A CUT ABOVE OTHER REDNECKS

I stand above, or at least right with, other rednecks. The above photograph is a bit of remodeling I needed to do yesterday and rather than use duct tape (my usual repair tool) I had to fall back on electrician's tape. My son-in-law has been amazed for years over the innovative work that has been completed by me with just a little tape and/or glue. The first time my daughter brought him to our home he got to view my vacuum cleaner totally held together by duct tape. It amazed him. That was all, of course, BR (Before Ron). Since Ron has been ill, I am pretty much left to my own devices. Anyone care to venture a guess on what I was attempting to accomplish here?

Poor Ron is not able to keep me from running amok and just had to shake his head and crawl back in bed yesterday when he saw that the fire I started (with my sister's help) in our incinerator. It had gotten out of control and spread rapidly. Thankfully the carpenter was here and helped my put out the fire. He sprayed it with water and then, when the well ran dry, we beat the fire out with shovels. I was proud that I was able to restart the well pump but when I tried to explain all then events to Ron, he wasn't very impressed. And yes, we are in a drought and under a state wide burn ban but I forgot. After all we have been without AC and my brain is a little more fried than usual. Penalty is a hefty fine or JAIL. OMG!!!



My son called and was not surprised to learn the events of my day, including my moving our porch refrigerator and getting pinned between the washing machine and the refrigerator for a time when only the strength of Samson finally came upon me. He ask me if he was going to have to move in with us to keep me from doing crazy things. I would just about guess some phone conferencing is going on among our children discussing what to do about mom:)

QUESTION OF THE WEEK 7-25-11

Should a woman keep her maiden name when she marries?


(See if this one question doesn't open a whole can of worms. Should the man take her name? Should the parents and children have a hyphenated name? Should the child always be given the man's last name? And what about same sex unions? Should everyone reaching the age of majority have the option to register their own chosen name at no charge? Should there be a law about uniform naming? Etc.,etc., etc.)

Personally, if I were a young person marrying for the first time, I would keep my maiden name and give the children the father's last name.

ANOTHER DREAM

I often dream that Ron and I have a child together. Last night we had a wee tiny little girl and we named her Hiawatha Joy. We wrote to a friend of Ron's to ask him to do a sculpture of our new baby girl and copied the letter to my daughter Chelle. She came to a family event and gave a power point presentation on why she should do the sculpture instead of Ron's friend. While we were at the family gathering to introduce our new child, we were entertained by singing from this tiny new daughter. She could belt out a song about things she had seen and it was amazing to hear this coming out of the mouth of a tiny infant wrapped in a blanket. At some point I dropped our small baby and Slim grabbed her up. I managed to retrieve Hiawatha from the dog's mouth but she had been stretched like a Gumby toy. Meanwhile we felt badly about daughter Terri in San Diego not getting to see the new sister so we called her to see if they wanted to pick a better middle name for Hiawatha than Joy. Maybe tonight I will learn the new middle name.

Now from the dream to a real nightmare. Our air conditioning is totally out and it reached 98 degrees in the kitchen, living room, guest room area. We are living in den and master bedroom area under two window air conditioners until a repair man comes today (hopefully). Thank goodness son Tandy is here to save us. He doesn't have parts and tools to repair the AC but does have the knowledge to diagnose the problem and could tell the repair guy. We know Tandy feels a bit cramped having to sleep on the den couch. If the repair guy doesn't come today, Tandy will install another window air unit in the upper level to get us through before he has to go back home.

As we count our blessings I cannot help but wonder what in the world people are doing who don't have a good cooling system or the financial resources for alternatives other than suffering in the heat.

Devotional this Sunday reminds me: When I open my eyes to the amazing power of God, I have no fear.

T.M.I.

Unusual Flock -- June, Baby Chick, Mr. Gibson, Jack Bauer

The chickens are feeding us. I manage to collect two eggs a day. The heat is definitely affecting egg production. (I am 65 years old and still have to toss a coin on when to use "affect" or "effect".)

Jack Bauer and Rooster Chicklet seem to have reached some agreement and Jack Bauer splits off in the mornings with his own little flock of girls. He wanders all day with Mr. Gibson (who happens to be Chicklet's sister) and Mr. Gibson's young chick plus June who assisted in setting on the nest where this chick was hatched. This leaves Chicklet with the remaider of the flock and that seems to satisfy both camps.

The goats must be insane because they want out of their cool, shaded pen every day to graze under the hot sun. I guess their affection for the heat must be part of their African heritage. The same for the guinea fowl as they do not seem to be bothered by the heat. My own Sub-Saharan African blood does not help me in the least.

Loving the heat -- Elizabeth, Polly, TK, Tina, Dixie, LV, Dr. Cole

Boomer's kittens born in April have moved back here from the neighbor's. David's one kitten, Vern, was born a few days after Boomer's and is only about one third their size. I'm thinking Vern is a dwarf cat.

Boomer's kitten to the right of the name -- Vern directly below name

Slim is trying to go outside but keeps feeling the pull of air conditioning which keeps her from her designated tasks.

However we are having air conditioning problems once more and I don't know how much longer it will hold up under this heat wave. Only half of the house vents blow cool air and the other half seem to be clogged but no one is willing to crawl under the house and see what has happened. I would do it but know I would get stuck in the crawl space. We have fans strategically placed everywhere in hopes of moving cool air to the warm side.

The old stray dog that has adopted us seems to be pulling our leg because everyone in the area thinks the dog as adopted them too. It seems to be panhandling everywhere but still not bothering any livestock or property. I must say that Slim is not happy to have the visitor here any longer and definitely believes it has overstayed it's welcome. The stray has moved from the shady spot under the tractor to Slim's favorite spot under the front porch. Not a good idea.

Our refrigerator is finally repaired ($300 later) and it is a real treat not to have to go to the den freezer or to the small fridge on the utility porch to get our food.

Our kids have been coming almost every weekend from Tulsa and Oklahoma City to help around the place. Son helping with Ron's outside jobs, property maintenance, etc. Daughter putting her magic to work on organizing the inside of our home. I would be ashamed to tell you the number of bags that have been filled and directed to Goodwill, to my storage or to the incinerator. I know Ron and I both are borderline hoarders and the children fear having to dig us out someday.

Ron is gradually progressing as he gets further away from his chemo and radiation treatments but it looks like we're a long way off from him being his old self. It will still be August before we have a clue on how much the treatments helped.

The past six weeks of my Alli weight loss program have resulted in two steps forward and three steps back. I have managed a net loss of another pound (38 lost) but it is very frustrating after it has gone so easily up until now. I am sticking with the plan however and continuing to journal my food intake and exercising daily.

This is definitely TMI (too much information) but just wanted to catch myself up as much as informing you guys. Thanks for listening.....er, reading.

ARMED DELIVERY

Our neighbor's granddaughter delivered fresh tomatoes and cucumbers to us through the field. She carried the pellet rifle in case of snakes. I'm guessing she must fancy herself to pretty good shot to think she might be able to shoot a snake. Yikes!

SHAPE SHIFTING

Looking out my kitchen window, I saw an angel in the clouds. By the time I got outside with my camera it had shape-shifted into a giant chicken.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK 7-18-11

What is your earliest memory of developing a love of reading and writing?

I have been moved by words since my early childhood when influenced by A CHILD'S GARDEN OF VERSES by Robert Louis Stevenson.

(Reading a spectacular book makes me envy the writers who came up with such amazing thoughts and words. Reading so many of your blog posts makes me feel the same.)

SERIOUSLY?

Here is a heart breaking commercial we see on television constantly about saving the needy children of Africa.

So is this the commercial they show in Africa about saving the needy children of America?

SERIOUSLY?

Aren't we going a bit far? We leave battered, abused and starving children in the home with bad parents but we want to take them away if they are eating too much. Get a grip America, we're going way too far with this supposed concern. It is just another social issue clouding the matters of more immediate concern in the United States.

ARE YOU KIDDING?

July, 2005 Oklahoma voted in a tremendous reward for 100% disabled military veterans living in the state. It was a thoughtful gift from Oklahoma voters and a great incentive for us to leave our Kansas home and make Oklahoma our primary residence.

One of the many rewards in that law is for an exemption to Oklahoma state sales tax. Most merchants in the state understand the law and seem to happily participate even though it does require a little bit of paperwork on their part. Often they will not only go through the requirements to make our purchases void of sales tax, but they will also take the opportunity to thank Ron for his service.

However some merchants and their employees simply see the procedures as a pain in their ...elbows and will make comments like, "Oh you're one of those" or "you should have told us that first" or let's see your card" or "the manager is out and I don't know how to run this" (which can subject the merchant to a $500 penalty if they do not comply but we have never filed a protest...yet).

The other day I got one of those disgusted employees who glared at me when I told him we were exempt and he asked in disgust "One of those welfare exemptions?" and I said "Are you kidding? Can't you tell we're not dressed well enough to be on welfare?"

Equating honorable military service that ended in a veteran's lifetime disability with a welfare program is just a tad bit frustrating.

GOOD PASSENGER

Slim is very serious about her rides in the van.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK 7-11-11

Are you superstitious?
(Are there differences between practices of superstition and religious practices?)






For instance did you know why: It's bad luck to walk under a ladder. This came from the early Christian belief that a leaning ladder formed a triangle with the wall and ground. You must never violate the Holy Trinity by walking through a triangle, lest you be considered in league with the devil. (And you all know what good Christians did to people they suspected of being in league with the devil.)

LATEST PORTRAIT PARTY SUBMISSION

I am finally getting back to the Julie Kay Portrait Party on Flickr. This is a recent submission that I am most proud of, especially the jacket.

ARE YOU A MATERIAL GIRL/BOY?

A friend on Facebook (Misty, one of those former bloggers that we all miss) is trying to figure out what to tell her family she wants for her upcoming birthday. I understand her dilemma. I am not and never have been a "material girl" and was once criticized for not craving diamonds or gold or other items of intrinsic value.

It seems my wishes are always for things like peace, joy and happiness. Now I am attempting honestly to put together a wish list that I could give someone who wanted to give me something.

Audio books on CD
Movie DVDs
Music CDs
Sketch pads and/or markers
Vintage books (poetry primarily)
House of Stuart Scotch
7 new strong goat collars
Cute hats (for me not the goats).
Auction, garage sale or yard sale booty.

Basically clever items for very little money. The less spent on me the happier I am. Some of my best gifts have come from the dollar store.

Well that list could go on but I'm surprised I came up with these "wants" so quickly. Maybe I am a material girl. What would be on your list? Oops, did I just waste what could have been a good Question Of The Week?




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WHO WAS FORGOTTEN?

It seems that someone was forgotten in this most recent spectacular trial. The media won.

"Jury: Twelve people who decide which client has the better attorney."
Anonymous quote

QUESTION OF THE WEEK 7-4-11

To curse or not to curse, that is the question?

(Do you curse? When do you curse? Is cursing necessary? Does it relieve tension? Is there a time and place for cursing? If you can control cursing in church or the office, then why not other places as well? Are there acceptable levels of profanity and other levels that should be taboo? Do you avoid curse words but use other terms in their place like "gosh darn" etc.? My current favorite derivatives are "SHUT THE Front door!", "Frickin" and "Carp".)

This week's question is going up early because of the holiday Monday. Have a wonderful, safe and exciting Independence Day!

SPEAKING OF DOGS

Say hello to my daughter's dogs, Anna and Sofie. No, they are not mother and child. Anna is a registered golden Labrador retriever and Sofie is a long-haired dachshund. It is cute how nicely they blend.

Anna is a very big dog and also a very sweet and gentle dog. However she is not always as innocent as she appears.

Our granddaughter Hope got a hamster for her birthday. She was so delighted with her new pet and was totally devastated when it disappeared the day after it arrived. A mad hunt was started.

Everyone had seen Anna playing with the hamster and following it around so they were very cautious watching the large animal and the tiny hamster but Anna did not appear to have been involved with the disappearance. While they were searching, Anna was laying quietly on the couch about like you see her in the picture above. My daughter kept glancing Anna's way to make sure she did not have the hamster.

The moment my daughter looked away from the dog, she heard a plop and turned to see a very wet and limp hamster in the middle of the room. Anna had been concealing the tiny pet in her mouth and spit it out. The big dog had held it gently like a retriever should so it was not crushed, only soggy and appearing totally lifeless.

Just before the hamster funeral was to take place, the small rodent took a deep breath, started running around and is alive and well today. Needless to say the hamster's name is now Lucky.



Don't miss yesterday's post ANOTHER OLD YELLER DOG