Thursday Thirteen ~ 13 things I'm whining about

Thirteen Things about Pauline 13 things I'm whining about Break out the cheese, I'm about to whine! My weight – since getting the grandkids 2.5 yrs ago – I have gained 35 lbs. Yikes!!!! – but, the doctor wanted me to gain at least 10 – and I’m pretty healthy and still weigh less than most Maine women in their 50s lol No privacy at home – since getting the grandkids, I can’t even go to the bathroom in peace… but, before they came I was incredibly lonesome with The Captain gone to sea so much. My job – my job used to be my haven, things have changed so much it gets really tense… but, I still get treated well, good pay (better than most women in Maine lol – by about $6more an hour), help with insurance premiums, paid holidays and vacations, great co-workers. The price of gas!!! It costs me about $60 a week to get to and from work. My car is a gas hog - … but, it is 4-wheel drive and gets me up my steep driveway in the Maine winters. I miss my family – I have a son who lives on the west coast, a son and sister who lives in Arizona, a daughter and sister who live in Minnesota and I don’t get to see them very often – not even once a year sob, sob, sob. …. But, I have unlimited long distance phone service and yahoo for the internet email. My car is old – no air bags, no cd player and I drive for over a half hour each way to work and would love to listen to different programs on cd since they don’t make them on cassette tapes anymore boo hoo …. But, I do have a lot of tapes and my car gets me safely to and from work and I don’t have any car payments. My dog doesn’t want to travel with me anymore – I have to practically force her to get in the car – she’s getting older (and perhaps wiser – and doesn’t like my driving – see a previous post)… but she has been a faithful companion and guardian for the past 8 years and she still loves to see me when I get home. My house needs so many repairs! Both decks need to be replaced – a lot of wood rot, the kitchen door needs to be replaced – the double pane window in it has gotten moisture inside and always looks foggy and dirty, we get sand in the tub and sink from the well, we have no a/c and lots of lots of windows that don’t open…but, we have a roof over our heads, and a fantastic view. My closet is a disaster! I have way too much in it. A lot I can’t wear anymore – see #1, and some I just haven’t worn for years, some I should pack away for next winter, my shoe rack keeps falling off the door…but, I have an abundance of clothing and resolve to give some to good will – I guess you could say my closet runneth over. My husband is hardly ever home to help me with the kids or the housework or deal with the tenants or just to talk to and to hold … but, he is a hard worker, he loves and provides for us – he makes us laugh (when he isn’t pushing us towards excellence) My driveway (actually a shared dirt road leading down from the mountain that we share with 2 other families) is so full of potholes, my car is eventually going to fall to pieces…but, I never tire of the wonder of the narrow mountain road’s offering of wild life – deer, partridge, wild turkey, daisies, blackberries, pine, birch –totally awesome! Tenant problems! See a previous post here and pictures here – tenants can be nightmares! We have 11 rentals right now – one is empty and needs a lot of work before it is habitable again… but the others (well, one has a whiny tenant) are all rented with excellent tenants – they keep the places neat, pay their rent on time, don’t complain – most have been in the same unit for years. I’m not great with math but the percentages are definitely on the good tenant side. My computer at home is soooooooooooo slow – I have dial-up service and an older computer, I have trouble downloading or uploading pictures or even blogging much … but, I do own three computers, do have access to the internet so what in the world do I really have to whine about?