What a day!

Today was not good. Let me start by giving a hopefully brief history/explaination of my house.

It was originally built in 1910, and about 7 years ago was gutted to the studs and redone on the inside. Now, the IDIOT that was contracted to do said redo is a local guy who I'd like to strangle, and he knows it. He fucked up this house! Anyway, nothing is straight, its like living in a freakin carnival Fun House. So needless to say his plumbing is NOT up to standard. First of all, around here everyone knows that the winds come straight out of the west-northwest. So why...WHY on earth would you a) put a bathroom on the northwest side of the house, and b) put the water pipes to said bathroom right against the foundation wall that is EXPOSED TO THE WINTER WINDS?????

That being said, beyond the draftiness of this house, every winter we have to put a heat fan and heat lamp in the basement against these pipes to keep them from freezing. We couldn't insulate them because again, the are right up against the rock wall. Ok, so we have these 2 heating elements in place, and go to bed for the night. We wake up this morning to find that the fan stopped working sometime in the night and the heat lamp just couldn't keep the pipes from freezing when it is -20F (including the 30mph winds coming straight out of the WEST!!!!) So needless to say the pipes to the sink and toilet were froze solid. Fixing the fan, and repositioning the heat lamp, we slowly begin to thaw the pipes. And of course, the pressure causes one to bust and spray water all over the basement. Probably 3 gallons worth by the time I ran from the upstairs down to the basement to get the water turned off. ugh

DH, after much thought and contemplation, decided we don't use that bathroom in the winter anyway (because the damn thing is always so freakin cold!) so he re-routed the pipes so the washing machine and kitchen sink would work, but the sink and toilet are incapacitated for the winter. We'll just deal with it in July when its warm enough to actually fix the problem. I swear, I have many choice words for that contractor. My father is a plumber, and as a child I went with him on more jobs than I can count. If pushed, I can plumb an entire house. I may not know codes, but I DO know you don't put pipes against a wall in the manner that this was done. I just can't believe the sheer ignorance. DUH!! Also, we have a room on the North side of the house that evidently wasn't insulated...or at least not very well. I usually keep the door to that room closed in the winter, only going back there to do laundry. Anyway, I went back to unplug some lights and noticed there was FROST on the fucking outlet!! Again, WTF??? So I came out here to the kitchen, and was sitting at the table contemplating this house when I felt a draft blowing up my back. I got to looking/feeling around and the cold air was coming out from under the door to that room. There is a 1 inch (or more) gap between the door and the floor, and the cold air coming out from there was unbelievable! So I stuffed a towel under that door, and got to feeling around the bathroom door...SAME ISSUE!! Again, towel under the door, but that didn't seem to stop all of the air. After crawling around on my hands and knees, I figured out that the drafts were also coming up from the spaces between the floorboards!! See, when my FIL sanded and put sealant on the floor, he didn't fill the cracks, so air blows right up through the floor. The discription makes it sound like I have these huge gaping ravines in my floor, but I don't. Its just a few spots where the wood planks have contracted and there was nothing put in place to compensate for this. So here I am, going along with clear caulk, filling in these gaps. I can definitely tell a difference, I just wish I'd figured this out earlier...like 5 years ago!! I can be such a dumbass. But at least I don't have cold air blowing across the floor, and the furnace has slowed down as well.

So, thats how my morning went. And to top it off, it seems I'm suffering from some sort of cabin fever, or seasonal depression that makes me a complete freak. I have no tolerance for people, I want to eat and sleep and just be left alone. After doing some reading its some sort of seasonal depression brought on by the cold and grey of winter. All the more reason to get my ass to Florida. Poor DH is suffering from my craziness....in more ways than just mental. I feel so bad but I can't seem to do anything about it right now. I'm just glad we are leaving soon and all this will stop.

Speaking of DH, he has left for OH for the next 2 days. So I have got some major tunes in the stereo cranked up, and am just trying to chill out. I had chips for supper, woohoo.

Last night we went to a wedding. First of all, call me crazy (we've already established that but go ahead) why on earth would you have a winter wedding? I can kinda understand the whole "oh the snow and ice are so pretty!"...personally, I think it sucks but whatever. Here is my major hang up....why in the hell would you have it 5 days before Christmas???? Don't you think that puts a burden on people who are already strapped financially for Christmas??? Now you want expensive gifts? And you want people to drive in this shitty ice and snow because you think its 'pretty'???? WTF??? We all froze our asses off!! ugh......sigh

Sooooo....On Thursday we have a gathering at my MIL's sister's place on Christmas Day, then DH and I go opposite directions to get our kids on Saturday. On Sunday is a gathering at my MIL's, and who knows at this point when the stepson will have to go home. His mom is a complete psycho (no exaggeration on that one)and doesn't even want him down here, so its always a fight. That puts us on Monday the 29th, and my son goes back on the 3rd, then DH and I leave for Rockford, IL on the 4th. I wouldn't stress so much but just to take my son back is a 10 hour drive round trip and in this weather, probably longer. I just hope there isn't another ice storm, he is so looking forward to coming! Oh, and on Friday the 26th we take the DH's rig back up to Jacksonville, IL. This run he is making will be the last.

So here are some of the songs I've got cranked on the stereo:

Nickleback: Figured you out
Buckcherry: Crazy Bitch
Staind: Believe
Hinder: Better Than Me
Nickleback: Far Away
Pink: So What
Duffy: Mercy
Nickleback: This is how You Remind Me
Saving Abel: Addicted
Natasha Bedingfield: Pocket Full of Sunshine
Kid Rock: All Summer Long
Jesse James Dupree: Rev It Up and Go Go
Shinedown: Simple Man
Nickleback: Rockstar
Flo. Rida: Low
Buckcherry: Sorry
Pink: U & Ur Hand
Staind: So Far Away
Nickleback: Saving Me

Can you tell I like Nickleback? LOL I made a CD with all of these on it (duh) and I wish it would play in the car. But...my Buick won't allow it. Seems some cars, regardless of make or model, just won't play burned CD's. My ex's Toyota truck is like that as well. Sucks.

Anyway, I'll leave you with a song that I play when I'm feeling just....well...the music helps, LOL.