I finally replaced the kitchen faucet t the tune of almost $500.  I also will be taking the last of the trash bags out to be picked up Tuesday.  I'll probably call a landscaper to take care of the rest of the garden and I also have to finish cleaning out my mom's room.  I already moved my hoodies and hockey jerseys to my mom's closet.  I plan on using that room for storage.  I hope to have most of it done by Labor Day.  thank you for reading.

      It takes a long time to clean out 58 years worth of junk.  I still have trash bags to take out and more junk to throw away.  The weeds in the garden are proving to be tougher than I thought, but fortunately, I have weed killer.  I just need to use it more consistently.  The small bushes are gone and I am making progress on the garden.  I also still need to call a plumber to replace the kitchen faucet.  That's all for this week.  Thank you for reading.

      I started cleaning up my garden this weekend by pulling out a bunch of weeds and a couple small bushes, but I'm going to need some help getting rid of the larger plants in the back.  I'm planning on planting flowers at least in the front next year but I haven't decided what to plant in the back yet.  Cleaning and fixing up my house has been a bigger job than I first thought.  I just found out that I might need to update my electrical system.  I also need to replace the kitchen faucet and get the trash bags out of my living room.  I hope to have everything done by Thanksgiving, which I hope to be spending with my family.  That's all for this week.  Thank you for reading.

     I was born on March 10, 1966, in Cleveland, Ohio, and placed for adoption.  I was brought home seven weeks later, with my adoption being finalized that November.  My sister Sue was born on March 1, 1968, and brought home that July, with her adoption being finalized the next January.  My sister Diane(my mm's miracle baby)was born on July 12, 1971.  Sue is divorced with a daughter(Kendall, 16) and Diane has been married for 25 years and has one daughter(Olivia, 15).  I remain single.

     Last month, on the 4th of July, I rented a 20 cubic yard dumpster and began to clean out my garage and basement, filling it up in about a day and a half due to the fact that my parents hardly ever threw anything out.  Then I started to clean out the upstairs bedrooms and promptly filled 18 contractor sized bags, most of which I still have.  I may have to rent another dumpster to finish the job.  The cleanout is far from finished and I'll likely have to rent another dumpster to finish it(mostly trash and furniture removal).  That's all for this week.  Thank you for reading.

     July 26, 2019.  Life was good one year ago.  I was busy planning road trips for the upcoming Columbus Blue Jackets season to Chicago, Saint Louis, Florida, California, Vegas, and Nashville.  I ended up canceling the trip to California and Vegas, but the ones that I took were fun.  But 67 days later, my life would change drastically.  Coming home from a run at my health club, I found my mom on the kitchen floor after having had a stroke.  I called 911 an had her taken to the emergency room, where it was hurry up and wait and I didn't get home until midnight.  Unfortunately, she passed away 72 days later and I realized that I had nobody to depend on but myself.  I've made some mistakes along the way and put off things that I should have taken care of sooner.  In that time, I've acquired ownership of the car that I've been driving since 2013 and the house(and 58 years of accumulated junk)that I grew up in and never left.

     While I was wrapping my mind around all that, Covid-19 hit, and the state was shut down and I was cut off from in-person human contact, which did a number on my mental health.  I was off work from late March until mid-April(with pay)and had to find ways to pass the time.  Things are finally starting to return to normal and I've settled into a routine and overcome a bit of anxiety about the doors being locked and the lights being off.  I know that the title of this blog is "Adventures in Home Ownership", but I wanted to talk about where I came from in the past year.  My next post will include more about my family and myself as well as a garage and basement cleanout and the start of a house cleanout, as well as a change in my work routine.  Thank you for reading.