Refrigerator Conks Out!

The new refrigerator. By the way, this price was only available for the floor model. I would have to take this refrigerator with me today which was impossible. What? Carry it out on my back? And how would I get it in my house? It's a bargain for somebody but not for me today. But this is the model that I ordered that will be delivered next Wednesday, August 27th, 2025. Bill would like it!

 I noticed it a couple days ago.

I went to get a swipe of cold bottled water from my twenty year old GE Profile refrigerator. As I put the plastic Deer Park bottle to my lips, anticipating the stimulant of cold water entering my mouth, the water was .....almost room temperature! Oh uh! 

Don't tell me! Is my GE Profile refrigerator, which has faithfully served me and Bill for these past twenty-five years finally going to buy the ranch? I'm afraid so folks.

I pulled out the refrigerator this morning and vacuumed all the dust out fo the back. Thinking that would help. It didn't. I read that perhaps I should clean the coils. I don't know how to get to the coils and I'm not going to start taking my refrigerator apart because I don't know what I'm doing. 

What to do?

You know what folks? It's time for a new refrigerator! I noticed that both of my neighbors, on either side of me, whose animals I watch, walk and feed when they are otherwise occupied, have nice, big, modern refrigerators. Both have the freezer compartment on the bottom which I find much more convenient plus I believe more efficient than the side by side that I have now. Also, my water dispenser hasn't worked for years, that's why I have bottled water. By the way, I can't drink the tap water here in Slower Lower, it has so much chlorine in it, that it tastes like swimming pool water. 

My old refrigerator Sept. 19, 2019
That's Bill on his ladder doing something with the ambient lights

So I checked Home Depot's website this morning. Viola! They have a sale going on. Super! I can save over one thousand dollars to buy one of their models that they are discontinuing. Even though that model is being discontinued, it's perfect for me. There is only me in this house, I don't need one of those floor to ceiling, walk in refrigerators like Pat's friend Paul and Deb have. I just need a refrigerator to keep my left overs cold, keep my bottled water cold, provide ice (which my old refrigerator has continued to do thank goodness even though the water dispenser ceased to work years ago). I have another refrigerator (smaller one) and freezer chest in my basement, next to Bill's bedroom. That was originally intended for his ice cream and my freezer overflow because the freezer on the GE Profile that I have now isn't big enough. This new refrigerator which is a Whirlpool, has plenty of bottom freezer space and easy access. 

My new refrigerator will be delivered next Wednesday, August 27, 2025. Probably no nap for me that day. Hopefully this all goes smoothly. And no, I didn't get the extended warranty which would cost $270.00. Just the standard one year warranty guaranteed by the manufacturer. 

If my refrigerator was going to go out, this was good timing. I have extra money from what I expected to pay for my school/real estate taxes. This is perfect for me because when I come into an unexpected windfall of money, I like to buy something useful with that unexpected cash flow otherwise that money would just blend in with the rest of my household expenses. New every time I use my new refrigerator I will be reminded of my good fortune this year. 

Each day is a challenge folks. I do believe Bill's guardian angel is watching over me and helping me navigate what is left of my life. I truly do.

A World Of Wednesdays August 20, 2025

 

What's On Top Of My Mind

My increasingly limited physical ability. I think my eighty-three years of age is finally catching up with me. I find at about ten o'clock or so, my physical energy quickly ebbs. Gone are the days when I could work non stop. These days, especially since I ended my care giving days about a year and a half ago, I find I  quickly run out of energy. So much so that I have to head for bed lest I collapse on the floor. I'm still freaked out about how I passed out in the Walmart parking lot last June when Pat and Glenn were visiting me. I pushed myself to the limit then and see what happened? I conked out and didn't even know it. Next thing I knew I was looking at the clouds in the sky above me after I passed out and landed on my back. I obviously crumpled like a cheap suit. These days when I feel myself getting weak, I stop doing whatever I'm doing (including typing this blog) and head directly for my bed in the Tipton Cinema. I was lucky last year that Pat and Glenn were with me when I hit the ground like a sack of potatoes (my Mother's term for whenever she passed out which was several times when she was in her eighties). 

Where I'm Going

You got it, the Restore Thrift Store again tomorrow. At least once a week I have to go and see what new treasurers await me. I also have to stop at my local Ace Hardware to checkout their handyman service. Gives me another excuse to see that guy who works there that I've developed a crush on. He's seventy-five years old. Just a young guy. Nothing serious but I do like him. I'm still getting married to Pat. He's my honey.

What I'm Eating

I was going awhile with my homemade hamburger/cabbage soup but I've made it too many times. My taste for it is gone. I'm finding in my old age I'm losing the taste for a lot of my formerly favorite foods. I'm back to Progresso Tuscan Bean soup for lunch. For dinner I've been eating frozen chicken fingers (baked in my air fryer), Portuguese roll, French Fries and corn on the cob. I tend to eat the same food until I get tired of it. My tomato plants will soon become a crop of sweet grape tomatoes at which time I will make pasta salad. Always a favorite. I don't eat much in volume these days but interestingly enough, my weight stays the same. That little pot I have is going to stay with me to the end.

Who Needs A Good Slap

Trump. He needs a punch right in the face. I'm sick of him and this cowardly Republican enablers. Never in my lifetime did I ever imagine that what Trump is trying to do in this country would be even possible. The Republicans in Congress are absolutely failing in their oath to protect the Constitution and don't even get me started on the Supreme Court.

Who Gets A Fist Bump

The State of Delaware for their reassessment of school and property taxes. My tax bill is now two thirds less that it was last year. The inequity of the tax assessments here in Delaware, especially all those million dollar properties in Rehoboth Beach who were hardly paying any taxes while we new retirees who moved to Delaware to escape the taxes from the adjoining states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York were paying three of four times what they were paying. Never in my lifetime did I ever expect to see taxes lowered for a segment of the population but believe me, this was long overdue. Now to hear the squeals of complaints from those who could afford to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for a two and three digit Delaware license plates but complain about paying their proper share of the school and real estate taxes. 

What I'm Planning

Pat finally received Bill's death certificate today. His next interview at the American Consulate in Montreal is September 4th. I feel confident that he will get their approval for our marriage. Now it's time to make those marriage plans. Here's something else I never imagined, that not only would I get married once in my life time as a gay man but TWICE. I am so looking forward to joining my Patrick in marriage.

What's Making Me Smile

California Governor Gavin Newsome's social media postings mimicking Trump's childish social media postings. The Fox propagandists are having a meltdown over it. I love it! 

Big Costly Mistake

Ever have on of those ideas that you thought was just right?  An idea that is costly but you're willing to plunge right in because  you're convinced that it is the perfect solution? Sure you have. 

Here is my latest Big Costly Mistake. God, I hope this is the last one I have. I wasn't going to post about it because it is just to painful but being the kind of guy I am who writes about (almost) everything, here I am telling my Tale of Woe.

In our sun room and living room I have a wall of seven windows. I paid to have extra windows installed because I LOVE a lot of light. Also, our property is situated that we can see the sunset from those windows. But as with all grand ideas, there is a downside. During the late afternoon, when the sun comes through those seven windows, the sun glare is brutal. 

About eight years ago I bought wooden Casablanca style blinds. Bill installed them. It was expensive and time consuming to install them but it was necessary because of that brutal late afternoon sun glare.

We've been handling that late afternoon sun glare but closing the blinds. But then when those blinds are closed, I get claustrophobic. I hate that closed in feeling. Bill doesn't mind but I do.

For a number of years I've been looking for a solution.  And then this year I thought I found it.

While staying at Pat's new condo in Hamilton, Ontario, he had see through roll down screen installed on his wall of windows. 




I thought "How cool is that?"  Then last month when visiting my neighbor Marty, who has the excact same house that Bill and I have, she showed me her same roll down screen to block out that afternoon sun. She had the screens installed outside her windows. Note this important distinction.

After seeing her windows with the sun glare screen protection I thought "I now have the solution!"  Bill caution me not to do it. But being the bullhead I am I called our local window man (who is very good by the way) to arrange to have those sun glare protection screens installed.

He came two weeks ago and took measurements. He advised to have them installed on the inside because of the weather element. I agreed.

I made a down payment of $500.  He ordered the screen and came back this week to install them.  As he was removing the wooden blinds I said "Aren't you leaving them up?" He looked surprised and said "You want them too?  I can do that but they will stick out."  So I made an Executive Decision and said "No, let's just go with the screens."  

Fast forward about three hours later (as the video at the top of this post shows), he finished. He did a wonderful job.  Our living area was now transformed. It was more open and definitely different.  Since Bill was against this idea all along, he was downstairs in his bedroom during the hours long installation process.  

I paid the balance of the bill ($550).  My screen installed (no names, I hope he doesn't read this blog post) gathered up his things and left. He had already neatly packed up our blinds. He said he could "dispose" of them or I could. I suggested that I would give them to a thrift store.

After he left Bill came up to view the finished job. He didn't like it. I didn't like it.  The whole character of our living space was changed and not for the better.  Oh sure, we had a more "open" look and definitely could see our backyard landscaping and beyond much better but he cozy ambiance we had before was now GONE.  Gone, gone, gone.

I had that sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that I just threw away a LOT of money for nothing. How could I be so stupid?  

I'm thinking to myself "Maybe I'll get used to this."  Buy in my heart I knew I wasn't ever going to get used to the new window treatments. With that Wall of Windows now open all the time I felt totally exposed.  Maybe those screen shades work in a minimalist modern condo unit like Pat lives in but Bill and I live in a more traditional house. 




The more I thought about it the more I realized that blinds have much more flexibility than these roll down screens.  

The first day I rolled the screens now. Oh sure, they block out the harsh sun glare rays and I could now see out instead of looking at the wooden slates of our previous window covering.  But to me looking out through those screens I felt like I was looking through a fly's eyes.

 
Nope, wasn't working for me.

It took me about a day to admit to myself that the new window coverings weren't working.  Something Bill new from the first minutes he saw the windows.

I told Bill that I would have them changed back and I would donate the roll down screens to our local Habitat for Humanity thrift store. He told me he would change them, after all it was he who put the blinds up originally.

Now I have a new appreciation for our wonderful Casablanca mood setting blinds. And I am glad I don't have to store these screens that I will never use and at least they will go in a home and be put to use. But I am still having a hard time reconciling the money that I put out for something that was totally unnecessary.

Last week I turned 76 years old. Like many of you (and you know - smile - who you are) I have made many mistakes in my life. Life decisions as well as monetary decisions, most of which I choose to forget, because the memories are just too painful.

Every time I make one of those mistakes I say to myself "Ron, don't EVER make that mistake again!"  Then I think, at what age will I stop making these mistakes?  Well, I've come to the conclusion that as long as I'm alive I'll make mistakes, hopefully not the same mistake. But as the old adage says "You live and learn."  I just wish some of my mistakes weren't so costly.  

Just for the heck of it, I brought four lottery tickets on Thursday. Two for the Powerball and two scratch off tickets. Maybe I could win some money to offset my stupid decisions.  The Powerball was 90 million.  I didn't win that one (of course, I never do).  But guess what?  I won on BOTH of my scratch off tickets!  $5.00 on one and $20 on the other tickets.  Hey, it's a start. Only $1,025 to go.

Mega Millions!

Hey folks!  I just bought my Mega Millions lottery tickets this morning.  I never in my life bought a Mega Millions lottery ticket.  This is my first and guess what?  I'm going to win!  Check it out folks!

I'm gonna be rich!

Mega Millions

Somebody won.  I heard the winning ticket was sold in Maryland.  That's not real far away from where I live on the east coast of the Delmarva peninsula.  Close enough.

I heard the jackpot was $640,000, over a half a billion dollars. After taxes (ya 'all know the state and federal government have to get their it too don't you?), the winner (or winners) still will take home a chunk of cash.

So now we await to see if the winner is some 85 year old man or a group of factory workers who chipped in together and brought 35 ticket.  BORING.  We won't hear from the winners for at least a week during which time they will try to hide the fact who they are so they won't be besieged by previously unknown long lost relatives, financial "experts", and other assorted scam artists working feverishly to try and part the lottery winners with their new found riches.  One thing is for sure, if and when we find out who the winners are we will be profoundly disappointed because the only winner that would make us happy is if we won the damn thing ourselves.

Now admit it, you didn't really want to win anyway?  Did you?  Just think of what would happen if you did win.  Would it bring you happiness? Oh sure, I've heard the argument that "money can't buy me happiness but I sure as hell will give it a try."

I used to play the lottery all the time.  I played Powerball.  I brought three tickets on Wednesday and three on Saturday.  I did that for about six years from 2005 until last Christmas, six dollars a week for six years, $312 a year, $1.872 for six years.  The most I ever won was $7.00.  A few time I had the Powerball and twice I had the Powerball and two numbers.  Big whoop.

My lottery tickets over the years.  Each one is three dollars, some more.
Total winnings.....$24.00.

Why did I play?  I wanted to pay my mortgage off.  I wanted to have a lot of money so I could be Mr. Big. I wanted to travel the world.  I wanted to be Mr. Big.  Guess what?  It doesn't matter diddley squat.

First of all I was fortunate in that through an inheritance I was able to pay my mortgage off.  Thus I wasn't faced with having to work until I was 95 years old just to keep pace with inflation and paying my mortgage.  Big burden off of Ron's shoulders!

Now why did I want to win?  Really, why?  I couldn't come up with a good reason.  Have more friends?  Really?  The type of "friends" that I would make by coming into an obscene amount of money is not the type of friends anyone would want to have.  Seriously, you wouldn't want to have THAT kind of friend.  Believe me, I know.  Back in my prime when I was doing all right money wise I had THAT kind of friend.  When the money leaves, they leave.    Even when you have the money, they aren't the kind of friend you want because they take, take, and take and have no respect for you anyway so what is the point?  I learned the hard way believe you me.

If I won what would I do with all that money? Travel the world?  Sure, I would like to visit England, my ancestral homeland.  I would love to take a cruise around the world.  Only one problem, I can do that now if I wanted to.  I have enough money left over from my inheritance to travel.  I would clean out what little savings I had left but I could do it.  Then I would be living month to month again.

I choose not to except for our annual Trip Down South (which is coming up).  The rest I keep for my old age because some day I will probably be alone in this world (Bill is thirteen years older than me) and no one is going to take care of my except myself.  I've been to the Financial Abyss more than a few times in my life and I had no desire to visit that Cliff to Doom again.

Give the money to charity?  Perhaps, but it would be a charitable cause of my own choice.  Like say perhaps a No Kill Animal Shelter.  I could give money to friends who are in dire need.  I would love to do that but I'm afraid I wouldn't have enough for all the new friends I would descend upon me.  If I had all the money in the world it wouldn't be enough to solve the problems of the world.  There is only one Bill Gates and he isn't me.

I look around me and I think "I have everything I want now, why do I want more?"  I have a home that is just right for me (NO MORTGAGE!), a loving and caring spouse, all the toys I could possibly want (I'm not a big Toy person but I do like my Apple toys), and I have a wonderful job working with some really nice people.  If I could have anything I would like to restart my life back twenty years to when I was fifty years old.  Of course that is with the qualification I have what I have now and know what I know now.

However, that isn't going to happen.  I am approaching Serious Old Age now.  Every day is precious.  I don't want my remaining years on this planet to be stressed out by any demands which undoubtedly would happen if I won't a half a billion dollars (do you think?)

Oh yes, I am very happy with my lot in life right now.  I may live another twenty years or maybe just a few months or maybe some crazy Pennsylvania driver could kill me tomorrow on Route 1 on my way to Walmart.  One never knows does one?  So I treasure each day that I get up in the morning and thank God (or whoever) for giving me one more day on this earth in a body that still works relatively well and a brain that still functions (most of the time anyway).

I wish nothing but the best to whomever or whoever won the Mega Millions jackpot.  I'm just happy I got off of that fantasy trip to nowhere.  I'm saving my money.  I need it.