Worst Paper Cut EVER

While the rain pounded down so hard it came in the vents on the roof and I had to mop every hour or so, the internet went out. Really. I can't go outside and to add insult to injury, I can't navigate the web in between mopping.

I am finally able to get on-line again and catch up with my "reading". This is when I catch up on my favorite blogs. I was doing just that, and had just written a witty comment when ...... the internet went down again.

This time it was actually my fault. I had accidentally turned the function off when I was vigorously scratching my jean clad belly because I thought I felt something crawling on me. A tick, I thought, but turned out it was just an itch.

Anywho, I was responding to Hillbilly Mom's unfortunate paper cut. Paper cuts really hurt. It made me remember my worst paper cut ever. I know, I know, everybody thinks theirs is the worst, but I am willing to bet that my story will top all others.

This happened back in the 80's, close in time to the Glamour shot incident. We were living in Tampa and I had custody of our 2 year old grandson. I had been to the grocery store for just a few items and had only one bag. I stopped at the mailbox and stuck the mail in the grocery bag. With a wriggling two year old in one arm and the bag (remember paper grocery bags?) in the other, I made my way into the kitchen. I put the bag on the counter and turned to deal with the cranky child in need of a nap. I forget what it was that he needed so badly from that bag, but I stood on tip toe and reached into the bag to get it. I grabbed the mail, rolled up inside a magazine and pulled it out of the way as I was looking for this most important thing that I can no longer
remember.

In doing so, the bundle of mail came unstuck unexpectedly and the rolled magazine scraped my open eye!!! Burning pain shot through my eye and tears began to flow like a broken faucet. I cannot begin to describe my misery. I must have located the item the child wanted and he must have realized how much distress I was in. I lay down with him, since opening my eye was agony. He finally went to sleep and, like all mothers everywhere, I got up to accomplish some household chores in peace and quiet.

Just a paper cut, you know. By the time school was out and the child who drove himself to school rolled in, I was mostly out of my mind with pain. I had managed to find an ophthalmologist that could see me right away. It was my sensitive sweet son and he strapped the kid in his car and hauled me to that office. He was so nervous, driving with his critical mother in the front seat. The road was bumpy and he kept offering apologies, but I could have cared less.

The very first thing they did upon my arrival was apply numbing drops to my pitiful eye. Instant relief. Turns out that I filleted my cornea. Seems that rolled up magazine pages are sharp! Ointment and an eye patch for a week and I was good as new. Well, maybe not new, but as good as could be expected.

Was I right? Can anyone top that paper cut story?

Happy Birthday, Gage!

I took these pictures almost 20 years ago. They are in a frame that hangs on the wall in my bedroom.

Makes me smile every time I see them. That precious face full of determination belongs to my grandson, Gage.

I love this little guy so much. Have loved him for 22 years! Today is his birthday.

I wish I could see this face today. He looks much the same. Still handsome with his beautiful blue eyes. He can still convince me to do things I otherwise would not do. Like the tattoo on my ankle.

Happy Birthday, Gage! Never forget that Gramma loves you!

I Am The Map

Eddie has grown into a fine little dog. Not so little anymore. I think he might be bigger than Cujo. They are best buddies now and sleep next to each other.

Thank goodness I have this sweet pair to calm me! I read somewhere that stroking a dog or cat will bring your blood pressure down .......

It has been the longest day. After yesterday's rain, the temperature dropped and it was chilly all day. I was busy inside, painting the trim to go up on the new siding outside. The phone rang almost non-stop. Cancellations for this weekend because of the crummy forecast and reservations for Memorial Day weekend. The usual exclamations of distress that one cannot choose the site they want and even a couple of  "is your all's pool open yet". Then we have the all the telemarketers that start the call with a demand that I not hang up. As if that will stop me.

I had talked to a man a couple of days ago, inquiring about tent camping. It was a rather lengthy call, as he had many questions. He also made me privy to his divorce agreement and child visitation arrangements. He is also currently engaged, in case you wanted to know. This conversation was conducted outside, as I was pulling the weeds in my Bee Balm patch. I assured the man, that he need not make a reservation in the weeks leading up to Memorial Day, as my tent sites are plentiful.

Yep, he called today to make a reservation. He retold me the same story as before and I finally managed to get the necessary information and repeat my litany of instructions. I picked up my paintbrush and was back on task when he called back. He has a dog. He thought I might want to know and what would he need to provide for the dog to stay. I assured him that we are pet friendly ........ I was just back on task when he called again to ask what to do when he got here.

I hope he doesn't need help with his tent, because I don't do that! I have come to the conclusion that he has never camped before.

I had three calls for over night stays for travelers. The first two were all checked in and I was waiting for the last one while I applied the second coat of paint. I normally close at 7:00 this time of year, but it gets dark later. I stayed in the office until 8:00 and the third over-night had still not arrived, so I locked up and came in to stroke my dogs and unwind.

I was all comfy in my recliner, dogs by my side, computer in my lap, watching TV. The phone rang. It was that third rig. Man said he was here, but did not know where to park. I told him I would be "there" in less than a minute. "Where, in the office?" asks the traveler. I answered in the affirmative and went in and unlocked the door. The parking lot was empty. Nobody out there.

I assumed he was at my competitor's park. It happens. Even though the names of the parks sound nothing alike and she is on the south side,  while I rule the north side. I tried to call him back to see if he was at the wrong park, but his phone was forwarded to voice mail. By now, I am annoyed. I am tired and want to end my day. HeWho was watching the monitor for the outside cameras and saw the big coach coming out of our private drive!

Now, this was a 42 footer and tall. There is a huge oak tree with low limbs hanging over the private drive.  The private drive has a sign, a lighted sign. Besides identifying the PRIVATE DRIVE, it also says DO NOT ENTER. The big rig is sitting there in the parking lot, facing the wrong direction. About 5 minutes go by and it starts to move, then backs up next to my car. But, nobody comes to the office.

HeWho has left to check to see if this driver has done a turn around in the open field ..... the very wet open field. Now, we don't offer curb service, but I went out to see if I could speed things along. I approached the driver's side and the man just sat there, staring at me. I really didn't cherish the thought of walking in front of the rig, but the driver seemed to be unable to open his window. I suppose he thought he could send a beam into my head and we could communicate through telepathy.

I took a chance and walked to the other side. I will confess that I considered walking behind the rig, but he still had his reverse lights on. I sort of ran in front of the rig. You will note that, HeWho is not afraid to route out the sewer line, seems to be intimidated by registering guests and often leaves me alone to take care of business.

The man in the passenger seat (I thought he was the other man's wife and was thinking that she sure did look masculine) opened the door and I asked if they planned to come in to register. "Oh, the office is closed, no one is in there." I almost said, "Just shoot me." They might have taken me literally.

At this point I wasn't even trying to hide my annoyance. I told them I had been in the office waiting since they called. I even mentioned that I had tried to call him back and that his voice mail picked up. He assured me that his voice mail was not activated! He was a little huffy about it. This did not help my attitude. I pointed out to him that there was a map on the front of the building, which he told me was confusing. It was later established that I had called the other gentleman, as he was the one who had called me and that he had accidentally turned his phone off ....

But, the thing that annoyed me the most was the fact that they had taken a check-in packet, but neglected to bring the map in and I had to use an additional map to mark their path to the assigned site. Or, it might have been. I texted HeWho abandoned me to watch the idiots and make sure they made it to the site. They did not follow my instructions! They missed the turn and had to be escorted into the site. I give very good directions! If you will just listen to me, then refer to the map on which I have HIGH-LIGHTED your path you cannot possibly get lost.

I am going to go pet all my dogs and cat.

New Residents

Remember my Killdeer, Hilde and Henry. They come back every year to lay their eggs on the ground and hatch new babies. You will have to look close at the picture above to see the 4 tiny chicks. I discovered the nest while mowing close by. Hilde ran out screaming "Dweep, dweep, dweep" as the mower grew close.

I stopped mowing to investigate and found her eggs. No pictures of the eggs. I just wanted to make sure they were safe. I would have felt horrible had I mown them down! I have been checking on them every day and hoping that Martha, the boy cat did not find them. I even left the weeds intact. Martha has enjoyed a delicacy of Killdeer eggs in years past. Seems I raised a murderer!

Here Hilde is covering her new hatchlings. She was frantic with her calls, so I went to investigate. I think she just wanted to show me her babies and have a little photo shoot. I had fondled all the eggs, as is my habit, while chatting with her on various occasions. I was close enough to her that she pecked my hand. She knows me and doesn't appear to be too bothered by my attention.

This is what she looked like when she was calling me. She really is a pretty little thing.

Can you see the babies? They were sleeping when I picked one up. So soft with their downy beginnings of feathers. When I settled the tiny bird on the ground he walked away from the nest. They all get up and walk soon after hatching. They will follow the parents around as they teach them to eat the bugs in the grassy fields.

While I was busy admiring the new little flock, Henry was flapping wildly in the grass. When an enemy approaches, they will abandon the nest and try to appear to be lame to lure the attacker to them and away from the nest. Henry's performance was silly and lackluster as he made an exhibit of himself.

Here is the tiny bird I held, finding his feet and walking away.

The barn swallows and Martens are busy trying to build nests, and we have a goose sitting on 6 eggs near the pond. She was not as accommodating as Hilde when I approached her nest. She hissed and stayed back. Geese can bite, you know!

Memories Under Glass

 

 

 

 

Remember Glamour Shots? Back in the 80's. Big hair and tons of make-up. Why did we do this?

 

 

 

 

 This was my daughter's idea. Jill and I went together. Could I be adorned with more shiny stuff? The earrings are bigger than my ears! I suppose I needed the big jewels to counter balance the hair! If it was pink, it would resemble cotton candy! 

After our photo shot, we walked through the mall, while people stared at the big hair and make-up. Jill has a lot of hair to start with, so hers really grew with the stylist's administrations. Yes, she is my child. She looks like her Dad. Most amazing thing is that we actually bought the pictures!

Baby girl, Adrienne, went on her own a few years later. Different studio. I think they did a better job with the hair. And she doesn't look like me either. She looks like her Dad's sister.

I unearthed these as I was removing the frames from all my pictures. So many memories under glass. I have all the frames empty and the pictures wait to be sorted and placed in albums.

I did not sell much at the yard sale. I have been busy delivering the leavings to different places. All the clothing went to charity. Lots of the pots and pans that had seen a lot of use went there as well. But, the frames and mirrors and nicer kitchen ware is headed to a re-sell shop that I have an account with.

I spent much of the  morning loading the car. It is amazing that, despite the amount of stuff I have taken out, we still seem to be crowded in here. My fabric is next. This will be hard, but, were I to keep it all, we would have to pull a separate trailer behind the motor home. I won't be parting with all of it. I will keep my sewing machine ..... only one of them. I have limited myself to the space of only one hold in the basement of the motor home.

Next will be the tools and accessories of HeWho fancies himself to be Fred Sanford. That should take at least 6 months. He tends to whine about parting with things. Probably best if I just do most of it myself. After all, it is not like he knows what he has. If he did, we wouldn't have so many duplicates.

The photos will be a nice project I can share with the grandchildren. I can just hear them laughing now!

Allergy Season

My peony is getting ready to bloom. I was going to split it this year, but lost the window of opportunity before it gets ready to bloom.

The side view isn't impressive, but you can see the buds are ready to pop.

The tulips won't be around much longer and I am hoping the pollen will settle down soon. My yard sale wasn't a complete failure, I did make some money, but I was left with a lot of stuff to donate.

I packed it all into my car, no need to bring it back inside and I had such good intentions for today. I was pretty miserable yesterday as the pollen attacked me. My eyeballs itch! My throat is sore and swollen and my inner ears are driving me nuts. But, I didn't have to cook yesterday and I was looking forward to eating with some favorite people.

I tried to take a nap beforehand, but that did not work out. I gave up and grabbed a pair of capris from my closet and pulled them on. Suddenly there was a burning sensation on the back of my right thigh. A wasp had taken up residence in my pant leg and objected to sharing quarters with me. Just what I needed ..... more histamines to my already over-loaded system.

The wasp is dead. Squished unceremoniously. My leg is swollen and itches relentlessly. I am profoundly miserable and cannot wait for this day to end. Leftovers await HeWho will want dinner. I just want some Benadryl and a bed.

I had several errands to accomplish today. I had a stop at the vet to get Heartguard and Nexguard for Eddie with my $50 off coupon. There was a wait. Seems they were unfamiliar with the coupon. Odd, since it came to me from a referral from them. I raced through the Dollar Tree for my whirly gigs and windchimes while they figured it out. The motion and sound deter the rabbits from my garden ...... sort of.

From there I went to Walmart to have all of our prescriptions transferred. The pharmacist who waited on me was pleasant enough, but, geez, dude, wash that jacket!! It was really dirty. I gave him all my instructions - 90 day supply, non-safety caps, etc. and told him I had some errands to run and would be back in 2 hours.

Went to the Agape thrift store to donate my car full of unwanted stuff. They were closed! In remembrance of Easter. What the what? My trunk was chug full, as well as half of my back seat. Nothing to do about it, though, so back to Walmart. I meandered through the newly remodeled store. The aisles are nice and wide and everything is spick and span, but they have dropped some product lines. They finally brought the fabric department back, but it was pretty unimpressive. The selection left a lot to be desired and as miserable as I was, I didn't much feel like fondling fabric that may have been imported and covered with pesticides.

I did wait the two hours and went back to the pharmacy. My stuff wasn't even in the system yet. I gave up and told them I would come back tomorrow. I still have to unload my car, after all. As I turned to leave, I noticed the young woman behind me in line. She was wearing pajamas and a leather jacket. Furry slippers. It is really nice out today, in the 70's with a light breeze. I don't get dressed up to go to Walmart or any other store, but I do wear clothes appropriate to be seen in public .... and I comb my hair. Makes me wonder what she was thinking.

Tomorrow will be better, won't it?

A Whole Lotta Mulch

The dog park people area ..... freshly mulched. Looks really peaceful and I am wishing I could just sit there and read a book while my canine family romps. I wish!!!

The back side. The hostas are coming along and I planted a few more to create a border. But no sitting for me on this fine Friday morning.

Thursday was a long mowing day, with my Garage Sale looming in the back of my mind. I pushed myself along and got all my mowing done with the exception of the dog park. You will recall that the gate will not allow the big mower access to the grass and HeWho mows, mows while seated upon the big machine. Not a walker, my HeWho.

While I did all the prep mowing for the big machine, HeWho rides was busy putting together a new site for a new tenant. As the day was coming to a close, and before the rented Bobcat was to be returned, I asked HeWho operates heavy machinery to deliver a scoop of mulch to the dog park. I grabbed a tarp and spread it out to receive the mulch outside the gate. For whatever insanity had gripped me, I opened the gate and put the tarp as close to the opening as I could get.

I know I was thinking that the fewer steps to the area to be mulched, the better. He dumped it and I headed in as darkness was taking over. I stood under the shower as hot as I could stand it, hoping to beat out any muscle pain, and then served up supper. Did not give that mulch another thought and slept through the night until awakened by my early morning boys, Cujo and Eddie.

I stepped out to look at the morning light hitting the park while sipping my coffee and that's when it hit me .......... IT IS FRIDAY!! I thought I had left this day open to get all my crap really good stuff priced and ready for my big event on Saturday. But ...... the mulch is blocking the gate and I have reservations pending and people will want to use the dog park.

I pulled on my sun-visor and grabbed my wagon and some 5 gallon buckets and headed out to the dog park. Had to be done. The wagon held 4 buckets and I carried two buckets with each trip and I made 6 trips before I was able to drag the tarp through the opening. That is a whole lotta mulch. No help available, as HeWho was finishing with the water and electricity to the new site.

Looks good, though, don't you think? I was finished with the mulching and mowing by 11:00 and still managed to get all my stuff priced and ready for the big sale. Just need customers now ..... and iced coffee. My muscles don't even hurt today. Well, so far.

Taking Drugs

It happens every year, so I don't know why I worry about it ....... Spring, I mean. It is a mad race to get everything ready for camping season. I am exhausted already and it is only 10:30. I was working in one of the raised beds, pulling the weeds and getting it ready to plant. All my energy is gone, so I am sitting here with my tea and toast, trying to regroup. The sun is beating down on that bed right now, so I will have to wait until this afternoon to finish anyway.

I still have lots of stuff to get ready for my yard sale Saturday and I suppose I could clean my small abode, but that is not very appealing. My toast is rye. I love rye bread, but seldom buy it, since I am the only one who loves it. I am wondering if I will be able to eat it all before it is no longer edible. I have it in the refrigerator, but what if it goes bad and I eat it anyway and lose my mind ...... will I be tried as a witch? Will anyone notice that I am crazy from the bad grain or will they just think I am off my meds? I have too much free time on my mind. I need to watch more TV!

Speaking of meds .... Two years ago we had United Health Care and it covered prescriptions, though not very well. We were required to switch pharmacies. We were using one close by, in the local town for convenience sake and their pricing on drugs was in line with that of Walmart. The nearest Walmart is 23 miles from here and Walmart pharmacy hours aren't all that convenient when you shop at midnight. Our other option with United was The Medicine Shop .... also local, so I chose it.

I have been annoyed ever since. They tell me that the insurance will only allow a 30 day fill. I know that a 90 fill is cheaper and is usually required by most insurance companies for drugs taken routinely. When questioned further they told HeWho that because we had the market place insurance (Obama care) that the rules were different.

This year we have Blue Cross. HeWho loves to run errands has been taking care of RX pick up. The prices have doubled and tripled on some of our meds and the cost of the insurance premium has gone up. Once again I requested 90 day supplies, since they were filling some of them with that (probably because the doctor wrote it as 90).

Upon further investigation, I have found out that my insurance COVERS NOTHING! And yet, they were still telling me that I was only allowed a 30 day supply. It doesn't matter how the doctor writes it, if you have enough refills on that script you can purchase an entire years supply of your meds if you choose to do so. They admitted they were still running it through our new insurance so that it would be applied to our deductible.

Some of our drugs are CHEAPER if we pay cash and don't run it through the insurance. So I have researched and found Walmart to be the winner in price and they will mail them to me free and give me a 90 day supply.

And .... the moral to the story is that you should never rely on your husband to relay messages. Oh, and check your prescription coverage. You can still submit it to your insurance company, along with over the counter drugs to be applied to your deductible. 

Good Hunters Eat What They Kill!

Finally, a sunny day! Much to be mowed. I mowed my dogs yard after what I thought to be a very thorough poop scooping job .......

I would swear under oath that I walked that yard inch by inch and picked up all the leavings to be found. So, I was left wondering how I could have missed as much as I apparently did. I stopped mowing twice to pick up more. Were they waiting for me to clear a path and walking behind me pooping?

Now I sit here sipping tea and waiting for my lunch to settle before I tackle the dog park. I better not find any surprises! I do not like that kind of a surprise. I did not sleep well last night. The dogs were restless and would not settle down. No storms last night, so that was not the problem. I finally gave up at 5 am and took them out.

While they took care of business, I took care of my own and then went to the back door to let them in. I heard some snapping and crunching out there in the dim light of almost morning. Wall-E had hustled back inside, but Cujo and Charming Eddie were up to something. I ventured forth into the chilly air to see what they were doing.

I wish I had not done so. Last night, Martha, the boy cat, was nowhere to be found when we went to bed. I heard something that sounded like silverware falling to the floor. I alerted HeWho should be the hero and go investigate, but he said it was nothing. It was that cat. He had managed to get himself trapped in the spare bedroom and in his efforts to let me know of his dilemma was jumping around on every surface. He knocked down a container of Legos.

I rescued the cat and went to the back door to let him go out, as is his routine, for a night of hunting. He had other ideas, involving his food dish. I scooped him up and sort of tossed him out the door. No worries, cats land on their feet. He was mad at me, though, and cats are spiteful.

Martha did hunt and Martha did catch and kill a rabbit. Martha did not eat the rabbit. Martha put the rabbit in the back yard. He knows I hate this. Cujo was eating the rabbit. I could hear the bones breaking as he crunched the tiny rabbit. I grabbed Eddie, since Cujo was not in a sharing mood, and brought him inside with me. I left Cujo out and we went back to bed for a couple of hours.

Not a great start to my day, but I hear a mower calling my name. I plan to pace myself today so I will still be able to function after mowing .... I hope.

A Handsome Image

Saturday's mowing left me with pains in my joints, Sunday brought the muscle pain. Sunday also started out with rain. A reprieve from finishing the mowing? No, I managed to get my body moving enough to take care of the rest of my part when the sun came out and dried the grass.

More rain last night and this morning ..... and you can't even tell we mowed! When we came in last evening as the sun was setting, the grounds were amazing. Nary a dandelion did dot the grassy surface. All was neatly trimmed. Today it looks like elves came in the night and sowed dandelion seeds! It is too wet to mow.

It is too wet to have rock delivered to build up the roads and put in a couple more sites. Seems like today would be a wasted day, but there is one thing that wet ground makes easy. Weeding! I took advantage of the wet ground and did just that. All day long. I planted early peas and even cropped more asparagus. Planted some turnips and got my biggest raised bed ready to plant corn and beans. The corn will go down the middle and the beans can climb the corn stalks. Potatoes and garlic are also in the ground.

Last year I planted brussel sprouts and harvested nothing. They came up and made sturdy stalks, but no sprouts. My beets did quite well and I will plant again this year, despite HeWho's alleged dislike of them. I caught him eating some that I pickled a couple of times. The beet brownies I made ....... let's just say they were "earthy" and overpowered the chocolate. 

I am still preparing for my mega yard sale. I set a framed mirror on the floor in our sitting area, meaning to add it to the collection of stuff to sell. I kept forgetting to take it into the store with me. I was putting away towels yesterday when I noticed my Charming Eddie standing near the mirror.

I stood still to watch him as he peered into the depths of the looking glass. Have you ever wondered if animals could see their image in a mirror? I have. I mean, I know they can see themselves, but I wondered if they would recognize the image as their own. Eddie posed sideways and front-ways as he stared at his image, then leaned in and licked the glass. He then backed up and looked intently at his image again. As he turned away to play with the multitude of dog toys littering the floor, he gave the image a last look over his shoulder.

I left the mirror there and have seen him approach it several more times. Today he had a squeaky toy in his mouth. He has never barked at his image as far as I know, he just seems to want to look at it. Wonder what he thinks it is! Maybe he knows it is an image of himself and finds himself to be magnetically handsome. Well, he is!

Pick Up Your Poop!

Charming Eddie loves to have a picture taken. He is no longer a mere pup. His nose has grown and he is quite the handsome fellow. His torso is a tad longer than Cujo's and his snout is, too.

Cujo is just not photogenic. No picture can capture him in a good light. Makes me love him even more. He just can't compete with Eddie in the looks department, but he is the most loyal little dog.

Just look at Eddie. It's like he knows how handsome he is!

Eddie is currently napping. He has had such a long day outside in the nice weather. He stayed out the entire time I mowed. And mowed, and then mowed some more. Spring is here! The peach and apple trees have blossomed and tulips are popping up.

Not just tulips, dandelions are every where. The grass was calling out for a good cut. I actually like to mow. It is a lot like painting, you see the results instantly. As much as I like it, I think I may have over done it today. I had set reasonable goals ..... or so I thought, but I am whipped and I didn't finish!

I was thinking I would weed and hoe at least one raised garden bed, but I don't think I can move. My legs are cramping and I am miserable. I wanted to plant some spring peas before the sun sets. My asparagus is already going strong. I picked enough for the two of us and I noticed that my strawberry plants are blooming! Things will start to happen fast now and I don't have time to be in pain! I feel like have rocks in my joints.

As perfect as this day has been, besides my body failing me, I made a discovery in the dog park that made me see red. POOP. Really, how rude to leave your dog's poop. There is a sign as you enter that clearly lists the rules.  And poop pick up is among them!