Had an absolutely shitty day today, and while shitty days are shitty days no matter what, I've got to admit that it was kind of nice that it didn't involve my health for once. Instead, to quote my husband's own words, he was "stupid," lol. The water was off for a bit yesterday, taking me back in time to the last park. Then it came back on, and first the water was brown, and then we came to find we had no hot water. Understandably, the people here were pissed because it happened without warning. I guess there was a leak in a main a block over. Then we find out, after some of us had already drunk it, that the water company had issued a boil advisory. This advisory hasn't been lifted yet as far as we know. 

Tom had to replace the heating element in 2023 so it was nothing new for him. Once he determined that yes, it was the heating element that broke, he went out to Lowe's and picked up a new part which was surprisingly the same price of $9.99. As usual, though, nothing is quick and easy for us. First he had a hell of a time getting the broken part out. Then, next thing I know, I hear this whooshing sound and I looked toward the bedroom closet (the tank is accessed in the master walk-in closet) and it almost looked like there was a mister in there. I saw a mist of water and then I looked down and saw the carpet was completely drenched. The entire closet floor was flooded and just a little beyond it as well. Tom's shirt looked like he showered in it. So he had to not only spend quite a while switching out the part but also vacuuming up the water in the carpet using our carpet cleaner. So what was supposed to take less than an hour was an all-day job. The poor guy's exhausted. He crashed a little while ago. He's going to be very sore for sure!

He was frustrated and disappointed with himself for getting stuck on stupid which he says he's done all his life but then so have I and I'm sure most people have as well. Sometimes I surprise and amaze myself with being able to learn or figure out certain things and other times I want to kick myself for being so incredibly dumb. So I get his frustration. As I told him, even though it sucked, I'd rather stupid with hot water in the end than smart with no hot water and no money to get any. We definitely don't have the money now to call out a plumber. So things could have been a lot worse. He sure got his cardio workout today, that's for sure.

He looked at the records they left behind and found that they were replacing the heating element every 2 years. The last one he replaced only had a one-year warranty but this one has a five-year warranty. Once I'm able to collect retirement, we're going to have a plumber come out and give us a bigger better tank. I hate how I have to feel rushed in the shower because the hot water doesn't last long. I was astonished to see just how small this tank is! 

Sometimes I worry we're going to get pushed into an apartment because we just can't keep up with all the repairs. Houses are just too much work for people with little money. I would absolutely hate living in an apartment because I know that whether it's a group of young welfare bums or a single old lady, people are noisy. I don't want to have to go back to listening to every fart, burp, cough, TV, bassy music, cabinets slamming, doors slamming, footsteps, etc. But I would love knowing that all these expenses wouldn't be on us and that the only costs would be health care.

Pretty sure I read that West Virginia and I think Mississippi have the cheapest apartments but because the healthcare isn't great there, AI recommended Oklahoma or Arkansas. Tom said it would be better to get into a subsidized senior place right here if we were ever going to go that route but while we're low income, I don't know that we're that low. I also don't know that I could physically handle another move whether it was right down the street or on the other side of the country, although there definitely does seem to be a connection between how long I wait after taking my levo to have coffee and my energy levels. Definitely need to wait an hour unless I feel the stuff is accumulating.

Until we have no choice and we're forced to upgrade, I chose to revert back to the original Alexa. The new one is smarter but not as smart as the top bots like OpenAI, Copilot and Gemini. I just didn't think it was worth it to give up the convenience of having her read my books when unwinding for bed or when I'm doing adult coloring.

My lower back has been better. I don't know if it's because I'm now used to the way the bed is set up or because I've been working my core with the exercise ball most days. Probably the latter. Because of that I decided to skip the temporary air mattress we were going to throw inside this cover and just save for the hard side, but then with the way something breaks every single fucking week, I don't think we can save for the rest of the changes and upgrades we want to make without having to spend the money to fix something.

I'm a little concerned about Tom now because he has one, and possibly even two, new basal spots on his cheek, and the huge ugly wart or mole or whatever it technically is on the back of his head, bleeds at times. If I understand things correctly, you can have a wart or a mole for years that's harmless and then if it starts bleeding, that could be a bad sign. Maybe he scratched it in his sleep but I don't know.

After I edit and publish this I guess I'll go play with my newest toy. It's one of those games where you find hidden objects. There's one that uses realistic-looking photos and has 10K levels. I also joined Lose It! I'm definitely not eating as healthy as I thought I was. I guess Tom is right when he says it's not just a matter of processed or unprocessed. My sugar intake is still too high even though it's not like I'm having sweets. My cholesterol is also high while my fiber and protein are too low. I was surprised to see how low the protein levels were with all the meat I eat. Still, I've got Hashimoto's. I don't expect to ever lose weight. I'll just settle for not gaining anymore. Healthy or not, the way I've been eating should help with that. It definitely saves money, that's for sure.