After owning a hot tub for over a year

That's frost on my roof. Yes, we've had our first frost, and we're possibly headed for a hard freeze tonight.

Every once in awhile someone will ask, "Do you still use your hot tub a lot?"

Throughout the summer, I seldom got in it; one thing you don't need in hot weather is something that will make you hotter. On cool mornings when I could have enjoyed it, I didn't think about getting in it until later, when it had warmed up.

This morning I actually woke up thinking about the warmth of the hot tub, and when I saw the cover of it coated with frost, I knew the time had truly arrived. It seems like in winter, my hands and feet are constantly cold; that hot tub is the best way of getting totally warmed up. Once I'm good and warm in the bubbling water, I like to sit up on the edge of the tub, up out of the water, and get cold, just so I can enjoy getting warm all over again.

There are drawbacks to having a hot tub, so in case you've thought about buying one, let me tell you about the down side.

You can never drain it and leave it empty; that will ruin your hot tub.

Even in summer when I'm not using it much, maintenance has to be done. I must check the alkalinity and chlorine content a couple of times a week, because if you don't keep the balance right, it will ruin your hot tub. That small bottle in front contains the testing strips.

Oh yes, and then there's the once-a-week maintenance. Honestly, in summer I only do this about once every three weeks, but when I'm using the hot tub a lot, I aim for once a week. All these chemicals, by the way, are not cheap; but then, neither is a hot tub. I sometimes say to Cliff, "You know you're a redneck when you buy a cheap, used trailer house and then buy a hot tub that costs half as much as the house did."

After adding the weekly chemicals, I have to keep the hot tub running with all jets open, and the cover off, for two hours. Since the tub will only run for fifteen minutes at a time, I'm running out there to restart it seven or eight times during that two hours. So I have to make sure I'm not going to be going anywhere in those two hours; this is one reason I ask Cliff, when he gets out of bed, "What's on your agenda today?"

He always thinks I have some ulterior motive when I ask that question.

Another reason I ask his agenda is so I can figure out what to cook for dinner (our noon meal). Some things take longer to prepare than others; if we going to be leaving, I'll plan accordingly.

But I digress.

Three or four times yearly, we have to drain the water and start over. This gets somewhat complicated, since our well water is extremely hard: 43 grains hard, whatever that means. Hard water will ruin your hot tub. We have a water softener, though... so no problem, right?

Guess what? Soft water will ruin your hot tub.

So we use 1/3 soft water and 2/3 hard water and hope that works; that's the mix we gave the spa people for testing. They said we had "weird water", but hey... they're selling a hot tub, so it wouldn't be wise for them to say too many bad things about our mix of water.

I'm not complaining, mind you. I'm just educating those of you who think you might want a hot tub.

On my own, I wouldn't have purchased a hot tub in the first place; there are other things I would have done with that money. Cliff, however, knew how I loved getting in the hot tub at motels and resorts, and he adamantly insisted that we have one. He wanted to do something extravagant for me, something I'd never get on my own.

I do enjoy it, especially the part about getting thoroughly warmed up on cold mornings. It's also good medicine for a stiff neck, or sore muscles.

But now I feel I've presented both sides of the coin. For more information, click HERE.

Spring is busting out all over

My favorite time to be in the hot tub is right at sunup; when I see the sun looking like this, I'm ready to take the plunge.
This is how things looked fifteen minutes later, when I got out.
That's my cottonwood tree in the foreground. It's windy today, and it was relaxing just watching that tree sway in the breeze. These days I can hardly wait for daylight so I can go check out the trees, shrubs, and flowers.

Almost!
I left my herb garden outside last night, since the temperatures weren't going to be dipping as low as usual. They're going to have to be put out in the garden someplace, because they're crowding themselves out of a home in this planter, and not looking too healthy.

The tomatoes and peppers, on the other hand, are looking great so far; the only problem is that they need to be set out into the garden NOW, and we're still having frost and freezing. I just hope they hang in there. Next year I won't be in such a hurry to plant those seedlings.

Questions people ask about my hot tub

First of all, let me tell you that had it been up to me, I would never have spent money on a hot tub. We could have spent those dollars on so many more practical things, or even on some fun things we could both enjoy. Cliff is responsible for the purchase of this totally impractical item. His thinking was something along these lines: Every time he's really wanted or needed something, like his shop, or any of several tractors, or a motorcycle, I've pressed him to get it; my theory is that we'd better enjoy life while we can. Cliff went without a lot of things for many years when our kids were still at home. He deserves anything we can get him now.

While he's the major breadwinner around here, I'm the one in charge of the budget; so I have a lot of power over how the money is spent. Quite literally, I hold the purse-strings. Isn't that how it is in most marriages?

Cliff had noticed how I've enjoyed hot tubs when we were vacationing, and he wanted me to have this one whimsical, totally non-practical thing, something I never asked for. When I tried to talk him out of it, he almost got angry. It was something he wanted to do for me.

After reading and hearing some of the horror stories about used spas, we knew we'd have to buy a new one.

So we invested in a hot tub that cost 1/3 as much as we paid for this mobile home! How redneck is that?

The water stays in it year around. You can never drain a hot tub for any length of time; fittings dry out or something, and it will leak when water is put back in it.

If we were to have an extended power outage (a fairly common occurrence in Missouri), it'll be destroyed, because all those pipes and fittings hidden deep in the foam that insulates the thing will freeze and burst. The man who delivered it and set it up said it probably wouldn't freeze for at least 24 hours, because of the insulation.

Keeping the proper chemical balance is tricky, mainly because of our well water. Softened water is death to the workings of a hot tub, and so is hard water with a calcium content as high as ours. So when we drain and refill it (once every three months or so) we use a mix of the two. Then it takes a week or more of adding PH reducer to get the PH down where it ought to be. Sometimes after awhile, PH increaser has to be added. I have test strips that give me all the information I need, so I know when to add what. Chlorine isn't so tricky; I just add a couple of teaspoons of stuff each time I get out of the spa, and that maintains it where it needs to be.

In weather like we're having now, the hot tub adds at least twenty dollars a month to our electric bill.

To put things in perspective, here's the kicker: Cliff asked me a while back which I'd choose to keep if I had to make a choice: my dishwasher or the hot tub.

"The dishwasher, no question," I told him.

But the important thing is that Cliff wanted to get me something outrageously lavish by our standards, just this once, and he did that. I think it's his way of saying, "I'd do anything for you, no matter how ridiculous."

Consider it my Hope Diamond.

Some of you think I'll catch my death, being out there in a swimsuit when the temperature hovers around zero: Well, the only hard part is getting to the tub and getting in, which takes about three seconds from the time I take my robe off. For those three seconds, it's COLD! Once in, the heat rises enough so that even though my hair ices up, my face stays nice and warm. If there's a north wind, the tops of my ears might get a little cold. Otherwise, I'm comfy.

You would think it would be horrible getting out of the thing; after all, I'm soaking wet and it's zero, right? But fifteen minutes in the hot tub at 102 degrees has me so thoroughly warmed through that getting out is no problem at all. I come inside, dry off, put clothes and shoes on, and then go back out and put the top back on the hot tub.

I hope this answers all the questions my readers have posed about the hot tub. If not, leave a question in the comment section and I'll answer it there.

Oh, Mrs. L wondered how the hot tub was helping my neck (in the previous entry) since my neck wasn't in the water. If you look closely you'll see two very powerfully jetted streams of water above my shoulders that were pounding directly on my neck.

This helped my stiff neck!

Yes, it was around zero. Notice the ice in my hair. The only part of me that got cold was the tops of my ears.

Another visit with a long-time friend

This morning was wet and gray, with snow in the forecast. We had intended to visit another lady yesterday after we left Dona, but when we called her, we found out she leaves for the Senior Center at 10 A.M., where she socializes, plays cards, and eats dinner. So we headed out early this morning, since it was too nasty to go for our usual walk, and went to see Helen.

Cliff worked for many years with Helen, at the butcher shop. He went by her house and picked her up most days, since she was on his way to work. She's one of the dearest ladies you'd ever meet, and she was so happy to see us; she said we made her day! She lives in a small apartment by herself, at age 90. She uses a walker to get around, but seems to get by quite well.

See the white in my hair? That's ice. I got the bright idea to get in the hot tub while it's snowing. It really was a nice experience, but getting out and wading through snow wasn't a lot of fun. Would I do it again? Probably!

Cliff in the hot tub

Cliff doesn't often make use of my hot tub. He loves it, and how it loosens him up; but it's just too much trouble to him, first thing in the morning, to make sure there's no lotion or deodorant on his body and face the cold temperatures. However, he pulled something in his back yesterday. So in spite of having to walk through snow to get in, he's out there enjoying the warm relaxation only a hot tub provides.

And what a view today!

I've already had my turn.

Ladies' night in the hot tub

Natalie and Monica (my daughter's girls), Rena (Cliff's oldest sister), yours truly, and Charlene, Cliff's baby sis.

Life with a hot tub or spa

When we purchased our hot tub, a sample of our water was tested and we were given an assortment of chemicals to be used for the maintenance of said tub. Things to raise and lower the pH, de-scaling junk, you name it. We were given a sheet of instructions on when and how to use all these. Cliff informed me that, since I'm the one who'll be using the tub the most, I need to take care of the chemicals. I agreed with that.

I blithely tossed in the first three or four ingredients to be used before we ever got in the tub. After doing so, I glanced again at my instructions and realized I was supposed to put the first thing in ahead of the others and wait awhile. Oops.

I was instructed to add two teaspoons of chlorine concentrate after every use of the hot tub, so upon getting out of the spa, I'd do that. A couple of weeks later, I noticed I was supposed to add it with the pump running. Oops.

The weekly maintenance thing didn't seem like such a big deal to me. Just add three chemicals in the proper amount. But yesterday, after a month of hot tub use, I realized that the pump is supposed to run for two hours after adding the de-scaling stuff. Oops.

Oh, and also yesterday I noticed I was to clean the filters before using that stuff. Oops.

One of the chemicals is to be added with the pump running but the aerators off. Hmmm. OK, I think I've figured out what that means... hit the "jet number 1" button once, not twice.

Something I figured out as soon as I read the manufacturer's book: there's virtually no guarantee on a hot tub. If you don't keep the pH right, that can mess it up and you are at fault. In fact, practically anything that goes wrong with it can be blamed on ME.

It isn't physically hard, but it's wearing out my brain. Are swimming pool chemicals this difficult to figure out?

On another note, when I got up this morning and turned on my computer, it wouldn't access the Internet. This is a common occurrence, and my first move is always to fire up the laptop so I'll know whether it's the desktop or my DSL connection that's failed me. Today, as usual, my laptop connected; the problem was with this computer.

My next move is to turn the computer off and unplug it for awhile. Often, when I plug it back in and turn it on, it works. Not today.

Then I tried "system restore". After all, I did install that new program yesterday. So I did a "go-back" to Saturday. Of course, Backstreet Browser was gone, but perhaps my computer would now connect to the Internet.

Nope.

OK, that leaves one other thing: turn off the computer, unplug the DSL box, and wait awhile. Come back, turn on the DSL, wait till the lights quit dancing, and turn on the computer.

That fixed the problem. I have no idea why. In fact, I don't know why any of these things works.

The world of computers is a mystery to me. Very much like this real world.

Men's night in the hot tub (plus one)

My husband, the son-in-law, and the brother-in-law. They're being chaperoned by my granddaughter, Natalie.

That's the lovely sunset. There was light rain when I took the picture.

My dog and Cliff's sister's dog wait patiently for people to come back in the nice, dry house. We do have a dog-friendly home.

What's going on around here?

We're getting concrete in our shop/garage while Cliff soaks out back in the hot tub, which was purchased for yours truly... but he found out it greatly eases his morning arthritis pain and stiffness.

My own little vacation resort

Here you see the most frivolous thing Cliff and I ever bought (and we've bought many). It's my new hot tub. Left to right, that's me, Cliff's sisters Rena and Charlene, and Charlene's husband, Pat. (By the way, the foam is gone now; we purchased some anti-foaming stuff.)

I'm still trying to get the PH lowered to the proper level. I've learned chlorine has to be added after each use. If I ever get all that right, I'll feel like a chemist. Wish me luck.

Charlene and Pat moved to St. Louis a year ago to take advantage of a job opportunity, but they left a lot of their furniture and "stuff" in their farm house not far from here. The house sat uninhabited all this time, but of course the yard had to be mowed, the wintertime temperatures had to be kept above freezing, and so forth. It was a hassle, with them living over three hours from here.

Then they were presented with an opportunity similar to the one we had when Cliff's sister needed a place to live after her divorce and moved to our old house: a gentleman they knew got his divorce finalized and sold his house; he needed a place to live.

The only down side to this (to them) is that they have to get rid of the "stuff" at the farm. Charlene will keep some of it. She's given me every type of shelving and storage item she owns because I need such things for my new back room and for the section of the new garage Cliff says is mine. My daughter has needed a hutch for years, to display some red dishes my mom bought her years ago; now she has one.

I guess all that is not really a "down side", though. If they haven't used it for a year, they probably need to get rid of it. It's just hard for people who work all week to devote a couple of weekends to moving.

Meanwhile, because they're in the area moving things, they're spending the weekend at our house. And what better way to get rid of the aches, pains, and worries involved in moving than to relax in a hot tub? They'll be here next week too, finishing up.

That spot where I'm sitting in the hot tub is a lounge-type seat that massages upper back, lower back (kidney area), backs of thighs and calves, and the bottoms of the feet. It is SO relaxing! When I get out, my whole body feels limp as a wet noodle. My knees don't hurt for hours afterward.

My husband bought this extravagance specifically for me, but he's found out it works wonders on the shoulder and back he abused during his butchering years.

As we sat in the warmth of the hot tub last night with gentle rain falling around us, my brother-in-law sighed and said, "I wonder what poor folks are doing tonight?"

Indeed, we felt rich.

Girls just wanna have fun.

First of all you must remember that I see my granddaughters every day before and after school. And all day long when school is out. They're at an age where they snip at one another constantly, each one putting the other down. I raised two kids who did the same thing, so it isn't new to me. But it's a little harder to put up with when you're past sixty.

So Cliff had this little road trip he was dreading because he hated to drive 250 miles alone; but I wasn't crazy about the place he was going. And I had to watch my granddaughters all day because there was no school.

I cooked up the idea of the girls and me going with Cliff, getting a motel with an inside pool, and having a mini-vacation. The only think I wasn't looking forward to was the kids' sniping and putting one another down.

So I told them as we left that if they ever wanted to do anything like this again, they'd better behave.


They made the trip to Independence, Kansas, in fine style. Cliff settled us into the motel around 2:30 and went to his brother's to paint tractors. The girls checked out our room, running around excitedly and bouncing on beds, turning on the hair dryer, and briefly watching the flat-panel TV on the wall.


I watched while they swam for an hour or more, still behaving quite nicely. We went to see "Meet The Robinsons" across the street, which was a pretty cute movie. Afterward they swam at least an hour again, and I soaked in the hot tub.


This morning we had plenty to choose from for breakfast. The girls were still being nice to one another, with only one brief lapse.


We wanted to enjoy the water just once more before heading home. Another hour swimming and soaking.



As we started loading the car to head home, the sweet little angels morphed back into the granddaughters with whom I'm so familiar. But for over twenty-four hours, the three of us had the time of our lives.

By the way, if you're ever in Independence, Kansas (I can't imagine why anyone would be, but still), I highly recommend the Apple Tree Inn. It's one of the better motels I've had the pleasure of staying in. No, it wasn't that pricey: $87 plus tax for the four of us.

I love hot tubs!

The granddaughters and I are having a mini-vacation in Kansas. Most refreshing. In fact, I wouldn't mind if it lasted longer, but alas, this is a one-nighter. The girls swam, then we walked across the street to see "Meet The Robinsons". Then they swam more, and I enjoyed the hot tub for so long I turned into a prune. If I ever win the lottery, I'll have a hot tub at home. My NEW home in some other town, with enough room to breathe without neighbors breathing down my neck.