My start to the work week included many things along with breaking in new work shoes. My shift for monday (May 31st) wasn't a morning shift which was good. I had several things to do before work and they could only be done during the day. I went to Focal Point to reorder my eye glasses and since my glasses were less then 3 months old I only paid a replacement cost which was half off of what I had paid. I also went to the Post Office to see what the procedure was for picking up the mail and to give them my forwarding address. So every time I needed to check the mail it would have to be during the time that they were open. I also started making a list of people & places that would need my change of address. I had lost my address book in the fire so it was a little difficult trying to remember everyone that I possibly would have had in the book.
I gave myself some extra time for errands before going to work so I wouldn't feel rushed. As I get to work they had hot dogs in the BBQ for staff, so I had time to eat before beginnning my shift. Several people asked how I was doing and so I told them what kind of progress we were making and that we had a place.
My work day went well. As I'm serving customers I see many things that remind me of the items I lost in the fire. What was disheartening about some of the lost items was the fact that some things were quite new.... like my sofa, Samsung TV (less then 6 months old), apartment size freezer, pantry cupboard and some new clothes (or even my favorite clothes).
During the course of the week things were given to us that people didn't need or had doubles. Besides donated items money and/or gift card was given as well, which was appreciated very much.
My home phone was reconnected during the week as well, but no computer purchase yet.
So any pricing that I needed to do for my worksheets was limited since my time on a computer at the library or work was limited as well. Then on my day off during the week I did some major clothes shopping for myself and continued with my insurance worksheets.
There were many moments where I got overwhelmed with my ever increasing list of lost items from the fire.
Besides clothes shopping I also needed to look for furniture. I went to 3 or 4 furniture stores to see what was available and compared prices.
As I make my daily comments on facebook I continue to ask for prayer and also THANK everyone for their prayers & well wishes.
I also called the insurance adjudicator during the week and asked some questions in regards to how things should be listed on my worksheets.
I had started my rough copy list in a scribbler and then transferred to the actual insurance worksheet. Even then I had to redo quite a few worksheets because the insurance company wanted it categorized eg: (furniture, clothing, groceries, appliances etc.) So by the end of the week I was getting a little discouraged along with sore feet. It sure wasn't fun breaking in new work shoes. Glad our temporary beds were comfortable enough to give us a proper night sleep.
It almost felt like I had another full time job (not paid) besides my full time job. It was all very time consuming and lots of leg work. There sure wasn't a thing as free time to do fun things, at least not for awhile. We also checked the things I had retrieved from the fire that I had placed in someone's garage. Most of the photos that I had in the albums were okay, but the albums were finished. So we put the photos into plastic bags & boxed it up until I would have time to put them into new albums. (To this date of writing this post I still haven't put all the photos into new albums... side burner to do thing).
Due to the fire I had also missed out in seeing my cousins from B.C. who were visiting in the Wpg area for a couple of days.
After my day shift at work on saturday (June 5th) my sister & brother-in-law (James & Bertha) came out to see my place & have supper with me at the golf course restaraunt. (Ruby was out with friends). Besides having supper with me they also brought some more things from other family members and 2 large bags of clothes from her friend Betty.
Making meals at the new apartment during our first full week of living in it still wasn't much due to the fact that I lacked in kitchen supplies. I was buying kitchen or other household items several times a week and especially when I saw that it was on sale. Some items that were on sale came at a good time. Financially I was able to do all this since the 1st chq from the insurance company was a large amount, but I was still cautious with some buying. I didn't know when they would send me another chq.
So to close off this week I'm truely grateful for everyone's prayers, support and well wishes. Thankful for what the Lord has done in spite of the loss of material possessions. Again it also means taking 1 day at a time and keeping my faith in the Lord that He will supply what I need. HEBREWS 11:1 "NOW FAITH IS THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR, THE EVIDENCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN". My Bible that I lost in the fire always opened in the book of Hebrews.
Thursday, 21 April 2011
Sunday, 10 April 2011
WEEKEND (Shopping Day & Sunday)
Saturday, May 29th-----Another shopping day.
Morning. After a reasonably restful night we start our day with a list of things to do. First we went out for breakfast so we could begin doing what we needed to.
After breakfast we went to B & D Music where they were holding donated items for the fire victims. This was my first visit to the site so I wasn't sure what was available. Their backroom was quite full with many good donated items. We started going through the items and managed to get quite a bit. My first piece of furniture was a gliding style rocking chair with cushion (in excellent shape). The other items were micro wave, kitchen items (like a knife block with knives, glassware, cutlery wrapped in cloth, bowls, tupperware), pillows & bedding, some towels and Ruby chose some clothes. I managed to get everything into the car without having to make 2 trips. We unpack again at home and then head to Winkler for other errands and MORE SHOPPING.
One of my errands was to my landlord's (Wall's) house to pay for rent. As we're talking about things around the kitchen table I asked them how long the apartment suite was empty. It had been vacant for 2 months. I truly believe the LORD kept the suite vacant for us. (To this day when I really think about it I'm just in awe of how the LORD works in such mysterious ways... in our eyes). Mr & Mrs. Wall told us how things just didn't turn out for the ones that were interested in the suite. (Again there was a reason for that). I'm thankful for a Christian couple as my landlords.
Another errand was the MTS center. Now that I had a place of permanent residence I could get my home phone reconnected. As we're waiting in line for our turn the gentleman in front of us gives his address which was the same as ours (apartment fire address). I said hello to the gentleman and said we were neighbours. It explained why he looked familiar. We briefly talked as to how each of us were doing.
Before doing our major grocery shopping at Superstore we also check out TWICE AS NICE (Clothing store) and make a sizeable purchase at the store, which was more for Ruby then myself. We also shopped at DOLLARAMA for an assortment of miscellaneous items (cheaper isn't always better though).
In the midst of our many stops during our shopping we probably ate out again.
Finally last stop was shopping at SUPERSTORE. Ruby took a shopping cart and so did I. I can't remember the last time I used 2 shopping carts (last time may have been when the children were little). One cart was for groceries and the other cart was for miscellaneous. As we were shopping Melody text to see how our shopping venture was coming along and asked HAVING FUN?? She also recommended using store coupons. We did look for a sales flyer, but couldn't find one. Now if I had been more persistent and found a coupon I would have got a $20 or $25 gift card for having a purchase of over $200.
After we were done with our shopping it was time for a milkshake treat from McDonalds. Now it was home time to unpack all the things I had bought, it was a car full.
We also borrowed a very used table & chairs from one of Ruby's friends mother. I said it would be used temporarily until I had a new set.
It was a full day and wanting to relax wasn't the same. The one piece of furniture I surely missed was my recliner. Since we didn't have a computer or TV it meant occupying our time with other things, which wasn't too hard to do. I'm sure I continued with my insurance worksheets at every available time.
Bed time probably came earlier as well since the day had been busy. Thankful for a safe and eventful day.
Sunday, May 30th (DAY OF REST)
Morning. I was glad it was Sunday and looked forward to Church service.
The Pastor again announced a need for the fire victims and the donation site. I don't remember the title of the message, but its always good to be in the Lord's house on Sunday. A time to learn more from the Bible, sing songs from the Hymn Book and fellowship with other Christians.
After the morning service we went out for lunch with some friends from Church. This was almost a routine thing to do after Church and was glad that something wasn't out of the norm.
The rest of the afternoon we relaxed at home (at least it was a physical relax time), but mentally I still had a lot on my mind. I may have continued on with some paper work or my worksheet list.
We had evening service that Sunday as well, so we were back in Church.
After the evening service we were informed about the grocery hamper that we could take home. It was a sizeable amount and sure helped to fill our cupboards. The Lord was providing in many ways.
Again it had been a full weekend. Now it was time for bed and my thoughts were on what I would need to do during the week besides going back to work.
Morning. After a reasonably restful night we start our day with a list of things to do. First we went out for breakfast so we could begin doing what we needed to.
After breakfast we went to B & D Music where they were holding donated items for the fire victims. This was my first visit to the site so I wasn't sure what was available. Their backroom was quite full with many good donated items. We started going through the items and managed to get quite a bit. My first piece of furniture was a gliding style rocking chair with cushion (in excellent shape). The other items were micro wave, kitchen items (like a knife block with knives, glassware, cutlery wrapped in cloth, bowls, tupperware), pillows & bedding, some towels and Ruby chose some clothes. I managed to get everything into the car without having to make 2 trips. We unpack again at home and then head to Winkler for other errands and MORE SHOPPING.
One of my errands was to my landlord's (Wall's) house to pay for rent. As we're talking about things around the kitchen table I asked them how long the apartment suite was empty. It had been vacant for 2 months. I truly believe the LORD kept the suite vacant for us. (To this day when I really think about it I'm just in awe of how the LORD works in such mysterious ways... in our eyes). Mr & Mrs. Wall told us how things just didn't turn out for the ones that were interested in the suite. (Again there was a reason for that). I'm thankful for a Christian couple as my landlords.
Another errand was the MTS center. Now that I had a place of permanent residence I could get my home phone reconnected. As we're waiting in line for our turn the gentleman in front of us gives his address which was the same as ours (apartment fire address). I said hello to the gentleman and said we were neighbours. It explained why he looked familiar. We briefly talked as to how each of us were doing.
Before doing our major grocery shopping at Superstore we also check out TWICE AS NICE (Clothing store) and make a sizeable purchase at the store, which was more for Ruby then myself. We also shopped at DOLLARAMA for an assortment of miscellaneous items (cheaper isn't always better though).
In the midst of our many stops during our shopping we probably ate out again.
Finally last stop was shopping at SUPERSTORE. Ruby took a shopping cart and so did I. I can't remember the last time I used 2 shopping carts (last time may have been when the children were little). One cart was for groceries and the other cart was for miscellaneous. As we were shopping Melody text to see how our shopping venture was coming along and asked HAVING FUN?? She also recommended using store coupons. We did look for a sales flyer, but couldn't find one. Now if I had been more persistent and found a coupon I would have got a $20 or $25 gift card for having a purchase of over $200.
After we were done with our shopping it was time for a milkshake treat from McDonalds. Now it was home time to unpack all the things I had bought, it was a car full.
We also borrowed a very used table & chairs from one of Ruby's friends mother. I said it would be used temporarily until I had a new set.
It was a full day and wanting to relax wasn't the same. The one piece of furniture I surely missed was my recliner. Since we didn't have a computer or TV it meant occupying our time with other things, which wasn't too hard to do. I'm sure I continued with my insurance worksheets at every available time.
Bed time probably came earlier as well since the day had been busy. Thankful for a safe and eventful day.
Sunday, May 30th (DAY OF REST)
Morning. I was glad it was Sunday and looked forward to Church service.
The Pastor again announced a need for the fire victims and the donation site. I don't remember the title of the message, but its always good to be in the Lord's house on Sunday. A time to learn more from the Bible, sing songs from the Hymn Book and fellowship with other Christians.
After the morning service we went out for lunch with some friends from Church. This was almost a routine thing to do after Church and was glad that something wasn't out of the norm.
The rest of the afternoon we relaxed at home (at least it was a physical relax time), but mentally I still had a lot on my mind. I may have continued on with some paper work or my worksheet list.
We had evening service that Sunday as well, so we were back in Church.
After the evening service we were informed about the grocery hamper that we could take home. It was a sizeable amount and sure helped to fill our cupboards. The Lord was providing in many ways.
Again it had been a full weekend. Now it was time for bed and my thoughts were on what I would need to do during the week besides going back to work.
Friday, 1 April 2011
MOVING DAY & SHOPPING DAY
Day 8----May 28th (friday)
Morning. So here we were actually 1 week after the fire.
Since the morning of my dizzy spells I was a little cautious as I got up for the day. Glad I was getting stronger every day and I needed it. My day was going to be a full day. As I wait for the restoration office to call I continue with my list. This is how I started making a list of my belongings. I mentally visioned what I had in every room and that's how I wrote it down in the scribbler. Taking pictures of the apartment helped jog my memory as well even though I didn't take pictures of every shelf in the cupboard or every corner. Another list that I started on was a grocery list & immediate household items that we would need.
I also packed up our items that I had bought into a tote which wasn't much but still took a lot of space in the back seat of the car.
Once the restoration office called I got ready to go to the apartment. It was almost noon time by the time I was in the apartment suite. My contact person (Karen) gave me insurance worksheets and a clipboard. I really didn't know where to begin so Karen helped me in starting my list.
(Here is an explanation of what the restoration crew does. They were assigned to removing items from the suites once it was cleared from the head person and after the tenant had signed a release form. Items that could be salvaged would be packed up by the crew and taken to their restoration site in Wpg if that is what the tenant requested. Another option was for the tenant to remove his or her own things at their own cost. Any cleaning that the restoration site would do would still be taken out of the tenants insurance coverage.)
So we started going through my belongings to see if anything was salvageable, if it wasn't worth keeping it went onto a pile. As we did that I wrote it on my worksheet e.g "Samsung TV". Some things you couldn't list or put a price on ... like photos. I did list my photo albums, but I still removed them from the apartment (It was the living room/ dining room area where we started). TIP--The best way to store photo albums on a shelf is to have them stacked on top of each other not beside each other. I had them stacked and by doing it that way the heat of the fire had melted the plastic & sealed the album. I had saved a lot of photos by keeping my albums in such a manner. If there was anything I could keep or would like to keep it was put into a plastic bag or box. Since Ruby wasn't able to help that afternoon her friend Carl came to help with whatever he could. Shortly after I had started listing things on my worksheets Karen gets called about lunch. She asked if I'd be okay on my own and I said yes, so she excused herself for lunch. I was by myself for a little while before Carl came to help. It was slow going and disheartening as I rummage through things. We could have spent hours going through my belongings, but the head man of the restoration crew or security crew put a stop to it very quickly. When Karen came back from lunch the head man came into my suite as well and asked what we were doing here. He also asked about insurance coverage and said I was totally covered with the amount I gave him. He insisted that we get out ASAP and that I would get my full coverage. The reason he said to get out ASAP was because it wasn't very safe again to be in the apartment. The ceilings were starting to buckle from the weight of the water on the floors above our suite. It was quite noticeable in the bedrooms. So we were literally rushed out of the apartment without making a proper list of my belongings. Karen asked if I had taken pictures or made some notes of belongings, which I had the best I could. We briefly check things in the bedroom to see if anything could be removed.
These are the items I removed from the apartment: photo albums, some movies, music CD's, computer tower, jewellry boxes, totes with fabric & blankets, stainless steel noodle machine & stainless steel stock pot. I had a large photo frame of Melody (3 years old) in my bedroom and a 8 x 10 photo frame of Ruby (flower girl photo) in her bedroom that I quickly snatched up as well even though they were slightly damaged. Ruby also had some grad photos in a ziploc bag which didn't look too bad. (Thankfully she had given most of her grad photos to family & friends before the fire). We put all these items into large plastic bags or cardboard boxes that the restoration crew provided. The computer tower was damaged, but I wanted someone to take out the hard drive and see if the info on it could be saved. The photo albums were damaged, but the photos looked okay and the same applied to the jewellry boxes & jewellry. As for the totes they were sealed so I was hoping the contents inside would be fine. We didn't remove any clothes or shoes. Now with the little bit that I was removing from the apartment I needed to store it somewhere so it could air out. I didn't want to stink up someone's place. As we were finishing up at the apartment Ruby came since she was done with her day of school. Before leaving the apartment I had to sign some forms with Karen which stated that whatever was left in the apartment was getting discarded by them, nothing was worth cleaning. The 2 items that I questioned was the rocking chair (which was my grandparents) and the stereo with record player (70's style inherited from mom & dad's estate which I was really holding for son Phillip). In the end I let them go. Now that I had taken what I wanted I needed to make a quick phone call about storing it in a friend's garage, plus a truck to transport the items. Carl called his grandfather and asked to borrow the truck and he was kind enough to do so. We transport the items to a garage which had easy access and then we could go through it on our own time and not be rushed.
After the truck was returned we got some air mattresses from Carl's place and take them to our new apartment. This was Ruby's first time seeing the apartment and she really liked the kitchen area.
Now it was time to do a little bit of shopping, so we head over to Winkler.
First stop was Canadian Tire (my work place). Since I hadn't been at work all week due to how I had felt I thought it would be nice to touch base with my boss (Dave). We go upstairs to Dave's office and let him know how things are going.
Back downstairs we start shopping and it sure didn't take long to get a shopping cart full.
Believe me this was just the beginning of many, many more shoppping days ahead.
As we get unpacked at our new HOME we make due with what we have. We pump up the air mattresses later in the evening as we get ready for bed. The single air mattress was mine, but was elsewhere at the time of the fire and the queen size mattress Carl had picked up from my sister Ruth's house a few weeks prior to the fire.
It was another tiring day and eating take out food as we needed it.
Sleep came quiet easily, but with many thoughts going through my mind again. At the same time thankful for the help that we got that day. The Lord provides & protects. Good night.
Morning. So here we were actually 1 week after the fire.
Since the morning of my dizzy spells I was a little cautious as I got up for the day. Glad I was getting stronger every day and I needed it. My day was going to be a full day. As I wait for the restoration office to call I continue with my list. This is how I started making a list of my belongings. I mentally visioned what I had in every room and that's how I wrote it down in the scribbler. Taking pictures of the apartment helped jog my memory as well even though I didn't take pictures of every shelf in the cupboard or every corner. Another list that I started on was a grocery list & immediate household items that we would need.
I also packed up our items that I had bought into a tote which wasn't much but still took a lot of space in the back seat of the car.
Once the restoration office called I got ready to go to the apartment. It was almost noon time by the time I was in the apartment suite. My contact person (Karen) gave me insurance worksheets and a clipboard. I really didn't know where to begin so Karen helped me in starting my list.
(Here is an explanation of what the restoration crew does. They were assigned to removing items from the suites once it was cleared from the head person and after the tenant had signed a release form. Items that could be salvaged would be packed up by the crew and taken to their restoration site in Wpg if that is what the tenant requested. Another option was for the tenant to remove his or her own things at their own cost. Any cleaning that the restoration site would do would still be taken out of the tenants insurance coverage.)
So we started going through my belongings to see if anything was salvageable, if it wasn't worth keeping it went onto a pile. As we did that I wrote it on my worksheet e.g "Samsung TV". Some things you couldn't list or put a price on ... like photos. I did list my photo albums, but I still removed them from the apartment (It was the living room/ dining room area where we started). TIP--The best way to store photo albums on a shelf is to have them stacked on top of each other not beside each other. I had them stacked and by doing it that way the heat of the fire had melted the plastic & sealed the album. I had saved a lot of photos by keeping my albums in such a manner. If there was anything I could keep or would like to keep it was put into a plastic bag or box. Since Ruby wasn't able to help that afternoon her friend Carl came to help with whatever he could. Shortly after I had started listing things on my worksheets Karen gets called about lunch. She asked if I'd be okay on my own and I said yes, so she excused herself for lunch. I was by myself for a little while before Carl came to help. It was slow going and disheartening as I rummage through things. We could have spent hours going through my belongings, but the head man of the restoration crew or security crew put a stop to it very quickly. When Karen came back from lunch the head man came into my suite as well and asked what we were doing here. He also asked about insurance coverage and said I was totally covered with the amount I gave him. He insisted that we get out ASAP and that I would get my full coverage. The reason he said to get out ASAP was because it wasn't very safe again to be in the apartment. The ceilings were starting to buckle from the weight of the water on the floors above our suite. It was quite noticeable in the bedrooms. So we were literally rushed out of the apartment without making a proper list of my belongings. Karen asked if I had taken pictures or made some notes of belongings, which I had the best I could. We briefly check things in the bedroom to see if anything could be removed.
These are the items I removed from the apartment: photo albums, some movies, music CD's, computer tower, jewellry boxes, totes with fabric & blankets, stainless steel noodle machine & stainless steel stock pot. I had a large photo frame of Melody (3 years old) in my bedroom and a 8 x 10 photo frame of Ruby (flower girl photo) in her bedroom that I quickly snatched up as well even though they were slightly damaged. Ruby also had some grad photos in a ziploc bag which didn't look too bad. (Thankfully she had given most of her grad photos to family & friends before the fire). We put all these items into large plastic bags or cardboard boxes that the restoration crew provided. The computer tower was damaged, but I wanted someone to take out the hard drive and see if the info on it could be saved. The photo albums were damaged, but the photos looked okay and the same applied to the jewellry boxes & jewellry. As for the totes they were sealed so I was hoping the contents inside would be fine. We didn't remove any clothes or shoes. Now with the little bit that I was removing from the apartment I needed to store it somewhere so it could air out. I didn't want to stink up someone's place. As we were finishing up at the apartment Ruby came since she was done with her day of school. Before leaving the apartment I had to sign some forms with Karen which stated that whatever was left in the apartment was getting discarded by them, nothing was worth cleaning. The 2 items that I questioned was the rocking chair (which was my grandparents) and the stereo with record player (70's style inherited from mom & dad's estate which I was really holding for son Phillip). In the end I let them go. Now that I had taken what I wanted I needed to make a quick phone call about storing it in a friend's garage, plus a truck to transport the items. Carl called his grandfather and asked to borrow the truck and he was kind enough to do so. We transport the items to a garage which had easy access and then we could go through it on our own time and not be rushed.
After the truck was returned we got some air mattresses from Carl's place and take them to our new apartment. This was Ruby's first time seeing the apartment and she really liked the kitchen area.
Now it was time to do a little bit of shopping, so we head over to Winkler.
First stop was Canadian Tire (my work place). Since I hadn't been at work all week due to how I had felt I thought it would be nice to touch base with my boss (Dave). We go upstairs to Dave's office and let him know how things are going.
Back downstairs we start shopping and it sure didn't take long to get a shopping cart full.
Believe me this was just the beginning of many, many more shoppping days ahead.
As we get unpacked at our new HOME we make due with what we have. We pump up the air mattresses later in the evening as we get ready for bed. The single air mattress was mine, but was elsewhere at the time of the fire and the queen size mattress Carl had picked up from my sister Ruth's house a few weeks prior to the fire.
It was another tiring day and eating take out food as we needed it.
Sleep came quiet easily, but with many thoughts going through my mind again. At the same time thankful for the help that we got that day. The Lord provides & protects. Good night.
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