it meant that the winds, the boat launch, and probably the water depth, would be okay for the Luger.

We were there in our new truck; the first new vehicle we have ever owned. We bought this vehicle to pull the horse trailer, pull the boats, and haul hay for the horses. It is a 2008 Chevy Silverado C1500 longbed, with a regular cab (not extended in anyway). This truck has about 5,000 miles on it, is about two months old, and it had to be returned to the dealership for work four times for a transmission problem. The dealership people were great--it was GM who kept saying do this, do that, and none of it seemed to work. However, this time, the engine light has stayed off, so I am hopeful the manufacturing defect is finally repaired.

It is weird driving a new vehicle, but fantastic. I love to drive vehicles that are high up. I am short, so I feel like I can see much more. The real test for me will be if I can successfully back the truck up to a boat and latch on.

Wow, did I ever get off topic! Oh well, that's life.

Ever have one of those days....

kschlenker — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 09:01:12 -0600

I was doing the usual multitasking today, writing a blog entry and three emails, when Orange decides I am not paying him enough attention. So he waltzed up and plopped down right in front of the monitor. Since my keyboard is on a slide-out, this wasn't a big deal, and I kept working.

However, after a couple of minutes with me continuing to type on the computer (I still had the three emails open and the blog article), Orange became very unhappy. So he jumped down on to the keyboard. He scampered off just as soon as he did it--like he knew it made me very unhappy. I lost everything I had written. Now I will have to do it again.

Orange a few months ago, resting (what he does best!)

Orange is really an affectionate cat. Just sometimes too affectionate.

Oh well, cats, dogs, horses, chickens, turkeys, peafowl, guineas, and emus are meant to make a person's life interesting.

Sorry that I haven't been responding to comments...

kschlenker — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 23:06:41 -0600

I promise that I will soon. I just don't seem to feel like doing much of anything right now.

Newspaper article about the search for my mom....

kschlenker — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 09:11:39 -0600

The newspaper apparently doesn't have a webpage, but if you click on the button below you can read the article (it is 250k+, so it may take a minute to come up):

We already had the memorial service for my mother, though we will be waiting until March to spread her ashes. I received several e-cards, and my sisters and I really appreciate the kind thoughts, prayers, and words.

My mother, Hazel Beatrice Jauer Heggins, has passed away...

kschlenker — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 05:57:10 -0600

Hazel Beatrice Jauer Heggins

Last Thursday, January 23, 2008, my mother took her dogs for a walk on a very cold rainy day. During that walk, something happened and she got lost. One of the dogs abandoned her and returned to the house. The other dog, Ruby, stayed with my mom, and was still guarding her when she was found huddled in an old deer blind about 5 miles from the ranch.

Despite the heroic efforts of dozens of law enforcement and rescue personnel, my cousins Ricky and Billy Rogers, and my sister Deanna Holler and her husband Joe Holler, she wasn't found until Friday, and by then it was too late.

My mother was born September 5, 1934, and graduated from Sinton High School in Sinton, Texas in 1953. After her graduation, she worked as a telephone operator. One of her friends introduced her to a young man that my mom said was the silliest guy she had ever met, a total showoff and a big joker.

That man was Bennie William Heggins, my dad. She married my dad on Halloween of 1953, after knowing each other for a very short time--he always claimed it was 2 weeks, but she told me it was more like a month. They were married 52 years, until his death in 2006.

During their lives together, they raised five daughters, all of whom survive them. From the oldest to the youngest: Belinda Hazel Heggins Aguilar, Brenda Kay Heggins Bryant, Deanna Louise Heggins Holler, Teresa Leah Heggins Walker, and myself, Kelly Denis Heggins Schlenker, and our respective spouses, children, and grandchildren. My mother is also survived by her brother, Leland Jauer, Jr. and his wife Rita Gay Jauer of Houston, Texas, and their daughter. My mother is also survived by several of her in-laws, including Marion and Joyce Heggins of Houston. There are others, but please excuse me if I forget them at this time.

Front: Kelly (me), and Teresa

Back Row: Brenda, Deanna, Belinda

December 1964, Nogales, Arizona

A memorial service will be held at Rancho La Leona East in Guerra, Texas at 11 AM on February 2, 2008; if her ashes are ready, her cremains will also be scattered at that time.

I miss my father a great deal; but I was very close to my mom. She was a lot of fun to go shopping with and go window shopping together even when we were broke. We went to go see dumb (and not so dumb) movies together and we shared books back and forth. When she moved out there, I tried to take her as many videos and books as I could--their tv reception sucked and they were too broke for even a basic satellite package and my dad hated going to the movies, so she never went unless I took her. Mom was always there when I needed a shoulder to cry on over the phone, or to tell her what her namesake and other granddaughters had won or done that week. We loved talking about our animals and their escapades. She was always there to tell me how many calves were born, and if they had rain. She had always been a real calming influence on me (and I am a very hyper high strung person).

I have had "well meaning" people try to tell me that because of Mom's mild Alzheimer's, maybe this was a blessing in diguise. F*ck that. They aren't me. They don't know how I feel. They don't realize my mom was getting better now that she was taking her medicine correctly (thanks to Deanna--I am very grateful to my sister helping my mom all these months; actually, I am extremely grateful to her and her husband Joe; they have both been very wonderful). My mom was looking forward to the future, to seeing her greatgrandchild, Deanna's grandbaby, being born. She was looking forward to the chance to come to Houston and stay with Jessica and Christine and to see my peafowl, turkeys, chickens, and emus. She was really looking forward to Alyssa getting leave before shipping out to Iraq; we were determined that all of us were going down there so all the girls could see her.

These are the same kind of people who seem to think if a person is disabled, that person would be better off dead. Well folks, I am disabled. And I WANT TO LIVE. My mom wanted to live; I know, because Ronald and I finally got to go visit her--we went down there on the Tuesday and Wednesday before she disappeared. She was very excited about the guineas we brought down for Deanna (Mom loved guineas). She told me how excited she was about the greatgrandbaby to be.

I feel that if they don't have something sympathetic to say, they should just shut the f*ck up. They don't seem to realize their words hurt like a stab in the back, like my mom was a worn out old horse that should've have been taken out back and shot. If she were sicker, maybe I could understand their thoughtlessness. But she just wasn't that bad. And NO ONE deserves to die soaked to the skin, in 34 degree weather, with just a light shirt and jeans on in a nasty old deer blind. At least Ruby was there with her, so she didn't die completely alone.

Sorry to go off on a rant. I just had one too many people jaw off at me today. I have had a rough week; four of the seven puppies I took to NABS died because they dug up and bit into amaryllis bulbs in the foster home's yard--I found that out less than 12 hours before finding out that my mom had gone missing.

I put one red rose at the top of this post. My mom loved roses. She never got to raise any once she got to South Texas, there just wasn't enough water for her to "waste" it on a rose bush. I don't think it would have been a waste; it would have made her happy.

Old Arrow Glass speed boat, bought for it's trailer

kschlenker — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 07:35:58 -0600

Ronald and I bought another boat, again purchased for it's trailer. But this one, I am not going to let Ron tear it apart. I am going to rebuild it's engine, I am going to refurbish the inside, I am going to clean it up and restore it. This is the kind of boat I was raised on--a nice sleek power boat. It has a 266 HP OMC Sterndrive, to push a boat that is only 17 feet long.

It looked pretty bad, when we saw it. But I rubbed a small spot on it, and the glass looked good under the grime, and the trailer had a very little rust on it. And it only cost $150. I figure for that price, trailer and all, it would at least give me something to learn on. So it is mine.

When I got it home, I opened up the engine compartment, and the engine appears to be in very good condition, considering. Before I even attempt to start it up, I am going to make sure there is no water anywhere in the system.

Any tips would be GREATLY APPRECIATED. Truly! As I said, though my dad piloted one of these around when I was a kid (it would have been one of his smaller boats), I NEVER did it, and I certainly never worked on the engine.

Christmas time is no time to be giving away puppies

kschlenker — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 23:04:06 -0600

Alyssa, my daughter who is in the Army, is home on leave. She absolutely did not want me to rehome the pups before Christmas because she was worried they would become "Christmas puppies", i.e. dumped a week later. So I will start my little rehoming project this week, for a few of the puppies (I am keeping several).

Puppies never make good surprise presents. The only time a person should get a puppy as a present is when they have asked for one, are aware of what they would have to do to take care of one, are willing to commit to taking care of the young pup, and love the little monster.

Because for the first few months, that pup will be a monster. A real monster. The puppy will chew up everything, shit on your floors, piss on your Persian carpets, eat your favorite book, tear up that dissertation you worked on for a year, ruin the power cord to your laptop, and make a playtoy out of your iPod. The puppy may make you pretty miserable. This is a temporary state, and will end when the puppy becomes a dog.

What they bring to you is joy and love and happiness that will last for years. But since most people don't seem to know how to handle those things, they focus on the negative temporary effects that even human toddlers go through. If they could only see that back some decades ago they were the ones chewing on the furniture, maybe they wouldn't be dumping that puppy at the pound a week after Christmas....

Hand started healing--after stitches were removed.

kschlenker — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 18:10:22 -0600

As is sometimes the case, my hand didn't heal at all while the stitches were in place. Dr. Tremor realized that they were causing more damage than helping, and removed them. He said with my diabetes and decreased ability to heal, that the wound would have to heal from the inside out and the stitches just got in the way. So he took them out, in favor of strips. The strips fell off after a couple days, and the wound looked better than it had since it had happened. He also told me to use the antibiotic once daily, and let the wound dry (which one of the nurses in the ER also said, but the ER doctor instructed otherwise).

Now, though it is still not healed (and there is a great deal of pain in it when I don't take painkillers--which I am avoiding right now), it is almost completely sealed. I can't see all the way down through my skin into my muscle tissue--and sometimes glimpse my bone, as before. It no longer extends around the side of my hand, and the opening is only about half an inch long, though the picture looks like it is longer (that is the peeling of the outer layers of skin along the edges of the original wound).

I really appreciate Dr. Tremor's experience with this kind of problem.

The blender from hell strikes again....

kschlenker — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 05:12:57 -0600

I spent six hours in the ER yesterday because the middle stitch in my left palm came out. While I was there, I was told the spreading infection in my hand caused the stitch to pop. Since I didn't even know I had an infection, it was actually a stroke of luck that the stitch did come out.

The center of the palm of my hand has turned very dark purple, almost black, and the mound on flesh next to my thumb has turned bright red. And the damn thing hurts worse now than when it first happened.

Response to a comment about the blender....

kschlenker — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 18:15:23 -0600

In response to a question about how I could have cut myself on the blender blades, here are some pictures of the blender in question. (I took some painkillers, so forgive me if I wander a bit.)

The blender comes in three parts, the base, the blades, and the container. Unlike a traditional blender, there is no way to put anything in the blender if it is screwed together (there is also no way to use a spatula to get stuff stuck to the sides loose). The parts screw together, and the motor is not supposed to come on unless the blades are locked on the base. Unfortunately, there is no lock on the container to stop the blades and motor if the container is not attached.

When trying to remove both the container and the blades, only the container came off. This made a big mess, and may have been what caused the blender to come on when I tried to remove the blades. That is the only explanation I can come up with because I know I didn't touch the power button. I was lucky in that I was trying to avoid the blades when I was trying to unscrew the blades, or I could have gotten hurt much worse.

This is how the blender looks when it is screwed together:

This is how the blender looks when all the pieces are apart:

This is how the blender should come apart after blending something so nothing falls out:

Unfortunately, this is how it came apart after I tried to blend the tuna and mayo (due to the lap-band, everything has to be very small):

Because it came apart like this, tuna/mayo/gunk got everywhere, possibly even in the motor. And because I wasn't thinking and didn't unplug it before trying to remove the blades, the "up" blade chopped into my hand.

I hope this makes it more clear about what happened.

Blenderizing my hand....

kschlenker — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 12:48:19 -0600

This will be a very short entry. Last night my new blender malfunctioned and sliced open my hand. It started up without the power button being pushed. Then there was blood everywhere (which the dogs lapped up very happily---little carnivores that they are). It didn't really hurt at first, but I panicked from the blood spurts coming from my left hand. Then I called Ronald to come get me, and called Christine to calm me down. She did a good job, and calmed me down enough that I got it wrapped tight enough to stop the bleeding. (I bleed easily due to aspirin therapy and Plavix.)

The wound doesn't look like much. It is only just over an inch long. But it is over half an inch deep, and I could see my bones through the flesh. As the first panic wore off, I was even curious enough to look inside quickly and see fat globules under the layers of skin. I had to do it quickly, because the damn thing bled like crazy if I took the pressure off at all.

Now it is sutured up (though it still bleeds--doc said to keep it wrapped tight). This is what it looks like when kitchen appliances go bad:

The bandage is off for a couple of minutes because I picked a puppy up and she pissed on it....

The doctor had sort of a hard time suturing it because though it was like a razor had done it, it was curved. I also ended up with a tetanus booster and a shot of antibiotics (after all, the blades were covered in tunafish and mayo...)

Orange helping with the laundry....

kschlenker — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:34:11 -0600

Orange is helping me with the laundry in his own particular way. I guess he is pressing the sheets for me....

Puppies eating 11/17/07

kschlenker — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:31:32 -0600

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Puppies eating 11/11/17

kschlenker — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:28:09 -0600

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Puppies eating 11/11/17

kschlenker — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:26:03 -0600

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Diamond Girl 11/17/07

kschlenker — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:23:59 -0600

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Puppies day 8

kschlenker — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 05:57:53 -0500

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Horse pole barn

kschlenker — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 05:06:01 -0500

Ronald finished the deep (rather than long) horse pole barn, 24'x16', about 10' tall at the short end and 12' at the tall end. (It is tall enough to park the sailboats in, with their masts down, while they are still on their trailers.) All except the primary poles were purchased used (and there is still a great deal of the external metal siding remaining). I am not sure how much this would have cost us to build otherwise, but I figured this cost less than $250. And there are enough materials left over to build a carport and a good set of dog kennels, with the addition of some fencing and posts.

The two large beams on the ground will be raised up to the midline and be attachment points for pallets--which will be covered with plywood--and which will act as kickpanels for the inside. Eventually, the barn may be split into two stalls, but for right now, we needed something to get them through the winter.

The "extra" beam hanging off the side isn't--Ron is eventually going to extend the side so there is a place to leave the roll bales the horses are currently chomping on.

He built this barn very quickly, in somewhat less than two weeks, even though he works 70 hours per week. When he puts his mind to something, it always gets done. I wish I could do that.

Injury to Junior

kschlenker — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 22:18:16 -0500

For several days, we have been concerned over an injury to Junior's side. I thought at first it was a warble (Cutereba), but there was no singular lump in her side. It was a closed-over scabby wound at first, with a single circular external lesion. She would try to clean it off, but wasn't getting very far with it. With Ronald's help, I managed to clean enough gunk off of it to open it up, and then it drained.

When the skin moved, a great deal of tissue damage could be seen about half an inch behind the opening, as if the skin slid when she was injured. We set up a vet's appointment, but the cat took off and we had to wait a day to get her in. She is on the mend now that she is on antibiotics and had it cleaned out.

This is what the injury looks like today:

Closer up, it is easy to see that it is almost a perfect circle:

Since there are no other injuries (such as if she had been in a cat fight, etc.), I believe someone shot Junior with a pellet gun, and the pellet is still in the wound. It shouldn't hurt her to have it in there now that the infection has been cleaned out.

I wonder which one of my neighbors shot my cat.

Keeping pups inside in Parvo country

kschlenker — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 22:01:51 -0500

I lived south of Alvin for fifteen years. Some of those were pretty great years, and I really enjoyed raising my kids in the Alvin 4-H Club and in Top Dogs 4-H of Brazoria County. The Brazoria County Fair has got to be the best county fair anywhere in the world.

What I never enjoyed was living right on Highway 35. Not only did we lose some of our own animals to that road, but we often found abandoned puppies thrown out along that road. And the people dumping those pups never realized they were condemning all those puppies to death either by car--or by parvo.

Parvo lived in the soil on that place. There was no way around it. Every puppy we had that ever got outside prior to its' first shot died or nearly died of the disease. We only ever saved one of the dumped puppies from parvo, after paying a few hundred out of our own pockets for his treatment. Even Blaze, Alyssa's show border collie, after his shots, came down with it around five months of age. We almost lost him too.

Now I am paranoid about losing puppies to it. So I always keep them indoors until after their first shots. It is a huge chore cleaning up after them. But it is better than watching a beautiful little puppy die.

There is an added bonus to me; these puppies will always know exactly who I am, and they will be very socialized to humans. Someday they will make someone wonderful companions; they will be friendly, happy, and healthy.

Jasmine's puppies 10/30/07

kschlenker — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 21:14:30 -0500

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Four day old pups

kschlenker — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 14:15:27 -0500

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Pups from end to end....

kschlenker — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 05:30:15 -0500

A New Photo has been added to GrimesCountyHome.

Pile of pups

kschlenker — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 23:21:25 -0500

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Jasmine's pups

kschlenker — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 20:38:41 -0500

A New Photo has been added to OurDogs.

Kitchen renovation; sink in

kschlenker — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 03:05:49 -0500

Ronald got the sink in, and the veneer to the side of the pantry. He also trimmed the edge of the countertop, but hasn't applied the edging to it yet. The toe-kick area hasn't been applied due to problems with the vinyl flooring. We are trying to think of a way to cover up where they had split the flooring and then just covered it up with a molding. We might have to do the same.

We will be working on the upper cabinets later. I might paint the kitchen first. After getting the countertop in, I realized I really don't like the color of the walls in the kitchen. I am also going to look for some blinds or different curtains. The ones we have in there are from the old place in Alvin and they are pretty well worn out.

We bought these cabinets unfinished at the Huntsville Home Depot. While there, we looked at many cabinets, some with marble tops, etc. I looked at the prices of those items (some are over $12k) and thought there was no way we could afford to upgrade our kitchen. But by buying the unfinished oak veneer cabinets, we have kept the entire project (which also includes a cabinet on the other side next to the stove) around $900 so far. It should only cost about another $300-$400 to finish it, and part of the additional cost will be because we are removing the center panel of the upper cabinets and replacing it with wavy, translucent safety glass.

Kitchen renovations take some time....

kschlenker — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 01:50:02 -0500

Ronald set up the cabinets as they might be. I have watched many home improvement shows where all of the wood cabinets are painted white or some such. I think white cabinets suck big time. But that is probably because that is what was in the big double wide in Alvin---and they were pathetic. They were very flimsy, hard to keep clean, and some were impossible to utilize (especially the one right next to the stove--a huge cabinet area, but no way for me to reach back in there to get anything).

We bought these self-install and self-stain and varnish cabinets at Home Depot. My daughters helped me get them stained and varnished. The two upper cabinets are coming down (of course). They are actually the same kind of cabinets, but the idiots who installed them did not put veneer on the sides--they used horrible horrible house paint on them, and then slopped it on. On one cabinet, they actually painted a mud-dauber nest on to the cabinet. I will also be changing the curtains to wood or bamboo blinds.

Ronald has been busting his ass all day to get these in place. Though this picture shows them sort of in place, he pulled them all out to put in electrial circuits for my new disposal and for the dishwasher. He also had to fix the floor, since it was incorrectly installed.

Yup, that's 'pudding' all right!

kschlenker — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 22:43:32 -0500

I got a spam today where the subject line was "Flush 20 pounds from your colon!" It came from an email address attached to puddinggavel.com*......

it was a blank website with just an unsubscribe box. I would have thought it would be a bit more dramatic.....