Patience, or Patients?

We found this note stuck in the store door last week. We were here, outside working and found it when we came in for the evening. I read it and could not figure out what the note was referring to. You see, I was assuming it was a legitimate "thank you". My sarcasm radar was not working.

In case you can't read it, it says:
Thank you for letting the tent be put in the RV 30 amp area! We really appreciate it. Especially the part of camping right next to us. Thank you so much!

I will sometimes let people in RV's have a tent next to them for their children. Not a big deal. But I had not checked in anyone with that particular situation. I reviewed all my registrations and came to realize that it was the occupants of a class B camper parked in the tent area. They chose the spot themselves and a tent camper arrived after them and took the spot next to them.

I am confused ....... did they assume that they would be in that spot and no one else would come along and camp in an open spot next to them? The tent campers were not loud and did not create any problems. If they had a complaint, why did they not tell me, as I was outside working in full view, easy to spot. Or, call the office. I had the phone in my pocket. I would have offered to make the tenters move if they were too loud or disturbing them in any way. They could have easily moved themselves. Instead they chose to take apart a registration packet and waste it on their "anonymous" letter of sarcasm. Nice. Bet their neighbors just love them where ever they go.

On a much brighter note, the sunflowers are in bloom.

They always look so happy, bobbing in the breeze.

This one does not want to wake up!

I love this one. It looks like it has an eye on the world!

I have not been myself for the past week or so. Cannot really define what is wrong, but I just feel bad. Fatigue, lack of energy, breathless. Like a wrung out dish rag. Limp. Decided to monitor my blood pressure and it is very low. I take medication for high blood pressure and confess that I have been known to regulate my own dosage. I am supposed to take one in the morning and one in the evening.

For quite some time I have been taking half the dosage because I noticed that my blood pressure was low and I felt crappy. Now, I feel crappy again. Yesterday my blood pressure was 88 /48. That was sitting down. I spent most of the day sleeping on and off. I fulfilled my nap resolution for the week. I will be seeing the doctor Wednesday. I have quit taking my medication altogether. My blood pressure medication, that is. With no meds on board, it is 102/62. An improvement, but I still have no energy.

No energy does not keep my mind from working over time. I am frustrated. I want to mow things and plant things and sew things, maybe even cook things. I am  not a good patient, because I am not patient. Patience is a virtue, so they say.

The Money Is In The Register

I found my camera charger! 

 

 

 

It was right where I left it, where I could see it in my mind's eye. Last time I used it and left it there, telling myself I would surely remember the location, since it was in a place one would never think to put it. Behind the cash register. Made sense at the time. There is an outlet there and I usually download pictures at the desk in my office. The desk is below the registration counter and the charger and the cord would be out of the way there. I will tuck it there again and then if I forget, I can go back and read this ......... if I remember.

I have been using my inside time to sew this week and have added five more swimsuit cover-ups for the flea market. Just beach towels and shoe laces with beads added for a little bling. I make my own bias tape, so finding a color match is pretty easy.

I added a little kerchief to this one. It is smaller, by request. I was cutting tape strips and there was this triangle, just staring up at me, so I thought a little head gear would go with it.

 
Then I started getting requests for adult size cover ups, so thought a mother and daughter set would be cute. Instead of the laces, I decided on some buttons from my stash. Instead of a regular button hole I used elastic pony tail holders so the sides would have more give.

Only have a couple more towels left and then I will pull out some fall projects. Don't know what I want to do yet, still pondering possibilities.

Looks like rain for the weekend. Two cancellations so far. Only one sunny day for the pool this week and that was yesterday. Made for lots of weeding time for me. I tackled the asparagus bed and discovered cucumbers! I had forgotten I planted them there. I thought I had planted some, just couldn't remember where. Perhaps I should look behind the cash register?

I lost a pair of my glasses, too. I was actually looking for them behind the cash register when I discovered the camera charger. I have been known to take them off and put them on the cash register and thought they may have fallen behind it. My next place to look today is my "in" box. I will file as I go and hope to find them there, although I though this might be a more likely place for the camera charger ......

Just so you know, I actually put money in the cash register, too.

Water Is A Necessity

One more resolution I want to add. I will never run to the phone again. No, I didn't run when I heard the phone ring and hurt myself or anything. I just had an epiphany while outside this morning and the phone rang. I didn't want to run. I wanted to finish pulling the last weed in my little patch. So, I did. Then I strolled to the phone and hit redial on the last number. I realized all along that I could miss a camper doing that. They could be already dialing my competitor and I would lose revenue. But, I still did not see the sense in running.

I have never seen myself run. But, I somehow know it wouldn't be pretty. Me running. Especially in flip-flops. I like to wear flip-flops. It defines summer, the sound of the rubber sole slapping my heel. But, flip-flops are not made for running. So, besides not being the most graceful of runners, I could hurt myself. And me without health insurance. Being without health insurance feels a little like gambling. Like I am teasing fate. If only I could age faster and have Medicare.

Okay, that was a sad lament. I picked all the peaches and shared a few. They are not nearly as sweet as they were last year, but they needed to be peeled and I came in from playing in the dirt to do just that. He Who electrifies the park has been baffled of late over some outages in certain parts of the park, so today he came home with some heavy equipment and dug up the power line. He located the problem and fixed it. Only took about four trips to the store.

In the meantime the well pump went berserk and kept turning on and off at a fast rate. Figuring he had surely hit the line with the excavator, I turned the pump off. I told him I did. I asked a couple of times about the water situation and he told me to be patient while he finished what he was doing.

Remember those peaches I peeled? Couldn't wash my hands. I felt like I had peach juice in my armpits. Okay, I exaggerate, it was only up to my elbows. One can only clean so much off with a wet wipe. I was afraid I would attract flies if I went outside, but after waiting for two hours, unable to do another thing inside, I went out and started pulling weeds in another garden plot.

So, now sticky and dirty, I hear a vehicle come in and round the corner to see a camper and He Who tows. The latter tells me he has a call and will finish up when he gets back. "But, wait, what about the water ......." he is walking away as he tells me I can turn it on long enough to wash my hands.

I check the campers in and call him back to explain that our campers just might want water. Then he tells me that he has already turned off the area with the break in the line and I can turn the water back on. Wonder just how long I was sticky when I could have been clean?

Now that I have washed my hands, I will launch another search for my camera charger. I can see it in my mind's eye, now if I could just remember where I am seeing it .......

Resolutions

Monday, Monday, ......... Actually, I like Mondays. I especially like this one. Over cast and cool with a damp breeze and a promise of rain when I sniff the air. Ah, yes, a perfect day. The pool is closed and I am free to mow to my heart's content (or until my 60 year old legs protest).

Not only that, I can turn the mower off to move things out of my way and be sure that it will start right up again. It is the little things that make me happy. He Who mows a lot more ground than I do is not one to actually stop and dismount his ride to eliminate an obstacle. I have seen him bump gently into picnic tables and push them out of the way with the mower. I have also seen him mangle picnic tables doing this very thing. Not me. I sometimes rake before I mow to make sure no rocks are lingering to hit my blade.

When the rain started I retreated indoors. After having company this past month, I am ready to put all the things I threw into my closet back in place. Since we live in a small space, I usually store things in the extra bedroom. When company is coming I always look for another place to put all the stuff that has accumulated in that room. Somehow, my closet is the catch-all. So much so that I cannot get to anything in the closet. I know I have other clothes I can wear, but I just keep wearing the same ones as soon as they return to my room from the dryer or clothesline. I use a step stool to put linens and some other things away, but just end up stacking all that stuff in my closet and telling myself I will get to it later.

Later happened today. Took me through three episodes of the Young and the Restless. Everything is back in it's proper place as the world turns on the edge of night. Sorry, I couldn't help myself.

I have made a decision. I think resolutions should be made on one's birthday and not on the first day of the year. I am in my 60's now and can be considered wise, so I am making this proclamation. My resolution is to keep my closet .... accessible. I was going to say clean, but, want to be able to actually keep the resolution.

Another resolution I have decided upon is to nap as much as I can! Beauty sleep, you know. Not to mention, it is just so delicious to climb atop the covers and curl up with a warm dog and a little snooze. Naps cannot be taken under the covers. That is how one sleeps. Naps are stolen moments of time and require quick access to your chosen spot on which to snooze. Should you become chilled, a loose blanket can be pulled around you. Not bed covers, though. Bed covers and tight smooth sheets are for serious sleeping!

That's all. If you make too many resolutions, you will become overwhelmed and not even attempt to keep even one of them. See, I am wise.

Happy Birthday To Me

Happy Birthday to me! It has been a very good day. Started off very early with breakfast at site 42. I got up and whipped up fresh biscuits for April's sausage gravy. Andrea had egg duty and Ginger and Tim made hash browns. Sausage and bacon from April, along with that yummy gravy. All I cared about was the coffee. Enough food for an army of hungry campers.

This same group of rabble rousers made dinner for me on Wednesday, complete with a birthday cake and off-key serenading. Sorry, Tim, but you really shouldn't try to sing! I felt very loved! The food was fantastic, but the fellowship was even better.

After breakfast at the crack of dawn (thanks, DJ), I sipped another cup of coffee and watched the rain. I decided that I wanted to tackle a garden bed in the light drizzle and went out and did just that. As I have mentioned before, rain means a day off for me. The pool is closed. I was happily pulling weeds and digging holes to transplant tiny seedlings when it started to really rain.

I came inside and scooped up my little Cujo and snuck off to my bed with Wall-E following. I decided a little nap was in order for a lady in her 60th year. I snuggled on the bed with my canine babies and turned on the TV to watch a movie. It was about ........ I actually have no idea. I fell right to sleep and slept until after noon!

I checked e-mail for reservations and then wandered over to Facebook and read all my birthday wishes. Then I planted myself in my desk chair and listened to an audio book while I put together a puzzle and answered the phone and checked in campers. So strenuous, my day.

Then the most amazing thing happened! My 18 year old grandson called me!!! Brought tears to my eyes when I heard his sweet voice telling me happy birthday and that he loved me. I can still feel his little hand in mine as we walked into the hospital to meet his baby sister for the first time, and I can still see his sweet face when his hand was broken playing baseball, asking me if it would hurt to have the bone reset. My sweet, sensitive grandson grew into the most annoying of all creatures ......... the teenager. But, today, I discovered that he is still in there, just waiting to reappear. The little boy I have always loved!

Topped off the day with having my dinner delivered by my husband, along with the mail he had forgotten to give me! My sweet Martha, for whom the boy cat was named, gifted me with a delicate silver bracelet. I have it on my wrist this very moment. I love it! So sweet, Martha and Tom.

Over the many years of being married to He Who has been known to give me a gift that he wants for himself, I have learned to ask for what I want and to be very specific. There have been times when I have actually purchased my own gift, but that is a lot of trouble to go through and I was busy weeding and napping this day of my birth celebration.

I am well known for being practical and thrifty (I have been called cheap). I have been complaining about my mower for some time (all season) now. To start it, I am told to use the choke, then, instead of simply pulling the bar on the handle and pulling the cord, ..... pull the cord three times (to get fuel into the gas line), then hold the bar down and pull the cord. After about five rotations of this it will sometimes start.

I am sure this is not good for my blood pressure. Especially when I fail to start it. I gave He Who wants to buy gifts for me, but never knows what to get, two choices. A mower that starts on the first try. Nothing fancy, mind you. Just want it to actually start up when I pull the cord. Or ....... mulch. Not a mere bag, or even 10 bags. I want a dump truck full.

I got a mower. No buttons to push, no complicated maneuvers that may or may not work. This bad boy starts right up! Has more than one speed! Is self propelled! He did good ....... I am still longing for mulch, though.

I am now content to drift off to sleep while humming "happy birthday to me".

Who's Your Daddy?

Three more days ......... and I will be 60. Since I plan to live to be 120, this will mark my halfway point of life. Just the other day a man came in to swim. He asked for John ....... "John?" I answered. You know, the owner of the campground. "Do you mean Drew?" I asked. Oh, yeah, we call him John.

Bet he doesn't answer, I think. Then he says, "You must be his daughter." I laugh and tell him I am his wife. He mumbles something about me being so much younger than him, which makes me laugh harder. Then I tell him we share the same birth year. The man looked shocked.

I must have been having an incredibly good day, but it has made me really take a close look at my husband. I see him every day and I simply see my husband. The man I love and sometimes hate passionately. Love and hate being closely related.

He does look older than his years. I look in the mirror every day when I brush my teeth and groom myself for the day. I look better when I take the time to apply make-up, which is less often this time of year. Mowing and weeding are not chores to tackle with mascara on. Sweat will make it run into your eyes and burn like crazy. So, most of the time I look in a mirror and see my dad's face and wonder what he is doing stuck in my mirror. My dad aged well and always looked younger than his years. I am happy to have inherited that particular gene. Not so happy about the stubby sparse eyelashes I got from Mother. I suppose we have to accept the good with the bad, though.

I seem to have also inherited her inability to let things go. I do not like that trait, and try not to let myself fall into that trap. Most of the time I succeed, but sometimes, when I feel very strongly about a matter, I can't seem to let it go after I have stated my case. It makes me sound like a raving bitch. I realize it while it is happening, but ......

Perhaps it would help if He Who looks older than me would not look at me as if I am being unreasonable. Makes me bring all the evidence into play and present it over and over. Nothing is quite so frustrating as stating a matter clearly and having someone look at you as if you are speaking in a foreign language.

He Who is a pushover gets taken advantage of. He will let everyone play with his toys and then when they break them, he says nothing. When I get pushed, I push back. Drama, there are people here who have expressed their dislike for me and my drama. People who do not pay to stay. People who do not pay to stay should just keep their mouths shut, lest they find themselves banned from my park. My park, my rules.

No State Troopers In Sight

 This nest was in one of my ferns hanging on the front porch. Long abandoned ..... I think the watering may have had something to do with it. I suppose if the mother bird gets scared away, she can't very well take her eggs with her.

 

This was Hildy's third attempt at a family this spring. Only saw 2 eggs here, which makes a total of 10. That I know of. Are the number of eggs a bird will lay predetermined?

Poor Hildy, all that work and no little ones to show for it. He Who mows actually ran over this nest and totally missed the eggs! The tire tracks were on either side of the eggs and the blade was set high enough to miss them. It probably scared Hildy as much as it did me when I saw him mowing.

He did stop and walk the area before he mowed. After he mowed, he saw me watching him and explained to me that the eggs were gone, he had looked thoroughly. I walked right to the egg that was left. It is a wonder he didn't step on it. He had forbidden (like he could .....) me to drive a post in the ground to mark her nest for him to avoid it. His reasoning was that it would draw attention from the predators ........ Like a snake or a turtle would be out scouting for food and say to one another, "Look, those crazy humans have once again left a marker for us!"

My nest feels empty since Gavin and the girls went home. The girls were only here for two days, but Gavin was here a whole week. Now that I have recovered (almost) from my loss of sleep, I wish they were all back here again.

Today was restock day, so I arose early with my detailed list and went to purchase all I needed to replenish my shelves. I got there so early that the Dollar Tree was not yet open. WalMart was, though, so I was able to shop in peace. Always less crowded in the morning ....... always.

In the midst of filling my cart with charcoal lighter, the number one thing that most campers forget or run out of, my cell rang. He Who tows called to say he had a tow. He was supposed to be me, in my absence. I asked if he absolutely had to take the call, since I was nowhere near the end of my list for WalMart and still had other stops to make. "I am already on my way to pick the vehicle up." he says. Did he put a sign on the door indicatign a return time? No.

I very nearly ran through the store, throwing items into my cart all hither/thither. No time to linger in the clearance section and find true bargains (or buy something I don't need). The pool opens at 11 AM. I managed to aquire everything on my list unless they had none and stop for a iced coffee and drive nearly 50 miles in less that 2 hours. I opened on time and have priced and put away all the merchandise.

No thanks to the self appointed speed regulators on the Interstate. A semi was going 60 and a car pulled into the fast lane and met his speed. Side by side they cruised along for about 5 miles while the traffic behind them piled up. I was right behind the car with the self appointed speed controller at the wheel. I know he could see me, I saw him look into his rear view mirror several times when I got really close. His eyes would widen, then he would scowl.

The traffic behind me was no less impatient that I was. A horn would sound periodically and the driver would look at me, like I was the horn blower. The big truck beside him even slowed down to 55 a couple of times, but the car just slowed down to match the truck's speed. Determined to keep all of us speeders in line behind him.

Where are the troopers when this happens, I ask you?