So I am totally excited about going to see Joe Cocker and Steve Miller Band at Rabobank on Aug. 13. I love classic rock!

I recently watched the funniest video on You Tube I've seen in my life. I was laughing so hard, I was crying and wheezing. Someone re-interpreted Joe Cocker singing "With a Little Help From My Friends" at Woodstock. Check it out!

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Thanks to fellow blogger TomW, my dining room is nearly finished with its renovation. There's still lots to do, but the big job of staining and sealing the wood is almost complete. This is after four months of sanding (thank you to James and all our friends who pitched in) and, of course, the two-month paint stripping blitz back in the fall (huge thanks to my former roommie Paula who did sooooo much work!).

Back when I tackled the living room two years ago, I knew it was a big job. I was not looking forward to undertaking the same project in the dining room -- which has way more wood in it. But now that the end is in sight, it has been totally worth the effort. The room looks beautiful.

To put this in perspective, here's what the job has been: My house is a 1917 Craftsman bungalow in the Oleander neighborhood. It has tons of wood trim and built-ins, all of which had been painted over multiple times over the decades. My goal with the house is to restore it to its original state. This has meant stripping layers of paint from the wood, sanding out the paint remnants, old stain and nicks in the wood, and re-staining and sealing the wood. I started with the living room, then progressed to the dining room.

I have decided these will be the only two rooms that get this treatment — unless I get ambitious with the bathroom. But the two bedrooms and breakfast nook will keep the white painted trim.

There have been some other updates over the years which I'm not going to change -- or are impossible to restore to original. I will keep the sunroom as an enclosed room in the house rather than take it back to a screened porch. The kitchen will need complete gutting to start over. And I've already replaced the wood floor in the living rom with new wood because the old was too badly damaged by termites.

The house is a labor of love. It has taught me to appreciate the Arts & Crafts movement of the late 19th-early 20th centuries. It has also taught me patience. But the home is more than a roof over my head. It is a piece of art in which I live.

I've always tried to be a patient person. Keeps my blood pressure low, stress level down, and general happiness above average. Also it helps other people not have a bad day.

Today was a good test of my patience. I think I passed with flying colors!

First, I woke up and puked because my pharmacy was not able to fill my prescription yesterday for an anti-nausea pill I've been taking to help with my morning sickness. (Although it's more like 24-hour sickness and it's lasted FIVE months now!) By 9:30, when the pharmacy had not called me back like they were supposed to, I called them. They promised to get a hold of my doctor and call me back.

By 10:15, I had to get to work. So I forced myself out of bed and out of my house. My bait? A plan to head to McDonalds for an Egg McMuffin on my way to the office. McDonalds always makes me feel better. I pull up at the drive-thru at 10:28, according to my truck clock. "I'll be with you in a moment," the speaker box says. I read the breakfast menu and notice they stop serving at 10:30. Whew! I just made it. But three minutes later, the speaker box speaks again: "How may I help you?" I answer, "I'd like an Egg McMuffin, please." "Sorry, we stopped serving breakfast at 10:30." "But it's just 10:30 now," I plead. "No, it's 10:33." There was nothing more I could say. I was not about to go lawyer on them. So I ordered two cheeseburgers -- one for then and one for later.

I got to work, and stared miserably at my screen for two hours, employing the deepest powers of my mind not to puke on my keyboard. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and called the pharmacy again at 12:30. "Oh, your prescription has been ready. No one called you?" "No ... but I'm on my way now. Thanks!" I said.

I am now back at work, feeling much better having taken my miracle pill and I'm snacking on my second cheeseburger. Life is good ... I didn't ruin anyone's day by being impatient with them, and I made it through just fine.