Bad news...

[JayKitty76]

I'm so sorry. I praise God everybody is OK.
Recording in the parking lot might be a good idea, you could probably get some work done. At the hotel itself, you have access to Wi-fi so you could check up on stuff a little too.
Any out-of-control fire is really scary, I'm so sorry you had to go through that but I thank God everything and everybody is safe.

[ej400]

Thank you Rachel.

I keep thinking I can't record in the afternoon, because I usually did it in the morning, but hopefully tomorrow night I can get away and just read.

Thanks everyone <smile>

[ej400]

Well... we have cats. Thankfully they all got out when the fire happened, and they are now living in a barn or camper. On Wednesday night into Thursday, were now supposed to get 12-20 inches of snow <help sign> So now were going to need to find a place for our cats, or find a house or apartment today and early tomorrow <sadface> Sorry guys, it's just that this is super stressful, and for me, personally, I like to talk with people, and you guys are like family. You've been such a warm and welcoming community, I simply cannot, not, tell you what's going on.

[JayKitty76]

Oh, you have cats? Thank heavens they all got out safely!
Cats have something of a sixth sense, they usually know when something's about to happen and consequently they are usually safe in a fire or something like that. They can sense it ahead of time and get to safety.
I have five cats myself, three outdoor and two indoor, but they've never gone through anything like a fire. Ugh, I'm so sorry...I can't even imagine how stressful this is for you and your family. It's enough that you have to find yourself a place to stay, without worrying about pets' accommodations too.
I'm assuming your hotel doesn't allow pets? Because if you have cat crates, maybe you could take them into your hotel room so they'd be safe from the snow and all the weather. But if the hotel doesn't allow pets...hmm, do you have friends nearby who would be willing to take the cats in? Finding someone you know to take care of them will definitely lessen expenses, if you can do that.

Rachel

[ej400]

So we were able to clean up part of the house yesterday, and make it livable for the cats on the main floor where there is not damage. There isn't a bad smoke smell in there anymore, and they will be nice and warm there. Hopefully on Saturday, when the blizzard is over, we can go and visit them.

We also think we've found a house, but we'll need to wait a little bit for other complications, but things are looking very hopeful!

[KIBBONAFIDE]

Thanks for the updates and I hope things calm down soon. Glad the kitties are getting by!

[JayKitty76]

So we were able to clean up part of the house yesterday, and make it livable for the cats on the main floor where there is not damage. There isn't a bad smoke smell in there anymore, and they will be nice and warm there. Hopefully on Saturday, when the blizzard is over, we can go and visit them.

We also think we've found a house, but we'll need to wait a little bit for other complications, but things are looking very hopeful!

Oh, good. Glad to hear you guys are doing OK. So glad you have (pretty much) found a house, that's great news. I've been praying for you guys every day, I'll definitely continue to do so.

Thanks and God bless,
Rachel

[ej400]

Thank you both. Well, the blizzard is finally over with, and now it's going to be the cleaning process and getting things out of the house <eyeroll> Hopefully it won't take long.

I should coming online a little bit more often, although there may be a few days I'll be gone. Thank you everyone for your prayers and kind words, I appreciate them and you all <smile>

[gibhere2]

Dear librivox community,
I recently had a house-fire, and my family is going to be staying in a hotel for a few days while we try to figure out where to go from here. Thankfully, there were a lot of things that weren't damaged, and only smell a little like smoke (like my computer and mp3 thank goodness). There's a lot of water damage, and the house is old, and will probably mold out. Thank goodness though, that everyone is alright, and everything that was living inside the house, is still alive....

Sorry to hear of your fire. I am so glad there was no loss of life! Librivox will wait for you to recover.

We also had a fire a few years ago. It was deemed a total loss but we were able to salvage a few things. There are some things I learned along the way.

> Things that you are able to salvage or paperwork that needs to be salvaged but has smoke damage: seal up in a container with some old socks filled with cheap coffee. The coffee will absorb the smell.

> Photos that are coated in soot : an artists eraser works well

> Keep a box of latex gloves at the entryway of the house and put them on before you touch anything. The soot will get in your skin and stay there! Latex gloves are a life saver! If you are taking things back to where you are staying to try and rescue them, have latex gloves there too.

>Our fire was in the winter too (December 23rd). We kept some of the cheap - one size fits all - knit gloves by the latex gloves. Put the latex gloves over the top of the knit gloves. It will keep your hands warm and the soot off.

>I have a recipe for a cleaner that will cut through the soot like nothing else. Send me a private message if you are interested and I would be happy to share the recipe.

I hope you, your family and your fur babies recover quickly!

[moniaqua]

Well, the blizzard is finally over with, and now it's going to be the cleaning process and getting things out of the house <eyeroll> Hopefully it won't take long.

I keep my fingers crossed that all goes well. What luck that you and the family including your pets could be saved.
For the molding, a friend of mine had a wet apartment due to a pipe burst; he got some really big fans rented to dry the apartment. Would that be an option? That was in Europe, but I guess you have such things over there, too

[ej400]

Dear librivox community,
I recently had a house-fire, and my family is going to be staying in a hotel for a few days while we try to figure out where to go from here. Thankfully, there were a lot of things that weren't damaged, and only smell a little like smoke (like my computer and mp3 thank goodness). There's a lot of water damage, and the house is old, and will probably mold out. Thank goodness though, that everyone is alright, and everything that was living inside the house, is still alive....

Sorry to hear of your fire. I am so glad there was no loss of life! Librivox will wait for you to recover.

We also had a fire a few years ago. It was deemed a total loss but we were able to salvage a few things. There are some things I learned along the way.

> Things that you are able to salvage or paperwork that needs to be salvaged but has smoke damage: seal up in a container with some old socks filled with cheap coffee. The coffee will absorb the smell.

> Photos that are coated in soot : an artists eraser works well

> Keep a box of latex gloves at the entryway of the house and put them on before you touch anything. The soot will get in your skin and stay there! Latex gloves are a life saver! If you are taking things back to where you are staying to try and rescue them, have latex gloves there too.

>Our fire was in the winter too (December 23rd). We kept some of the cheap - one size fits all - knit gloves by the latex gloves. Put the latex gloves over the top of the knit gloves. It will keep your hands warm and the soot off.

>I have a recipe for a cleaner that will cut through the soot like nothing else. Send me a private message if you are interested and I would be happy to share the recipe.

I hope you, your family and your fur babies recover quickly!

That you for your advice/tips. Were already using the latex gloves when we go to the house, and yes, were trying to salvage as much as we can, while also trying to make sure were not taking quite everything.

I keep my fingers crossed that all goes well. What luck that you and the family including your pets could be saved.
For the molding, a friend of mine had a wet apartment due to a pipe burst; he got some really big fans rented to dry the apartment. Would that be an option? That was in Europe, but I guess you have such things over there, too

I don't think fans would work... it's a pretty old house, and were planning to move out at this point. Thank you for your kind words <smile>

[Win2017]

Back to the topic of recording outside... I have a funny story.

In the winter I was doing a private project and since it was winter, and around -20c my family was mostly inside, and upstairs(where my brother and his family live) the kids were thundering loud enough to compete with a herd buffalo... I decided since I was bored, that I would give the -20 car a shot.. Yeah I bundled into my huge winter coat and thick mitts and headed out... It actually worked... Until I realized I kept chattering and shivering causing the mic to pick up the scrunching of my coat. I continued, ignoring everything. Suddenly the door opens and my dad(with a bizzare smirk) says, " What the heck are you doing!" After jumping a foot off the seat, I proceeded to tell him with a very straight face that I was recording. His reply, something like, "Seriously, you're that desperate."
I didn't go out again. He was amused.

We finished building our house 3 years ago after spending about 5 years building pretty much all of it ourselves (well I shouldn't give myself so much credit and I was in my early teens, but I helped a ton, most was men's work). Anyway, it is all built out of wood; wood framing, wood siding, wood accents, plus the walls are straw/clay. It is basically waiting to burn down, lol. We had a scare 2 years ago when my brother was sautering a pipe in the wall and started a mini fire in the straw. We thought it was ok, but when my dad came he immediately started tearing out handfuls of straw/clay. Sure enough, he was right, it had smoldered further in, and the wall was hot. After pouring buckets of water in we contained it all, and it was okay. But yeah, it was a little scary. I say 'little' in retrospect, or course.

I think I'm taught with all things in life that nothing happens for no reason. For example, every time I fall off my horse I get so mad that he was goofing off. After I cool down and am limping around, I'm humbled to realize that I had a total agenda and was pushing him past his training for my pride or need of confidence. The real point is to have our eyes open to see that all we hold onto here will pass. We must therefore, be dealing with our problems and sin in all things as that will build up true treasure in the heavenly kingdom.

Since I've started rambling, I'm just going to continue on the subject of decrease. lol.

2 weeks ago we dropped all sugar and grains for a week. My sister has a baby boy and he has extreme eczema. We already eat pretty healthy as it is (no processed foods, or bad sugar) but we took it a step further with no honey and no fruit and none of our homemade bread either. It was super eye-opening, just how entitled we are to our things that we expect to have. My sister and her husband are still on only vegetables and meat. For practicality sake we went back to bread and small amounts of fruit, but we're keeping everything else to a minimum. However, my nephew is improving and his face is clearing, its not instant but it is encouraging. It is a reminder of how fallen we are. How broken down. This is not our home.
During the week we kept complaining to eachother, "Everyone already hates us cause we talk openly about our sin and all problems(as 1john says), and now we can't even be comforted by our honey toasts!" But we're supposed to rejoice in persecution.

Whoa/whoops for going on that long speech. I'm not quite sure what horse training and eczema have to do with your situation, but... Hey, people are too quiet nowadays. So I always figure it's my job to make up for it all.

And plus, maybe I can encourage best by expanding your perspective.
Happy cleaning. I hate organizing or tidying or anything like it. My mom lives for it.

[ej400]

Thank you for sharing your stories. I'm a super social person in real life, so even you sharing your stories online was great. Your dad acted just like mine would have if I was reading in a car and he came in

[ej400]

I found some time to record in one of my solos, and things have really settled down. I'd consider myself "half way back", so I will be uploading new sections at a slower pace. But yes, I'm 100% back <smile> Thank you all for your kind words, and funny stories!

[NyatsimbaTino]

Oooooh It's very sad! But I think you and your family are well.