-t, I'm glad your mom's condition/prognosis is so good! That's a relief.

Also big homeowner YAY for Hec and Emmett! Very exciting!

askye, wrangling aging parents and trying to respect their autonomy while wanting them to be in the safest living situation is SUPER frustrating, and I definitely sympathize.

I'm getting all my ducks in a row for surgery on Monday. Since they go in through the front of the neck, it's super common to have a very sore throat for a while afterwards, so I have a grocery list of soft foods. And thanks to our country's total breakdown of food safety standards, that list of soft foods includes "popsicles (without glass)."

I saw my OB/GYN yesterday about menopause madness, and she was great. I'm going to start HRT about 2 weeks after surgery -- estradiol patch and progesterone pill since I still have a uterus. And they drew blood to check my testosterone level, so that might get added as well. I am so goddamn excited to get these hot flashes under control. (Also heart health, bone strength, improvement in mood, etc. But mostly these fucking hot flashes.)

Here's the place again: [link]

I will be painting the front at some point, and I'm not a fan of techboy gray in general.

But as you can see the interior with all its original woodwork is beautiful.

Now I'm in the flurry of texts and emails with the escrow officer and my finance people to get a deposit in the escrow account immediately.

I'm making a cash buy with a Securities Backed Loan, then refinancing immediately with a traditional mortgage.

So between the rent I'm getting from the downstairs tenants, the increased amount Emmett and Kalena can pay, Emmett's trust that I set up when we first got money, and the money I'm already using to support him, my monthly payments won't really go up.

But of course I'll have taken on a 30 year mortgage and there will be maintenance and property taxes (which are stiff in SF).

Finish the garage? The yard?

That’s super frustrating, askye.

That sounds like a really good arrangement, Hec, I’m so glad you were able to make it work! What a gorgeous place. And how great for Emmet and Karina to have a stable housing situation that they can afford that’s so nice!

Go Tep! Just say no to glass in popsicles. My sister was *thrilled* with how much hormones helped with her hot flashes, I hope you have an equally good outcome (after your back surgery is completely successful and recovery is going swimmingly, of course)

Dad is vacuuming so mom can come home to nice clean floors. Visiting hours have started but we are assuming that mom will be evaluated and whatnot for maybe a lot of this morning so we are not in a hurry to get over there and be underfoot. I am kind of antsy to get going but trying to be rational about it

Good luck with the surgery and the HRT, Teppy.

HRT wasn't an option for me, just like hormone-based birth control, painkillers, and apparently a whole bunch of medications. Stupid body just doesn't react well, which makes me super hesitant to take any meds.

Hec, it's so gorgeous - congrats all around! Can't wait to see the "making it their own" photos, which I am very presumptuously assuming we will be privy to.

Tep -- all the surgery ~ma. Monday! Wow, that came up fast.

-t, continued take it easy, phew, and smooth recovery vibes to your mom. Yeah, T-shirt and jeans definitely extend to two days. Even in non-emergency situations!

askye, it is a tough row to hoe, aging parents, and everything you feel is legit, which I'm sure you understand, but is still nice to hear sometimes. Sending good vibes your way.

I was not able to consider HRT because the reason I went into menopause (early!) was hysterectomy due to uterine cancer. BUT I was extremely lucky with a barely noticeable transition. My mom had a really easy menopause, too, so it had to be in the genes. Nice inheritance, that.

Going to spend the weekend with my aunt at the beach this weekend. I hope I age as gracefully as she has. Getting my ass to yoga, the pool, and Fit for Life classes at the Y would surely help with that. Ahem.

Hec, it's so gorgeous - congrats all around! Can't wait to see the "making it their own" photos, which I am very presumptuously assuming we will be privy to.

Yeah, those photos are all staged so their stuff will be very different.

Just got off a conference call between the Escrow officer and my finance person to line up the wire transfer for the deposit into Escrow.

It's a non-stop flurry! And I've got a guest coming in this weekend for a 6 day stay.

So here's a wild thing that Jilli especially will appreciate.

My friend and pilates instructor, Rachael, was offered a free reformer (the equipment you use for Pilates. Pretty expensive.). She had no room for it but offered it to me so I accepted and cleaned out space in the attic for it.

Rachael and I went over to pick it up yesterday and she introduced me to Ted, who had the reformer disassembled.

We got the pieces into the car and driving back to my house, Rachael said, "I've known Ted since I was 16. He's best friends with my partner - they met in art school. I was so overwhelmed when I met him because he's a pretty famous cartoonist."

"What's his full name?"

"Ted Naifeh": [link]

Dad’s trainer/handyman said he could patch the hole, Mom said she wants it framed or with a plaque or something, so y’all are vindicated in those suggestions!

Dad’s trainer/handyman said he could patch the hole, Mom said she wants it framed or with a plaque or something, so y’all are vindicated in those suggestions!

Ha! Maybe the picture of Jack Nicholson's breaking his head through the wall in The Shining and saying "Here's, Johnny!"