News and Views From my kids accomplishments, to my heretical perspective of the world

Yep, on that brand new Acura Crossover SUV.

Not that it isn’t a wonderful vehicle, but I keep looking at my old Odyssey and think about all the things I can’t do with the new one: Carry 7 people comfortably (it happens more than you might guess), throw dirty stuff in the back (would never do that with the new Acura), fit a 4’x8′ piece of plywood, or a washer and dryer both in the back, drive it home all sweaty from basketball, carry everything Devon owns home from Pasadena.

And I think about how much we will be spending to repair the house. The insurance covers most of the repairs, but we need to get a lot of new furniture — the old is getting ratty. And Gisele needs $10,000 worth of dental work (2 implants).

I’ve felt buyer’s remorse a little before, especially when we bought this house, but it was mild, and in my heart I knew we had done the right thing. This time my heart tells me differently.

Pondering my options.

They had 23 fans and 5 dehumidifiers in the house for 4 days. What a racket! They finally judged the house dry, and took the equipment away last night, so at least it’s peaceful again.

The insurance adjuster was here this morning, and estimated about $7000 just to repair the damage to the walls. That doesn’t include the expense of drying out the house (that will be billed directly to that company so we will probably never know how much that was) or the new flooring (material or installation). It’s all covered after our $1000 deductible, except any updgrades to flooring, etc.

The repair man just left, after reviewing the job. They should start drywall repairs in 2-3 days, and be done in about 2 weeks total. Then comes the flooring. We are thinking of replacing the carpet with wood in several of the rooms, and maybe tile in the bathroom and utility room, so this is a good time to have the insurance company help with the cost.

We had a nice rain storm last night, but that’s not what this is about.

The connection to the downstairs toilet broke some time in the night, and we woke to standing water all over the lowest level of the house. The water is not above the top of the carpet, but walking on carpets leaves puddles. Family room, my office, guest room, laundry room and bathroom are soaked. Will probably have to replace all the carpet, moulding, and maybe drywall behind the baseboard.

We were tired of that carpet anyway…

Fortunately insurance will cover it, but it’s still a big hassle. Service Masters is coming in about 2 hours to begin the drying process. I’ll update here as we progress.

You may remember that Devon was accepted into the Cornell University Graduate Physics program. He wanted to spend the summer in Taiwan, studying Mandarin and immersing himself into another culture.

Well, he’s having so much fun that he doesn’t want to come back. He contacted Cornell, and told them he was enrolled in the University in Taiwan (which he is) and requested a one-year deferral. They agreed.

So he will remain in Taiwan through the winter.

Besides studying Chinese, he has met some people in the entertainment business that have him almost convinced he could be a model, actor and/or pop singer. I hope he doesn’t hit the ground too hard if reality disagrees…

I know that self-diagnosing by browsing the internet is often a bad idea. But in this case I think I got it right.

For months, every time after I get out of the shower, my legs would start itching. At times it is almost unbearable, and I sit there scratching away. It peaks about 5 minutes after drying off, and then usually lasts about an hour. It’s mostly in my feet and legs below the knees, though I get a little itchy on my back and other places.

At first I thought maybe I was allergic to the soap, or maybe the detergent or softener used to wash my towel, but switching things didn’t help at all.

Finally a little research on the internet showed that I was not alone: I had Aquagenic Pruritis. Aqua = water, Genic = cause, Pruritis = Itching.

There is no cure, but there are things to do to reduce the symptoms. I have tried three things:

1) Rub Benadryl lotion on my legs after my shower. It helps, but it takes 10-15 minutes to work, and it’s unpleasant waiting for it to take effect.

2) Desensitize the skin by multiple applications each day of a capsaicin lotion. (Capsaicin is the active ingredient in chili peppers that make them taste spicy. Be warned not to touch your eyes after applying!) I don’t know if this has helped. Maybe I don’t put it on enough times each day.

3) The thing that helps the most: Rub baby oil over my legs before my shower. Apparently this seals the skin so the water has less contact. It makes my legs a little oily, naturally, but a light layer isn’t bad. And it helps a lot, almost totally eliminating the itch.

I’ll keep up the capsaicin treatment for a while, and hopefully I can reduce my skin sensitivity, but for now I’ll continue going to bed oily. And if I forget both, there’s always the Benadryl with it’s belated help.