random thoughts – Day 1,523 – (Monday) – domestic weirdness

First rose blossom.

A couple of neighbors up the street have some spectacular roses that began blooming several days ago. At least, that is when I noticed them. My  rosebush has always bloomed later and for a far shorter duration than whatever magic roses the people up the street have. 

My rose bush currently has one bloom, up against the fence, and noticed by accident today. The iris buds nearby are appearing and will emerge soon, and the rhododendron is about ready to start popping with bright blossoms. 

Thank goodness for the routine and familiar house things, because the weird ones are beginning to accumulate. The homeowner mysteries are mounting. A couple of weeks ago, a woodpecker was hammering away on a narrow piece of wood between the vinyl siding and aluminum storm door. Weird. And why?  

Sunday, the washer stopped dead and smelt like burnt rubber after filling with water, then magically finished its job when I tried it again after returning from shopping. The same day had the discovery of the dark chunks on the basement floor that look like coal or burnt wood chips.

Monday offered up a suddenly temperamental toilet tank that wouldn’t fill. After the jiggle the handle thing, normal operations resumed, but then the tank made noise for about five minutes, which felt a lot longer than necessary. The refrigerator has been oddly quieter than it used to be.

On the tech front, my phone is being weird, and for whatever reason, it randomly disconnects from wi-fi. What the what?

Mystery dirt.

Tonight, while mowing near the deck, I noticed a pile of dirt that looks to be stacked about a foot and a half high and reaches high enough to touch the underside of the deck. It looked like it had been sifted and flung against the lattice under the deck, which kept most of it from spilling onto the lawn, but there is a bunch of it in the grass. Maybe the groundhogs are building a new housing development. 

The fact I mowed tonight seems like another weird mystery, but less about the home and more about the owner. It happened after work, after I had been to the gym and walked on the treadmill, then come home for a big salad for supper, I was on the couch, doing the usual after work not a lot, and the next thing I knew, I was pushing the mower in the back yard, racing the clock and the approaching darkness. How did I get there? I don’t know. Maybe I was possessed or something. It seems to be the week for weirdness, so really, it seems that anything is possible.