That Darn Alarm Clock

I never bothered with an alarm with Miss Daisy alive.  She was my alarm.  She wanted me up, and made sure it happened, so she could get her morning cat treats.

Now that she's gone, I must rely on conventional waker uppers, like my battery powered alarm.  I set it for 5:30 a.m., as there is trapping to be done this morning, and wake up, see my clock says 6:30, curse the clock did not ring, get up, begin the chores of litter box cleaning, water dish filling after setting my teapot on the stove to boil water for coffee.

Then I spy another clock I have, also battery powered, in the kitchen and the real time is 3:00 a.m.  I've already done the chores and am drinking a cup of coffee in preparation even though I thought I was an hour late waking.   Ah shoot.  The alarm clock isn't even running.  Battery needs changed.

Ah well, back to bed in a moment and I can sleep later since all the chores are done.

I have battery powered clocks because there have been constant power glitches here since I moved in, with the power going off for a few seconds then coming back on and I got tired of resetting the clocks.   Lately the power company has been here sometimes all day, four big trucks or more, crowding the block, to replace some lines and a transformer.  Maybe it will be reliable now.

My clothes dryer has been broken for ten days now.  I took it apart when it began a horrible scraping sound and became very hot.   Once again a front glider bracket is nearly worn through and half broken.  This is because I overload the dryer.  The glider brackets attach at the bottom of the front piece of the dryer, one on each side, pads on each, around which the drum rotates.  I had to replace a bracket and the felt seal a few years back.

At first I was going to order parts online but then I dallied and went to a repair shop with the front piece that has the damaged felt seal and broken bracket and asked what it would cost to be repaired there.  The price was very large, over $120 for parts and an hour labor and I thought that is more than a used dryer would cost off craigslist, which is where my washer came from, for $100 and has worked fine for years.

So finally then, I ordered the two parts online.  And three days later they came but the cement for the felt seal wasn't included although I had paid for the cement.  I called them up and the rep said it was back ordered and it would be five to seven days before it could arrive.  I cancelled the cement order and ended up finally at Home Depot comparing glues until I found one that would tolerate both high heat and moisture.

I spent a lot of time removing the old felt seal and glue, dousing it in rubbing alcohol to soak, then scraping the old off with the end of a screw driver.   Finally last night I glued on the new felt.  Now it needs to dry 24 hours, then I'll add the new bracket and put the dryer back together.

Takes clothes awhile to dry hanging up but not that long, a couple of days for most, three for jeans, but the cat bedding takes too long so that is why I want it fixed.  Otherwise, I see I could easily live without a dryer and I'll use it far less now, knowing how long it takes to hang dry different items after the last ten days.

We have had clear days here lately but it is cold nights, below freezing but not that cold.  And I prefer the cold to the rain.

I took Cheetah and Wren to their new home yesterday and I miss them already.  The new home is with a dedicated cat lady with a very interesting creative house.  I like it.   Copper won't be leaving for another week because his new owner stated she has difficulty applying eye meds so could I keep him til he is through the course of those meds and I said "yes I can".

I feed the Waterloo boys every other day still and also the farm colony cats every other day.  They come running when they see me.  These are two of the tamest of them.