Mortgage Monday: An Extra Day To Assess

Well, our next mortgage payment was delayed by an extra day as we have a bonus 24 hours this month. While usually not something to write about the warm weather lately has made this extra time particularly enjoyable especially with nearly all of the remaining snow melting in the spring like air. As the white lines have receded I have been noticing the work that has yet to be done on the property as well as the yard chores that I failed to complete before the bitterness of the winter season took hold.

Walking around the driveway I can see that the retaining wall is a little more deteriorated than I originally realized but it is still holding back the earth. Thankfully, we have some time before the rotting railroad ties are going to have to be replaced. Good thing I know a stone mason living next door. Of course, the leaves wedged against the base of the wall are not helping the situation. As soon as the weather turns toward the regularity of spring I am going to have to do some significant clearing.

That clearing doesn’t just apply to the base of the wall as the flower beds and much of the lawn still has a health covering of foliage. While we already have a rake I am going to have to pick up the lawnmower attachment and switch out the snow blower. With all these things that need to be done in the near future I kind of wish that we could put this extra day in the bank and use it for when we need it especially if we could do so to extend a weekend.

However, some of the good things that I have definitely noticed during this extra time is that even with all the snow piled by the wind against the house, the basement has remained dry. Noisy with the boiler switching on and off all day and night by dry nevertheless. With that said, there are a few spots that also need to be addressed on the subterranean level as the sealant is showing signs of age in spots and a fresh coating should be applied before the monsoons of spring.

There are always projects that will need to be done… we accepted this fact when we decided to become home owners and at least there are many items that aren’t dire and that can wait a little while for when we have the time. Heck, they are probably going to be taken care of when we have all the optional work done on the house. Now that list is one that is growing much faster than that of the mandatory fixes.

I Guess Sometimes I Need Four Hours Of Sleep

I was up late Sunday night trying to take care of a few things that had to be done first thing Monday morning. I stayed at my laptop until the last item was entered. Unfortunately, sometimes my determination gets the best of me and I just lose track of time altogether. Because of that, I didn’t crawl into bed until about three in the morning. With my alarm set for seven the week was already off to a rough start.

Having had my eyes shut for only four hours, my alarm was not a welcomed sound. As I rolled out of bed and began my morning routine, it was not looking too good. After a not so relaxing weekend, I had a bit of dread heading into the office on Monday morning. Even the drive to the office, while smooth and with minimal traffic, I was tired and the highway seemed to go on forever.

I walked into the office like I do every day, got to my desk, and set up everything I needed out for the day. Before sitting down at the computer I headed over to the kitchen, made a big cup of coffee, and began going over the client checklist of all the things that needed to get done by the time I headed home for the night (all the things I wasn’t able to get to the night before). This really wasn’t going to be a good day.

It was time to head to my fate so I planted my rear in my chair, poised my fingers above the keys, and waited for the blank thoughts to flood my mind. It was at this time that things, for some strange reason, just seemed to click. Sometimes I just have one of those writing days when everything seems to come into place.

Before I knew it the paragraphs were forming on the page and, what was even better, they seemed to make sense. Within a matter of a couple of hours I was pages into a project and was still going strong. With a handful of projects filed away and emailed, I had gotten more done during the morning than I had expected to get done the entire day.

It was at this point that the creative wall tattooed me across the forehead and left me with a massive headache. Thanks to a productive morning, I was able to keep the severe pounding at bay with Motrin and a number of small items that I could fill in between the eye rubbing and temple massaging. It turned into a long day, as expected, but it was hugely productive, which was a pleasant surprise. You really never know when those creative streaks will hit but I am really glad when they do.