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[Twolanerider]

When I got a chance to check them there were quite a few phone messages on the two phones waiting for me this evening.  Will try to return most or all over the next couple of days but will take the shotgun approach here too.  I'd left a message on Howie's phone on Thursday or Friday (forget which) so hopefully everyone at Ken's got that one.

Sorry for bailing on the BBQ.  The morning I was ready to leave took the dog to stay at mom's for the time I'd be gone and she'd had another of the episodes she'd had a couple evenings before.  Slurred words, fractured sentence structures and the inability to find words, and an altered gait.  To the layman you'd swear it was a mini stroke.  The docs still say not though. 

So it was back to the ER and hospital remainder of that day and evening.  Finally home about midnight Thursday night and the house was dead.  All over.

Lightning had come in the main.  Breaker panel was shelled.  Disconnect outside was blown but it hadn't done so quick enough.  Parts of the breaker panel were welded and parts were grenaded.  Some items in the house kaput too.  But only small stuff isn't on some kind of relatively decent surge protection so not too bad there.  The hard part were some lines in the walls that had to be repulled.

Dealt with all that until about 8:00 this evening.  Finally all done.  Phones are charged or charging and the beer is getting colder again.  It's storming again outside right now.  Really getting tired of spring this year.  If there's a BBQ II I'm in.

Thanks for checking in everyone.  My sincerest apologies for those that were concerned I'd had trouble on the road on the way to Kentucky.  Never got that far.

[ccr]

Don, so sorry to hear about all the troubles you have hurdled this last couple of weeks.  Really does sound like stroke, but the Docs - I guess - they know best.  That is rotten luck about your house getting fried electrically.  I guess if one were looking for silver linings, the good thing is that it didn't catch fire from all that overload.  Chasing electric wires through the walls sure does not sound like any fun at all.  How is Parker doing with her broken arm?  You have seen some of the BBQ pics, and you know you missed a heck of a party, but as long as you are safe and family holdin their own, is all we can really hope for in the end.  We opted out of several rides and gtg this weekend.  We did have a joyous gtg with a couple showing off a new cherry bomb like yours and mine.  Nice Bike!  But other than that short visit we chilled here at home and relaxed.  Once you get all your bomb fragments cleaned up, hope there is some of that for you in your future. 

[Twolanerider]

Don, so sorry to hear about all the troubles you have hurdled this last couple of weeks.  Really does sound like stroke, but the Docs - I guess - they know best.  That is rotten luck about your house getting fried electrically.  I guess if one were looking for silver linings, the good thing is that it didn't catch fire from all that overload.  Chasing electric wires through the walls sure does not sound like any fun at all.  How is Parker doing with her broken arm?  You have seen some of the BBQ pics, and you know you missed a heck of a party, but as long as you are safe and family holdin their own, is all we can really hope for in the end.  We opted out of several rides and gtg this weekend.  We did have a joyous gtg with a couple showing off a new cherry bomb like yours and mine.  Nice Bike!  But other than that short visit we chilled here at home and relaxed.  Once you get all your bomb fragments cleaned up, hope there is some of that for you in your future. 

Hi Candy.  So glad to read you had a fine weekend. 

Both times this has happened with mom now it's passed relatively quickly.  Within 24-36 it's like nothing happened.  Or almost like nothing happened anyway.  I don't trust the docs any farther then I can throw them.  But they're saying again it wasn't (or isn't) a stroke; even a mini one. 

The house was a chore.  But it's done and all seems fine.  I purposefully didn't replace the cheapy alarm clock in the nightstand yet so I can "accidentally" sleep in in the morning.

Best thing of all of course is that Parker is doing fine.  The novelty of being cool and having a broken arm wore off in about 12 hours.  After that the cast and sling pretty well suck.  But she's doing ok.  And sometimes she's just funny as hell with the indignant looks, stares and remarks when she can't (or uses it as an excuse to choose not to be able to) do something.

Put some pretty robust lightning protection in with the new box.  So hopefully never have to deal with such a thing again.  This was the 2nd time this house has been hit since I lived here.  If I weren't an idiot I guess I should have done that last time .

[naitram]

can you recover any of the expense with home owners ins. ? or do you have to cover it all

[murphy]

What happened to that old saying about lightning never striking twice?

Good to hear thing are working out!

[RedDevil]

Don,
Sorry to hear of your troubles, but fortunately everyone is safe and sound.  Material stuff can be fixed or replaced.  Glad to hear your mom's okay. 

   

[erniezap]

Don,

Sorry to hear about your mom and your house, but on a positive note you are okay.  I hope the insurance covers this for you.

[BigR55]

Twolane,

Hope your Mother recovers and does well. My Mother had similar symptoms and recovered.

Lightning does some strange things. Our house did catch fire on the peak of the eve. For a couple of years afterward we would still find things like receptacles at the other end of the house that had arced and burnt. From your description, sounds like your service entrance took the brunt of the strike.

I am sure you already know, but with everything you have had going on here is a list of things we later found problems with and some we did not immediately check out:

All appliances, dimmers and low voltage lighting systems, sump pumps, stereo, TV, cable and sat boxes, phone wires, wireless phones, computers, modems, routers, lawn sprinklers, softeners, furnace and air, water heaters, ground fault and arc fault breakers, pool and spa tub breakers and equipment, fluorescent lighting ballast.

Hope you get back to normal soon. 

[Twolanerider]

Don,

Sorry to hear about your mom and your house, but on a positive note you are okay.  I hope the insurance covers this for you.

Thanks Ernie (and everyone else that's written or that I've spoken with).  I'm sure insurance would have done their bit. 

Over the holiday weekend there was no one to hire though.  So I ended up spending about $800 at Lowes and a couple of other places.  Will double check but think all my deductibles are $1k. 

That's ok though.  All done already rather then waiting with a dead house until someone could have started the job on Thursday or Friday.  I did in the daylight hours of 2+ days what I'm sure a couple of guys who do that all the time would have done in half that.  But it's done and it's right; so I'm not complaining.

[Twolanerider]

Hope you get back to normal soon. 

Oh man, I'm not sure I've ever been normal... 


Wouldn't surprise me at all to find something I've missed.  But so far have caught at least most of it.  Weirdest thing so far was the smell of gas in the house.  Or whatever that is they mix with gas so you can smell it.

The furnace/evap unit itself was electrically ok.  One dead blower relay that was remote mounted but nothing in the box itself dead.  But the metal/flexible gas line was resting against the furnace body and tried to weld itself to it.  In so doing had burned a pinhole through the line.  Gas leak from the electric strike.  That one surprised me.

[ultrafxr]

Don, glad you're OK and sure hope your mom doesn't have any more of those frightening episodes. 

Anyway, we missed you at the bbq and hope things ease up for you real soon.

All the best,

Jerry

[Twolanerider]

Don, glad you're OK and sure hope your mom doesn't have any more of those frightening episodes. 

Anyway, we missed you at the bbq and hope things ease up for you real soon.

All the best,

Jerry

Ease up?  It's noon and I'm on my second beer with lunch.  I am easy (cheap too!).

[REGGAB]

Don,
Was actually gearing up to ride a little further West and see if you were stuck in one of those cell phone dead spots.    Seriously, if your only prolonged suffering is missing the Ribfest, you're very Blessed.  Sure missed you this weekend, but equally happy to hear your keel ain't busted.

I had to do a main breaker in our Tennessee home a few years back.  That wasn't one little bit fun either.  Took me over 24 hours to get it done working non-stop.  Had a generator going to keep the fridge and deep freeze powered, so we wouldn't have the additional expense of spoilt food.  Marking the wiring and getting the old box out wasn't too bad, but scabbing in a new frame, cutting all the wiring to proper length and getting everything in the new box at right angles took FOREVER.....it seemed like.  Long about hour 20, it took real effort to concentrate and be sure everything was just right, so I didn't burn down the house when CEMC put the meter block back in.  It was June and hotter than them two copulating rats in a wool sock behind a dryer vent.  Worst part was having to remove the hot water heater just to get to the frame work of the box.  Working inside an itty bitty closet in June with no air conditioning for 24+ hours was not my idea of weekend fun.

Glad to hear everything is working out.

Henry

[Boatman]

Thanks for the update Don.  Here's to your Mom getting better and your niece healing fast.   

[Twolanerider]

Don,
Was actually gearing up to ride a little further West and see if you were stuck in one of those cell phone dead spots.    Seriously, if your only prolonged suffering is missing the Ribfest, you're very Blessed.  Sure missed you this weekend, but equally happy to hear your keel ain't busted.

Glad to hear everything is working out.


Henry

I sure missed the ribs and the people and the ride Henry.  That certainly did suck.  But there was no road side drama nor anything other then just getting the work done and getting the mom-unit home.  It's all good.  I'm even going to look for ribs for dinner tonight (BIG UNS) to help stoke the proper frame of mind .