This has been an odd day, even by my standards. I woke up at 5 a.m. so I could be at Carol's home by 6:30. Today was her grocery shopping day. Carol is a night person, we always start our day in the dark.
As soon as I woke up, and walked down the hall, I stepped in dog poo. It was dark. I had no clue what I had just hit with my big toe, but I knew for sure whatever was on my left foot did not belong there. About this time Sabella, my german shepherd, runs up to me in a frantic rage, heading for the back door. She was on a mission, pausing only once to make sure I was behind her. I hobbled to the door, by now I had figured what was on my toe, and let her out. This never ever happens, my dogs have been house broken for years.
Evidently I woke Tommy up because he comes staggering down the hall asking, "Do you know you have dog shit on your toe?" I hobble to the kitchen and throw my foot up on the trash can. This was no where near as simple as it sounds. I ask Tommy to get the poo off my toe. Looking at me wickedly, he wants to know when I started saying "Poo"? I inform him I have always said "poo". "Right" he says and starts to walk off. I ask him where he is going and he says, "back to bed".
"You can't go back to bed! I need help. My toe has poo on it!" He just looks at me, laughs and throws a paper towel in my direction. After my foot is cleaned up, the coffee is going and I am more than awake. I turn on the den light.
Surprise does not even come close to what I saw. Sabella usually sleeps either in the hallway or in my writing room in front of a bookcase. I didn't leave a night light on. I should have. I was tired and forgot all about our nightly routine. I won't forget again.
The way Tommy and I tried to piece together this unusual mess was Sabella was sleeping, Mother Nature called and there was no one to let her outside. She made a run for the back door and got tangled up in the twenty foot phone cord. Sabella must have had one heck of a fight with the phone cord. The receiver was on the love seat. The phone and answering machine were in the floor. My small book case by the computer was knocked over spilling paper and books everywhere. Not to mention a few piles of poo thrown in just to make things nasty. It is a reasonable guess at best.
I open the door and try to get Her Majesty, Miss Sandy to go outside. She looks at me like I am speaking pig Latin and turns her head so she can't see me. I knew she had to go, she had been in as long as Sabella. The old girl didn't want to give up her recliner. I won, I guess. They were finally outside and I was cleaning up poo. I wouldn't exactly call that a 'win' for me. However, this accident really was our fault. We dropped the ball and didn't take care of our other kids like the responsible adults we are supposed to be on a good day. Three hours later, I was still mad at myself for letting this mess get out of control and for putting my dogs in an uncomfortable situation.
While shopping with Carol, I find a ball that I think is absolutely positively adorable. It is about the size of a baseball, clear plastic with diamond facets on the inside. It is filled with a clear gel and has a light transmitter in it. When it is thrown or bounced it lights up and is awesome looking. The ball changes colors fast, the hues are intense displaying a light show that is unusual. I played with that ball all over the store!!! I just knew my 'girls' would like it as much as I did.
Carol liked the ball for awhile. However, when I bounced the ball into the cheese isle and preceded to take a picture of it, she was no longer amused. I bought two balls and the cheese.
The girls were still outside when I came home. I let them in. I couldn't wait for them to see their new toys.
Sandy made a beeline for her recliner, Sabella lays down in front of the t.v. That's new. I'm like what's up with that?? She never does that. I bounce one ball a time or two so the lights start working. I am telling Tommy to watch this. He sighs, Judge Judy is on and he doesn't want to be disturbed. Sandy sighs turning her head to face the t.v.--she also likes Judge Judy. Sabella just looks at me. The ball is ready and showing off its colors. I toss the ball to Sabella. It rolls to her feet. She sniffs it, looks at me, looks at Sandy then Tommy. She looks back at the ball. She gave me one of those, "If you think I am chasing that ball, lady you are nuts!! You bought it, you can play with it." She then gets up and saunters in to the den, lays down facing my desk. Her stomach starts to rumble and make all kinds of sounds. I head for the door and out she goes.
Apparently, she was still ticked at me for letting her down the night before. It was going to take more than a pair of balls to get this ole girl in a good mood!
I left Sabella outside. Sandy was asleep before I had time to fix us a sandwich. The ball is now on my computer along with my other collection of odd things that I like. The second ball is in my purse.
Sometimes when I am writing if I get to a place where the words stop flowing, or my muse is having sex with some dude she met the night before, I find myself playing with some odd toys that I have collected since I have retired.
It is a mindless activity that helps my imagination run free for a few minutes. One of the toys is a little gerbil that cries when he runs into the wall and goes "uh ooo" in a tiny squeaky gerbil voice. Never fails to bring a smile to my face. I also have a green Frankenstein that winds up and waddles around. There are days I know exactly how he feels. Now I have added this iridescent ball to the mix. I think it is beautiful, fanciful maybe even a little on the magical side, especially when seen in the dark. I have no clue why I am the only one in my home that likes the new balls.
The day is almost over. Sabella appears to have forgotten she was mad and upset. She still doesn't give a flip for the ball. So it is now officially mine. Our nightly ritual will be observed. The night light will stay on for the girls. Everything is back to normal at my home....at least for the time being.
I think I will turn the lights off and bounce the ball a few times. It really is something pretty to watch. Once again, it doesn't take much to make me happy. That my friends, is the truth.
In 2008 Jacy broke her leg while riding on a scooter. It happened shortly before her 8th birthday on October 30th. Halloween night her leg was in a full cast. Originally, Jacy was going to stay home on Halloween night, passing out candy to the little kids who came to the door. That was the first plan.
When the night rolled around, Jacy changed her mind. She had a new princess outfit and wanted to go trick or treating. She was on crutches with a full leg cast from her foot to her mid thigh. That wasn't an option. It was too tricky for her to be out trying to walk around in the dark on crutches. We didn't have a back up plan. This is where Tommy becomes the hero. A much deserved title of 'hero.'....and a great grandpa.
I was forced to work a double shift a the hospital. There wasn't any way I would be able to help. I wouldn't get off from work until 11 p.m. Halloween would be over when I arrived home.
Jacy cried. She really, really wanted to go trick or treating. It is very hard to tell a little girl with a broken leg that she has to stay home. Did I mention that she cried???
Tommy and Tami start racking their brains . How could they make Halloween happen? Tommy thought of the wheel barrow. They would put pillows and blankets around Jacy, then carefully place her in the wheel barrow, taking her from house to house, on their street. All Tommy had to do was make sure the wheel barrow didn't get off center and flip over. Tami was in charge of Logan aka the Incredible Hulk and keeping Jacy warm during this trek. It worked!!!
Tommy slips on a warm sock over Jacy's cast. She looks almost like Cinderella trying on the glass slipper. I love this photo.
Finally, the wheel barrow is ready. Jacy is placed carefully inside the rolling thrown. Off they go to trick or treat, making one little girl very happy, one grandpa very nervous and one Incredible Hulk anxious for Candy! Candy! Candy!!!
Every house they visited, the people thought the wheel barrow was part of the costume. I think Jacy won the most original outfit. The weather was nice that night. The kids had fun and so did the adults. I was so proud of Tommy for doing this. It is one of the nicest things he could have done. Papaw definitely earned his 'wings' that night.
As for my Halloween, the sixteen hours while I worked, we had a code or fight before 9 a.m. a suicide attempt by noon and a dance, in the gym for everyone who was not ward confined from the first two occurrences, scheduled to start at 2 p.m. Nothing out of the ordinary. It is a place where the 'ordinary' is all too often the unusual. Things are seldom what they appear to be. Halloween night was no exception.
I spent last weekend with my grandchildren in Centralia. We broke a few rules and had a good time. We ate when we were hungry--and a few times when we were not. At times, hot pockets just looked good and we wanted to munch.
Since there was no school, we didn't have a bedtime. We were usually in bed by 10 p.m...usually...give or take an hour or two.
The first thing on the agenda was to stay home until we really, really wanted to go out in public. We wore our p.j.'s the first day, all day long. No one wanted to go anywhere. When they needed to get out of the house for a few minutes, they took their dogs out to potty and jumped on the trampoline.
The trampoline almost gave me an anxiety attack!! They loved that fact!! I heard "Hey Nonnie, don't go back inside---watch us!! Take a picture.!!" If I heard it once, I heard it a 100 times, as I tried to make a break for the house. They would giggle, knowing perfectly well how I feel about the trampoline. It gets rid of a lot of energy for them. They jump, fly, flip, toss and stagger around for 30 minutes or an hour and they are ready to settle down for a little while. I am ready for a xanax. I call the above shot, "Brother and sister flying through the air, while Nonnie nearly throws up."
Not only do they do all sorts of fly by's, they do tricks too. Jacy calls the above photo, "Girl pretending to be a cat." I can actually see that. The more I look at this picture, the more convinced I am this is Jacy doing a rabbit impersonation. Logan proceeded to do a flip with the assistance of their dog Delta. She was in the process of jumping up on the trampoline when I took the shot.
I thought for sure she would get hurt but she bounced and was on the ground before I could take the shot. I have to admit that was funny and Delta seemed to enjoy her adventure. I hope she never does it again while I am here.
Logan entertained me with his favorite band, Aerosmith by playing Guitar Hero for me at 7a.m. He is really good. There is no way you can play Guitar Hero any way but loud. There is loud at 3 p.m. and there is loud at 7 a.m. I think 7 a.m. is the loudest!
I sat on the couch wrapped in a blanket, drinking Pumpkin Flavored coffee, thoroughly enjoy my time with Logan. He was surprised I knew the words to the songs. I told him I was old, not dead. Smoozer that he is, he said, "Awe Nonnie your not old at all." Play all you want to little boy this is a good day in the making.
By one o'clock on Saturday we were ready to see civilization. I gave each one of the kids $10, to spend at WalMart. We were on a budget. Logan is a natural born hunter. He knows what he wants the minute he sees it. He grabs it, being completely satisfied with his catch.
Jacy on the other hand can never make up her mind. Too many shinny things to see, feel and touch. She shops like I do. Logan 's treasure was 2 packs of "Big Boots". He asked me if he could get them. I told him that was fine with me. He looked at me kind of funny and said, "Really?" I said " sure, looks like fun. " He laughed and I think he said as he walked off, "Cool, Mom wouldn't let me get them." I may have misunderstood.... I heard right the first time.
Jacy finally finds what she wants while I am in the process of getting some glitter, neon necklaces that glow in the dark and 3 glass containers so we can make "Magic in a Bottle". Something I found on the internet. I am sure this will work, since the internet never lies!!
As we are getting ready to leave, Jacy finds a broom that she needs for her Halloween custom while Logan finds a monster wolf that he wants to be for Halloween. We are ready to leave the store. Taco Bell is our next destination. After we get there, we place our order. The kids ask if they can go get their sodas. I said 'sure' and I wait to pay. I hear Jacy say, "Logan don't get that!" Too late, he got it---a medium Mt. Dew!! More caffeine than any little 8 year old boy needs. I have lost my touch. I used to be able to foresee these things coming with the girls. Not any more.
Lunch was filling and good. Logan was just beginning to bounce off the walls from the caffeine. We made it home before the "Big Boots" were pulled out of their perspective boxes.
Tami has hard wood floors upstairs. The perfect sound track for 6 wooden weebles, who when thrown down the hallway all land on their 'Big Feet' after they bounce off the walls, the doors, and my head, the dogs head any and everything that was in the way. He loved it!!! Jacy loved it!!! And I learned how to dodge the bullet on occasion. I have to confess that is the worst $10.00 I have spent in a long time. I still hear echos of "Hey Nonnie, here comes my favorite "Big Boot", right past your big toe!!!!" Note to self---no caffeine, no toys that sound like a marching army and nothing with "Big Boots".
We watched a couple of movies. Mostly Jacy enjoys watching YouTube videos. I was really surprised when they started watching the attack on the World Trade Center. We talked about that for a long time. They wanted to know what Tommy and I were doing when 9-11 happened. They wanted to hear the story over and over. I changed the subject eventually. I didn't want them to worry too much or have bad dreams.
Jacy asked if they could watch a movie. I said sure. The next thing I know they are watching "Titanic !! So much for cutting down on the drama. Logan's caffeine level hasn't dropped at bit. He is ready for the ship to sink---unfortunately the movie has only begun to play. To my utter shock we all slept that night. At 9 p.m. I would not have bet a dollar on that one.
Jacy and I decided to take her dog Precious, to the park. Logan wanted to stay and play with his "Big feet". That was fine. We were less than a block from his house. It gave us time for some 'girl talk'. She is growing up so fast. However, I was pleased to note that she really isn't in any hurry to grow up. I think she is happy just like she is. That is a good place for a little girl to be.
Jacy has a birthday on October 30th. She will be 11. I had thought I would get her a bottle of Taylor Swift perfume for her birthday. I asked her if she would like to have the perfume. She thought for a minute and said, "No, I think I will stay a little girl a little longer."
Music to my ears. She has all the time in the world to be a grown up but only a little while to be 11.
The next morning was Sunday. The kids wanted chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. I made them but under a strict watchful eye of Logan. He wanted them to be just like Tami's.
SCORE one for Nonnie!!!! They loved the pancakes. Tami came home about 2 p.m. and I went back to Williamsburg. I had a wonderful time. The babies did too. We made a lot of memories, mostly we laughed, talked and enjoyed our three days together. I missed them before I reached the interstate.
The only downer was my "Magic in a Bottle".....shock! Shock! the Internet.....lied:) All I created was a glitter mess in a glass jar. Oh well, live and learn. I still have two bottles of junk and I intend to make some 'magic' sooner or later. If the magic fails to appear, I can always go back to Tami's----their home is full of magic:)
While on facebook Sunday, I read an entry from my friend Aimee Robinson in Canada, who wanted to know how we celebrate 'Columbus Day' in America. I started to write back and say, "We don't", however in our own peculiar way we do celebrate the day. For those who participate it is always the second Monday of October. It is a day of quiet controversy.
At least 47 out of the 50 states recognize Columbus Day. The three states that do not are Hawaii, Alaska and South Dakota. Hawaii and South Dakota have alternative celebration names. In Hawaii it is called 'Discoverers' Day', where they celebrate Polynesian discoverers of Hawaii.
In South Dakota it is known as 'Native American Day'. The residents are apparently still upset with how the West was won. Tommy and I do not blame them at all. In 2001, on our way home from Alaska, we took a wrong turn finding ourselves lost in South Dakota, on the Lakota Indian reservation. Nothing but rocks and sand and maybe--maybe 3 trees. The heat was horrible. It looked like the moon on a hot day. If I had to live on that reservation, I would wake up mad at the world every day! I am pretty sure I would not celebrate 'Columbus Day' either.
Iowa and Nevada have no 'official' celebration for Columbus Day, although the governor is "authorized and requested by statue to proclaim the day each year." Sounds silly to me however, it remains a tradition.
The Navajo Nation replaced Columbus Day with Navajo Sovereignty Day and observe it on April 4th. Many native American tribes have renamed Columbus Day with the name of their tribe instead of using the traditional name. I can see where they are coming from with this stance. When Columbus arrived their lives were forever changed. Change was inevitable.
If the settlers were afraid of the Indians, they did not like Christopher Columbus either. His logbook quoted him as describing the Indians as, "They do not bear arms, and do not know them, for I showed the a sword, they took it by the edge and cut themselves out of ignorance....They would make fine servants.....With 50 men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want." That is not a very pretty picture of the man, but it does show what he believed. Bigotry and slavery were always on the back burner as a plan in a conquest. Divide and conquer was the rule of thumb. Both sides played to win at any cost.
Columbus did not give enough respect to the Indians. They fought long and hard for their country. Their time as leaders and their way of life was to be changed. A new world was in the making. After many bloody battles and heinous crimes against each other, an unsettled peace came to America. It was time for a new America, a new era in history. It took a long time for Anglo civilization to became the norm.
While I was in grade school, we would learn poems about Columbus. "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue" there was a lot more to the quote, however that is all I remember. We were taught that he was a brave man, an explorer a hero and a Christian. He probably was all these things. He was also human and had faults, like everyone who has ever been born.
When I was in college, I took Early Western Civilization as a requirement for history. My instructor was Dr. Lobachco, a charming man from Russia. I am sure I misspelled his name horribly and for that I do apologize. He was so funny. I understood about every third word he said. I didn't mind at all. Neither did anyone else. When he talked we listened, we learned and we laughed....just like he did. I remember he told us that Christopher Columbus died of syphilis. I was shocked when I first heard this!! Surely not!!! Dr. Lobachco laughed at me because I was appalled. When I started thinking about the situation I saw the morbid humor. One of his duties was to make 'new friends.' ...apparently he did.
It has been a long, long time since I've been to college. However, the only thing I remember actually learning were the facts about Christopher Columbus' demise!! For that my parents paid good money. I finally get to use that expensive tidbit in a blog. Go figure.
Regardless, of the circumstances Christopher Columbus is given credit for discovering America.....to me that is a good thing. History is seldom pretty, rarely fair and almost never remembered by two people the same way. This debate will be going on long after I am dead and gone.
Most Federal and State agencies are closed. If they remain open because of the nature of their business, then they are given 8 hours holiday to be used at a later date. A days wages, a parade or two, a demonstration and lesson taught in history class. This pretty much sums up how we celebrate the discovery of America.
Today is Monday October 8, 2012, Columbus Day. It is quiet in my part of the world. We were in town all morning and no one mentioned Columbus Day except one man. He said, "Damn, the post office is closed,"blaming Christopher Columbus once again.
There is no end to the debate of Christopher Columbus, the plights of the Indians or the settling of America. It has been argued to death! If it hadn't been Columbus it would have been someone else to land on these beautiful shores. America was a child waiting to be born. Her impact on the world has made it a better, safer place to live. I love this country....warts and all.
So Aimee, we have very mixed emotions about Columbus Day or worse yet, we have no feelings at all. It just is what it is. I am glad he made the journey.
I love living in the country. There is no doubt about that. However there is country-- located a few miles outside of town. Then there is country 10 miles from town. And there is country where I live.
I live 25 miles from the nearest large town. I also live 3 miles down a gravel road, by choice. When my daughters were dating, our location was referred to as "BFE". I did not know what those initials meant. I have to admit, after finding out, that is about right! It is not unusual for us to have to get the cows out of the road so we can go to town. Now that is living in the country!
About 2 months ago Tommy and I hustled 20 cows back inside their fence. I bet they were out again before we hit blacktop. I missed that picture.. It was over 100 degrees, I was hot and sweaty and truthfully did not think of my camera until I was half way to town. This picture is one of many I have taken this summer and the only one I could find..One cow, going the wrong way.
Cows are a little quirky. They will walk through any semi opening to get out of the pasture, but will seldom go back in the same opening to graze again. They wander up and down the road, just cruising along with no particular thought in mind, possibly looking for the grass they just left behind. They have no desire to be any where, but where they are not supposed to be.
If a horn is honked at them, nine times out of ten they will spread out to each side of the road, surrounding the vehicle from a safe distance. It looks like they are waiting for the driver to make the first move. They will wait as long as it takes. When the driver starts to move forward, one of them will run out in front of the driver to see if he has any breaks! If the driver stops, the cow will too. The driver had better stop. Those cows cost a fortune if you hit one, not mention the price of fixing your vehicle. Then they turn their heads, staring to see what the next plan of action will be. The cow continues to stare until the driver makes a move. Sometimes it seems like a deliberate stand off. This is about the time I hammer down on the horn, just to see what happens---poop happens!!
You can be assured that when you get out of the truck, one or two of them will suddenly have to poop!!! Give'em plenty of room, they need it.
Tommy will drive the cows back into the field. I seldom do anymore. He is much nicer than I am. I set on the horn until they have all pooped.!! Soon they will start running to a safe place. That is when I drive slowly through ...poop and all!!
I tried to put the cows up once by myself. Once was enough. Three cows were out. One had a calf with her. I was worried about the calf getting run over.
I got out of the Blazer and started waving my arms, trying to encourage them to go back to the creek and in the fence. They scattered. The more I shouted and waved, the more afraid of me they became. I think the move I used was supposed to be for chickens, and I got my wires crossed. It didn't work on a single cow.
Mama cow did not take her eyes off of me. Her calf fell down and Mama thought I was to blame. I just barely made it back to the Blazer before she was at my door. For some reason I can't explain, I locked the door!!! The cow couldn't get in and I wouldn't get out. There we sat for the next 30 minutes, at least I had a radio. Finally the cows got bored with me, moving to the side of the road. I put my vehicle in gear and tore out of there!!!
My first winter here, I learned the strangest thing. Cows will stand in snow, knee deep and die of thirst. I have been told by many farmers that cows will literally die before they eat snow. Unbelievable!!! I keep thinking to myself, "surly, somewhere, at some time, there must have been one rebellious cow that said, 'I will not die!!! I will eat snow!!!' They need a leader or a union!!!
However, you can't prove it by me! As far as I know, ice covering the pond has to be broken daily for them to survive. Personally, I think they push their luck.
They are beautiful animals, taste delicious and just this side of dumb. I enjoy seeing them everyday. I photograph them every chance I get. However, I am just not gonna 'play' with them. They are bigger than me and they cheat!!!
After all the horrible days of heat breaking drought, record breaking days of triple digit heat indexes, Fall has arrived.
I am surprised by the beauty, the vibrant colors, we see creeping in to the scenery. I was a naysayer who thought we would have the ugliest fall in history. I really thought things would go from almost dead to just flat out dead. The leaves would simply keep on turning brown and fall to the ground only to lay there and rot.
However, Mother Nature is never predictable. We finally received a few rains. Several days of showers and storms. Long nights of much needed rain. The grass turned green again. The colors in the trees began to change. The first to arrive are the yellow and orange colors of maple trees. There are splashes of red here and there but it is not quite their time to show off. When red shows up, the show is close to completion. We are getting near to her big finale.We will have 2 or 3 more weeks of color and then it will fade. Leaves slowly fall, leaf by leaf to the ground.
I stopped the other day, on my way to town, and took these photos. They do not do the scenery justice. The sun was shining. It was about 70 degrees and everywhere I looked I witnessed color exploding. I took these photos while standing on an old bridge, just enjoying the view. I am glad I was wrong about Fall. It is going to be beautiful.
In the mornings, there is a chill in the air. By noon it is in the 70's. Now it is a pleasure to be outside.
We have already talked about having a hay ride. The fire pit will be used soon, hopefully nightly. I think Fall is my favorite season. I say this every time a season changes. I look forward to the variety of activities each season offers. Even a dirty little creek in the middle of nowhere can be beautiful. For me, that is a good thing. As I have said many times, it does not take much to make me happy.
I will be the first one to admit that at times I am shall we say, "computer challenged", to say the least. I have come a long, long way from where I started a couple of years ago. I have a long, long way to go before I am no longer dangerous.
Cutting and pasting eludes me. I just do not get it. I was thrilled when 'they' came out with a 'share button'. Rock solid on that one unless they 'update it.'
I have created two blog sites on my own and one huge disaster. If it wasn't for Joey's patience and sense of humor, I would have one ugly political blog to add to the menagerie. I still do not know what I did wrong. All I know for sure is it snowballed completely out of control----fast.
I thought I had arrived at a reasonably safe place until about an hour ago, when I realized the information I had sent my cousin, Darla was not private but posted on her facebook page! I am the lunatic who did this!!!!
I thought I had sent her an instant message concerning our deaths. The girls all have a copy of an email with facts about these matters. I wanted Darla to know so she could be of some help to them at the time. There are always loose ends and while we have tried to take care of these things, there is probably something we forgot.
I write about our lives all the time. That is what I do. There are not a lot of secrets out there floating around, that has not been discussed in a blog or will be soon. There was nothing shocking about what I wrote, private but not shocking. Maybe a little on the morbid side after all it was about how to dispose of the bodies and divide up the loot. Other than that, it was no big deal.
I must tell you what I find amusing, I put all this information in a safety deposit box BEFORE I posted it on face book. Go figure:)
Some days it does not pay to get out of bed---this might have been one of those days.
