2 A/C Units In 2 years! Not Happy!!!!

We moved into this house 6 years ago this past January - 2007. It was new, had just been built. We had an inspector come out and check everything. Said the A/C- Heating units were fine, even though they were not new. In 2011, we had to replace the downstairs unit; now we had to replace the upstairs unit. And then we found out from someone who was there that the builder KNEW these old units would not last long!

I have had to pray and pray to not let bitterness take root. The builder cut corners in several places while building and we been finding them out as the years go by. We know the builder, and I don't think I will feel very comfortable in his presence now. He is a Christian brother, and we are very disappointed. John's company has not had any new business for the past 6 months, and it really strapped us financially to have this 2nd unit installed today.

I am thankful that God is the supplier of our needs. Without the unexpected money that came in this month, we would have had to wait. We will just have to be very careful till the end of the month when John's retirement check comes in.

This whole thing has been an exercise in faith, and reminds me of the Bible verse "You can be sure your sins will find you out" (Numbers 32:23). I don't know why some people think that because it's business, biblical principles do not apply, especially the mandate "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" (Luke 6:31).

We are terribly disappointed with this experience. Some things are difficult to understand.

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

Quick Art Card (sort of), and a Story: Say "I DO!"

Yesterday I shared a postcard I had made as I search for a quicker way to have art postcards on hand for mailing. This one shown today I actually started first, and it took longer to make (I am learning which processes are quicker, yet still maintains quality). I think because the area I cut from the Tyvek collage was dark to begin with, this perhaps didn't turn out as well. But I still think it is nice enough to send!

(click for details)

 This was cut from a collage of paper, fabric and acrylic paint on Tyvek, the same as the one posted yesterday. I added the butterfly cutout, the strip of paper tape and the small label holder. The label holder is actually silvery in color. I also stitched on the card, and added Silver Leaf pen to the outside. Some doodling and other paint was added as well.

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Say "I Do!"

45th in the Tuesday Story Series

When we lived in Charleston, SC I kept myself pretty busy with an antiques business, doing family genealogical research, and I also directed several weddings. I remember all of the weddings I was part of, mostly fondly. Experience taught me that no matter how well you plan, something will go wrong. In fact, after awhile, I would start off telling the bride that privately, and then the wedding party itself at rehearsal. I would always remind the bride especially, that it won't matter - the main thing was that they would get married.  As long as they could keep that thought in their head and have a sense of humor, it would be all right!

The very first wedding I directed (and by the way, I was not a wedding planner, but a director, there is a difference!) was almost overwhelming. I had only been married a few months myself when the bride-to-be asked me to direct their wedding. I protested at first, saying I had never done anything like that but she and the groom thought I could do it because I had such great "leadership abilities" (her words). After thinking about it, I agreed to do it and started educating myself on just what my responsibilities would be.

It was in the hottest part of summer, and they were having a very formal, large wedding at night. There were eight bridesmaids and eight groomsmen, which gave me pause at first, but it all went well at rehearsal the night before. Then the night of the wedding, as the church started filling up, I started having butterflies which I tried not to show to the bridal party. As we neared the processional time, I stationed myself in the back of the church and went over everything in my mind once again.

The first step in the ceremony was the white "carpet". Two groomsmen took a roll of very gauzy white fabric and ceremoniously walked backward down the aisle, letting it out as they walked. The length of the fabric reached from the back of the church where the bridal party would come down the aisle, up to the alter. 

The church was full, and as I said, it was very hot weather. The air conditioning was really cranked down to handle the crowd so that everyone would be comfortable. As the musician paused to begin the processional, I realized in a panic there was a unforeseen problem - the white gauzy fabric "carpet" was reacting to the flow of air! It lifted in several places, wafted around a few inches over the floor, then folded in on itself. This was happening all up and down the aisle. I directed the two groomsmen to quickly go out and put it back in place - but it wouldn't stay! People at the end of the rows starting laying things on it in an effort to keep it lying down - keys, hymnbooks, purses. But that wouldn't work, because the fabric still shifted around them and still tried to float off. The bridal party was standing at the back waiting to proceed, and I had this big fear of everyone tripping and falling onto people in the seats. Finally, I whispered to them I was turning off the A/C till they got down the aisle, then I would turn it back on. It was a plan! So, off the A/C went and down the aisle they proceeded. 

As they arranged themselves at the front, they looked so beautiful standing in front of all of the candelabras placed there. Each standing candelabra had seven candles, and there were three on each side of the alter - twenty one candles. Twenty one sources of heat, in addition to all of the warm bodies, and other lights which were on, and the A/C wasn't running. 

I stood at the back, admiring how everything looked, and then I noticed one of the groomsmen (they were all in a full tuxedo) glaring at me. "What's wrong with him?" I wondered. Then I noticed people starting to fan themselves, and another groomsman wiping his brow. Suddenly it hit me that it was hot in there, and that I had forgotten to turn the A/C back on! As I switched it back into running, you could see the relief on everyone's face at the front. I felt so foolish, but hey, I had to have a sense of humor too, right?

And the white "carpet"? It stayed put, I think because of all the walking which had been done on it. The wedding party was able to return safely back down the aisle, and thankfully, we had a laugh about the situation afterward. But in future weddings, I successfully discouraged any ideas of using something like that white gauzy fabric again!

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

A Story: The Wagon And The Hero

I have spent the whole week recovering from a debilitating head cold and am finally at the end of it. So there is still no art, but I did do my bit for world peace and sent out 12 postcards this morning - going to Russia, USA, China, Brazil, and Holland. My hope is that my art will not languish much longer!

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The Wagon And The Hero

43rd in the Tuesday Story Series

One of my husband's least favorite things is to go shopping. And car shopping is probably dead last on that list. But sometimes you have to do what is necessary and be thankful that it is not something that has to be done frequently!

In 1988, we had purchased a used station wagon which soon became a driving headache. Among other issues, it leaked in three places around the windshield whenever we had a respectable amount of rain, one of the leaks in the driver's area. After trying in vain to seal the leaks, and deal with the other issues, we finally agreed to purchase a new car on sale. John did some research on cars and we put together a list of possibilities. We watched the ads in the newspaper and decided to spend the last day of the year making the rounds of the auto dealerships.

Dec 31, 1988 was a very rainy, cold and windy day in Charleston SC, and that didn't add to our mood as we started the day out early. After depositing our 5 year old daughter with a neighbor, we began our hunt. We visited several car dealers, made several test drives and had narrowed it down to a couple of choices. The last place we visited was a Nissan dealership. They had a 1988 Nissan Stanza wagon marked down on sale with several thousand dollars off the listed price. We took it for a test drive, and really liked it. After we got back to the dealership, we talked it over, then told the salesman that we wanted to purchase it.

By then it was late in the day, and getting dark early because of the weather. We were tired and weary, but John was vigilant as began the process of purchasing the car with all the paperwork involved. We had been escorted to the typical small, windowless office (really not more than the size of a closet) and then Mickey-the-salesman began playing the game that car salesmen often do, finding reasons to leave the room to make us think he was trying to get a better deal for us. He kept saying things like "let me ask my manager about that - I think I can reduce the price" or "I'll go check about the percentage", or "You're such a great couple, let me see if I can get a lower rate for ______" and then he'd go out in the lobby for a smoke. Yes, I know that's what he was doing! And then of course, he'd come back and assure us that he was trying to get a better deal.

These types of actions were one of the main reasons John hated to buy a car. He doesn't like to argue, he doesn't like stalling and he doesn't like it when someone isn't being upfront about something. He was trying to be patient as we sat there, very weary, with a haze of cigarette smoke hanging in the air. But Micky-the-salesman went one step too far when he came back in after the umpteenth time, sat down behind the little desk and said rather hesitantly "I ..., um, I just found out that the car doesn't have air conditioning. Do you think you need air conditioning?" 

John looked at him for a split second, then rising from his chair he stormed "Do we need air conditioning?!? DO WE NEED AIR CONDITIONING?!?!?! IF THIS WERE ALASKA WOULD YOU ASK US IF WE NEEDED HEATING???" and turned to me and said "Let's go!"

Now my husband had always been an even tempered man, and during the 7 years we had been married, I had very rarely ever seen him lose his temper, and even then it was hardly an outburst. But this so stunned me and Mickey-the-salesman both that we just sat there for a minute, not moving, Mickey's mouth hanging open. John stood in front of me and said firmly "Let's go, honey." and I rose from my chair and followed him out.

When we reached the showroom, it became apparent that John's outburst had been heard by most of the staff still on the clock that New Year's Eve. We marched straight out the door into the rain, and I was still trying to adjust to what just happened. We hadn't gone more than a couple of feet when we heard behind us, 

"Mr. Cook! Mr Cook! Wait! Please come back, we can straighten this out! Please, Mr. Cook!"

 John had opened the umbrella and we turned as he raised it over our heads. There stood the manager of the dealership at the door, and we noticed that most of the salesmen were behind him, visible through the glass. John said "I'm not going to be jerked around like that!" More apologies from the manager, and after hesitating a moment, John said "Okay, we'll see what you have to say" and we returned to the showroom.

To make a long story short, we received the installation of the A/C at cost (we checked to make sure that part was true - it was), and another discount off of the price. We drove home the blue Stanza wagon and it served us for many years; our then 5 year old daughter later drove it when she was in high school. But the best part of the night was the affirmation that I had married a fair man who would not be pushed around. He was my hero! 

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

Tag Tuesday - Flower Pot; and a Story: Song of The Air Conditioner

Tag Tuesday theme is a Flower Pot.

(click for details)

For details on how I made this, or to join in on the challenge, please go to 

Blog Challenge Garden. 

AND we are trying to start a Facebook Page, so go check it out and "like" us and tell your artist friends so that they can join the tag making fun!

Song Of The Air Conditioner

32nd in the Tuesday Story Series

The last few mornings it has been cool enough to have the windows open first thing because the evening temperatures have been down into the low 60's. My studio is on the third floor of our home, actually, it's the only room at that level, so I don't really know if it qualifies as a whole floor! It has one window and I love to be able to open it because I can create art with birdsong and breezes as my accompaniment. On the ground below, the air conditioning units sit directly beneath my window, so when the units start singing, that's my cue to shut the window for the day. 

This morning as it started "singing", I reflected on how different life has been for many because of the invention of a way to cool air. Actually, that idea has been around since at least Roman times, when certain wealthy individuals would have water from an aqueduct circulating through the walls of their homes to cool them. The big difference with modern day air conditioning is that it takes the humidity out of the air and in my part of the country, that is a huge difference!

Growing up in the 50's and 60's, we had no air conditioning in our house, nor in most of the houses of people I knew. At night in the hot and humid air of summer, we used box fans in the windows to give us relief and to be able to sleep. Attic fans were in many homes, which, when turned on, would pull air through the house and create some comfort in the stifling heat. They were often loud and noisy as well! When I was in high school, many stores would attract customers by installing A/C and then putting a sign on their doors much like this one:

Automobiles didn't come equipped with air conditioning until the late 50's and it was not until 1968 that all cars produced in the US had A/C as an option. People sat on their porches in the south because in the early evening it was usually cooler outside than inside. 

As this marvel became more and more common in construction and industry, the entire United States showed a population shift from the 1950's through today. Las Vegas was nothing more than a crossroads and a few buildings, Florida had no sports teams and a dwindling population. Census records show that since the 1970's the American South and West made huge population increases and large gains in economic growth. 

I don't know if my grandparents would consider us "soft" now, but it has been proven that it's actually healthier for an older person to be in out of the heat with air conditioned, cooler air. My parents did not have A/C installed in their home until they were in their late 60's. Until then, staying overnight at my parent's home when we came to visit was not something we looked forward to in the summer! My father's health was failing and they began to see that it may be a good thing after all. All of their children and their children's families were very grateful and it made for a more pleasant visit with small children in tow.

So I lift a toast to Willis Carrier, who invented the air conditioner in 1902, in Buffalo New York of all places! I am doubly grateful for the blessing of air conditioning since I have had this chronic illness the past three years. So, while I prefer to hear birdsong while doing art, in the summer I am grateful for the song of the air conditioner!