Chinese take out for dinner. My fortune? "A much needed vacation will allow you to unwind."
Much needed is right. Phone has been crazy all day long. "Do you have sites available?" I answer in the affirmative and then ask what kind of site he would require (tent, RV, full hook-up, 30 amp or 50 amp ....) "You know, just a site." I ask in more detail, hoping he might actually know. We finally settle on 30 amp, full hook-up.
"How long do you think it will take me to get to you, I am at the rest stop." Really. I ask if he knows which mile marker he saw before he turned in or maybe the name of a city or town he might have passed through ...... He had not a clue!
He might show up, or he might not. I am okay either way.
Thursday, July 20, 2017
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Come Play Frog Toss
Thanks to Kamper Terry for his construction skills, we now have a Frog Toss Game. I have heard this game called many names .....
Bean Bag Toss, Sack Toss and my least favorite Corn Hole. I am assuming the "bean bags" were filled with kernels of corn for that particular version.
My love of frogs led me to go with my own version. Initially I was going to make the frogs myself and fill them with rice or popcorn.
That was until I found these guys online! They are filled with sand and were pretty inexpensive and now I don't have to make them.
I mowed the blade off my mower. I did not know that was possible until I did it. So, both push mowers are waiting for new blades that are supposed to arrive tomorrow.
The Grasshopper mower, the subject of a recent post ....... went back to the dealer today. Of course, HeWho mows, tows and complains had to transport it. Unlike the promise made by the Grasshopper Guy. They did provide us with a loaner. As they should be doing anyway, since they have yet to repair the problem.
Almost time to close and I refuse to raise my blood pressure now. I attempted to make a fairy for my garden ...... no pictures, let's just say I was not successful.
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
Losing My Mind
He Who mows, tows and sometimes annoys me is a sniffer. He will not blow his nose, choosing, instead to sniff loudly. And, when I say loud, I am not joking. Every morning he sniffs deeply upon awakening and continues to sniff until finally leaving the house.
It makes my head hurt to think about how deeply he pulls the air around him into his sinuses. The dust and pollen, not to mention the dog and cat hair floating in the air. When he went in for his last check-up, the nurse practitioner prescribed Flonase.
Being the savvy, money saving shopper that I am, I knew that a generic was available and that Sam's Club would have the cheapest price if we bought in volume. When HeWho made his next visit to Sam's, I added it to the list I so thoughtfully provide him with. He purchased a 6 bottle package and I carefully cut into the hard plastic and pulled all 6 bottles out. I put one next to his bedside, along with his bedtime pills and I put the other 5 away.
I have an entire shelf in the kitchen devoted to our medications, I even keep the canine and feline meds in that location. When the first month came to an end and his Flonase was empty, he asked where the rest of the bottles were. I had heard him bumbling around in the bathroom looking, but I do not keep medications there, it is too humid. I looked up and pointed to the kitchen where all the pill bottles are located in a big white plastic bin.
"You will have to be more specific." he says. So, I lowered my weary legs in my recliner and pushed various animals to the floor. I went into the kitchen and looked myself. For some reason I thought the bottles were in boxes and that is what I looked for. I pulled my step ladder out and searched that cabinet thoroughly. Couldn't find them. I checked the bathroom, although I knew they would not be there. I checked the linen closet.
For the next week I hunted periodically for Flonase. I sent him to pick up a single bottle in town, thinking I would happen upon them as soon as he bought it. He paid $15 for a one month supply of the generic brand in town and $30 for a 6 month supply at Sam's. I was really annoyed with myself that I could not find those bottles. I even looked in the spare bedroom and my closet.
So, when I made the next list for Sam's, I added Flonase along with all the ice cream and candy for the store. I put this package on his bedside table where we both could look upon it every night. I even searched again when I realized the bottles were not contained with-in individual boxes.
This morning, HeWho no longer annoys me by sniffing, thanks to the Flonase, told me his pill boxes were empty. I downed my coffee and went to the kitchen to fill pills. I got down all the big bottles of supplements and grabbed the white plastic bin of prescription meds ...........
There they were, 5 bottles sitting neatly in the plastic bin, right where I had put them over a month ago. Now, there are 11 bottles. Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.
It makes my head hurt to think about how deeply he pulls the air around him into his sinuses. The dust and pollen, not to mention the dog and cat hair floating in the air. When he went in for his last check-up, the nurse practitioner prescribed Flonase.
Being the savvy, money saving shopper that I am, I knew that a generic was available and that Sam's Club would have the cheapest price if we bought in volume. When HeWho made his next visit to Sam's, I added it to the list I so thoughtfully provide him with. He purchased a 6 bottle package and I carefully cut into the hard plastic and pulled all 6 bottles out. I put one next to his bedside, along with his bedtime pills and I put the other 5 away.
I have an entire shelf in the kitchen devoted to our medications, I even keep the canine and feline meds in that location. When the first month came to an end and his Flonase was empty, he asked where the rest of the bottles were. I had heard him bumbling around in the bathroom looking, but I do not keep medications there, it is too humid. I looked up and pointed to the kitchen where all the pill bottles are located in a big white plastic bin.
"You will have to be more specific." he says. So, I lowered my weary legs in my recliner and pushed various animals to the floor. I went into the kitchen and looked myself. For some reason I thought the bottles were in boxes and that is what I looked for. I pulled my step ladder out and searched that cabinet thoroughly. Couldn't find them. I checked the bathroom, although I knew they would not be there. I checked the linen closet.
For the next week I hunted periodically for Flonase. I sent him to pick up a single bottle in town, thinking I would happen upon them as soon as he bought it. He paid $15 for a one month supply of the generic brand in town and $30 for a 6 month supply at Sam's. I was really annoyed with myself that I could not find those bottles. I even looked in the spare bedroom and my closet.
So, when I made the next list for Sam's, I added Flonase along with all the ice cream and candy for the store. I put this package on his bedside table where we both could look upon it every night. I even searched again when I realized the bottles were not contained with-in individual boxes.
This morning, HeWho no longer annoys me by sniffing, thanks to the Flonase, told me his pill boxes were empty. I downed my coffee and went to the kitchen to fill pills. I got down all the big bottles of supplements and grabbed the white plastic bin of prescription meds ...........
There they were, 5 bottles sitting neatly in the plastic bin, right where I had put them over a month ago. Now, there are 11 bottles. Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.
Monday, July 17, 2017
Inspiration
Yesterday, I did the unimaginable!! I closed early and got in the pool!! We cooked burgers and I invited all the campers I encountered to come and help us eat them.
I put a sign on the door that said I was outside working ...... yeah, I lied about the working part. This was a rare occasion, for both HeWho would have been mowing and I, who should have been mowing to simply relax with our friends.
In the 13 years that we have been here, this has only happened ...... maybe 4 times. Then, to top it all off, I slept until 9:30 this morning. The sleep was great, but it left me without my outside morning time. I had to throw on some clothes to check in an early arrival while my hair stood on end. Left me with only 15 minutes to shower and get ready for the day.
The heat wave continues. Spent my day moving sprinklers, trying to keep my garden alive. Flowers, as well as vegetables. I picked a handful of weeds on every excursion. If only the vegetables would grow as fast as the weeds do. My tomatoes are finally getting ripe, along with the cucumbers and peppers. The yellow squash fizzled and died, as well as the zucchini.
I have turned my attention to my Gnome Garden.
My little Gnome village is coming along. I ordered some gnomes on-line, but they were teeny tiny and not at all the size scale I needed.
I got some little Disney figures from Dollar General. These are actually dwarves, but a better size.
I used a coffee can and some of my dumpster diving slats from lattice to create the well. Complete with a bucket to pull the water up.
The slightly off-kilter "house" is actually a big bottle that once held weed killer. I employed my tiger lily stalks again and a scrap of tine for a roof. Popsicle sticks and tongue depressors created the door and window.
And you will recall the original gnome house created with stones and glue on a big plastic jug.
I have another abode in the making, but I am out of raw materials. A trip to the Dollar Tree will remedy that. Tomorrow will be my escape day, as prescriptions are waiting at WalMart.
Who knows, something in WalMart might be an inspiration!
I put a sign on the door that said I was outside working ...... yeah, I lied about the working part. This was a rare occasion, for both HeWho would have been mowing and I, who should have been mowing to simply relax with our friends.
In the 13 years that we have been here, this has only happened ...... maybe 4 times. Then, to top it all off, I slept until 9:30 this morning. The sleep was great, but it left me without my outside morning time. I had to throw on some clothes to check in an early arrival while my hair stood on end. Left me with only 15 minutes to shower and get ready for the day.
The heat wave continues. Spent my day moving sprinklers, trying to keep my garden alive. Flowers, as well as vegetables. I picked a handful of weeds on every excursion. If only the vegetables would grow as fast as the weeds do. My tomatoes are finally getting ripe, along with the cucumbers and peppers. The yellow squash fizzled and died, as well as the zucchini.
I have turned my attention to my Gnome Garden.
My little Gnome village is coming along. I ordered some gnomes on-line, but they were teeny tiny and not at all the size scale I needed.
I got some little Disney figures from Dollar General. These are actually dwarves, but a better size.
I used a coffee can and some of my dumpster diving slats from lattice to create the well. Complete with a bucket to pull the water up.
The slightly off-kilter "house" is actually a big bottle that once held weed killer. I employed my tiger lily stalks again and a scrap of tine for a roof. Popsicle sticks and tongue depressors created the door and window.
And you will recall the original gnome house created with stones and glue on a big plastic jug.
I have another abode in the making, but I am out of raw materials. A trip to the Dollar Tree will remedy that. Tomorrow will be my escape day, as prescriptions are waiting at WalMart.
Who knows, something in WalMart might be an inspiration!
Sunday, July 16, 2017
Assume .... Makes An A$$ of U and Me
Standing in front of me, a folder of papers in her hand, the woman tells me she is doing research .....
The papers are my entire website in print. She is thumbing through the papers and begins asking questions. Seems she is "researching" tent sites. For a weekend in September. The map has a legend and the legend will identify the site type. I am itching to point this out to her. I mean, she went to all the trouble of printing all this information out and I feel like I should enlighten her, so that she will know how to use it.
I point out the tent area and then show her where the bath houses are located (all marked on the map she has) Then comes the cost. My pricing is on the map, along with the number of campers covered with said price. Extras are $3 per person per night.
BUT, it does not say PER NIGHT. Since the base price is per night, one would assume that the extra person price would also be per night, right? Well you know what they say about assuming. I will get right on that and have that marked, to avoid confusion in the future!!
The papers are my entire website in print. She is thumbing through the papers and begins asking questions. Seems she is "researching" tent sites. For a weekend in September. The map has a legend and the legend will identify the site type. I am itching to point this out to her. I mean, she went to all the trouble of printing all this information out and I feel like I should enlighten her, so that she will know how to use it.
I point out the tent area and then show her where the bath houses are located (all marked on the map she has) Then comes the cost. My pricing is on the map, along with the number of campers covered with said price. Extras are $3 per person per night.
BUT, it does not say PER NIGHT. Since the base price is per night, one would assume that the extra person price would also be per night, right? Well you know what they say about assuming. I will get right on that and have that marked, to avoid confusion in the future!!
Saturday, July 15, 2017
Too Early!
This day started early. The canines have been sleeping later and we didn't make the first bathroom break until 6:30. I decided that I needed to stay up. The hot humid weather had finally broken overnight and I showered and went outside to enjoy the cool air. I finished restocking the bathrooms and was intent on looking at my garden, but stopped to chat with some campers.
Big mistake. This made me visible to any and all. Before I could excuse myself and go about my garden visit, I spied a couple pushing an umbrella stroller who spied me. I wear regular clothes, nothing to indicate that I am a slave to this park, but I must look like I work here.
I had a call late in the evening inquiring about a site suitable for a pop-up camper. The caller said they would arrive close to midnight and wanted to know if I would be here to check them in ..... I explained that there was a night registration on the front of the building along with instructions. I told her to choose a site in the 60's. The sites are all numbered and I even told her which side of the park they would be located in ...... pool side.
I always check my phone upon arising to see if I have missed a call. I had missed 2. Both were from the same number and occurred at 11:45 and 11:47 pm. I have long since stopped jumping from my bed to answer middle of the night calls. If anything serious was taking place, all of the full time campers have the cell number of HeWho is the fixer of all things electric or plumbing related. His phone is right next to him.
The couple with the toddler in tow were coming up to pay for a weekend of camping. The call the night before was from them and they were at a state park that was full and had found my park through my website. The answer to every basic question you could ask can be found right there on the website. This tends to make me assume that my pricing offers no surprises and the map has a legend telling you what can be found on each site.
When I asked which site they had parked in, they had no clue and pointed vaguely in the direction of the full hook-up sites. When I produced a map, she named 3 occupied sites before finally settling on the one they had taken. I asked if she might be the person I had spoken to late yesterday evening. She told me it was her daughter. I explained that I had told her daughter to park in one of the unoccupied sites in the area next to the pool. "Yeah, we tried that, but we had trouble finding one, so we pulled the map up on our phone and that's how we found the site we are on." "We saw all the color codes and it looked like this was a good site."
They parked on a 50 amp full hook-up site, instead of one of the sites with a regular 110 outlet, which is what they needed. The pop-up was quite old and had no air conditioner. She said they noticed the outlet was wrong, so they ran an extension cord to a "right kind". I asked if they would mind moving to the other side of the park and they agreed to do so.
The plot thickens ...... after she had painstakingly provided the necessary information on the registration and got to the area requesting your license plate number, she seemed to be baffled, so I told her to just leave it blank. I asked how many people there were in her party. This is a question I ask frequently and it is clearly stated in all my literature that my prices cover 2 adults and 2 children. After that it is $3 per person per night extra. They had 7 adults and 7 children in their party. This number was accomplished after much counting by names on fingers.
That is 10 extra people. This equates to $30 a night in addition to the base price of $26 ...... or $8 per person for a two night stay. I always say the amount out loud before I input it into the machine that takes credit/debit cards. I want to make sure you are aware of the amount coming out of your account. I could tell she was not happy that she was paying for her extra guests, but the transaction went through and she agreed to move to the other side of the park.
This all happened before the office was open for the day. I realized my garden visit was not happening and I was busying myself with the making of my bed and general tidying up when they returned and asked for a refund. All of this and I was not even open for the day. I tried to void the last transaction, but because it was a debit transaction, I had to refund it. When I tried, the machine deemed it an unauthorized transaction.
Right at that moment, HeWho digs holes in the road happened into the office and I turned it over to him in order to let the dogs in and use the bathroom unhindered one more time before opening. I skipped my bathroom break. It occurred to me that they would just take the refund and not pay for the night already spent here and HeWho would be none the wiser because I had not specifically told him that.
My assumption was correct and I caught them just in time. Despite the very short stay, I took note of the huge amount of trash put in the dumpster on the way out. Confirmed my suspicion that people coming to camp brought all their household garbage along with them! It was just too early to start the day!
Big mistake. This made me visible to any and all. Before I could excuse myself and go about my garden visit, I spied a couple pushing an umbrella stroller who spied me. I wear regular clothes, nothing to indicate that I am a slave to this park, but I must look like I work here.
I had a call late in the evening inquiring about a site suitable for a pop-up camper. The caller said they would arrive close to midnight and wanted to know if I would be here to check them in ..... I explained that there was a night registration on the front of the building along with instructions. I told her to choose a site in the 60's. The sites are all numbered and I even told her which side of the park they would be located in ...... pool side.
I always check my phone upon arising to see if I have missed a call. I had missed 2. Both were from the same number and occurred at 11:45 and 11:47 pm. I have long since stopped jumping from my bed to answer middle of the night calls. If anything serious was taking place, all of the full time campers have the cell number of HeWho is the fixer of all things electric or plumbing related. His phone is right next to him.
The couple with the toddler in tow were coming up to pay for a weekend of camping. The call the night before was from them and they were at a state park that was full and had found my park through my website. The answer to every basic question you could ask can be found right there on the website. This tends to make me assume that my pricing offers no surprises and the map has a legend telling you what can be found on each site.
When I asked which site they had parked in, they had no clue and pointed vaguely in the direction of the full hook-up sites. When I produced a map, she named 3 occupied sites before finally settling on the one they had taken. I asked if she might be the person I had spoken to late yesterday evening. She told me it was her daughter. I explained that I had told her daughter to park in one of the unoccupied sites in the area next to the pool. "Yeah, we tried that, but we had trouble finding one, so we pulled the map up on our phone and that's how we found the site we are on." "We saw all the color codes and it looked like this was a good site."
They parked on a 50 amp full hook-up site, instead of one of the sites with a regular 110 outlet, which is what they needed. The pop-up was quite old and had no air conditioner. She said they noticed the outlet was wrong, so they ran an extension cord to a "right kind". I asked if they would mind moving to the other side of the park and they agreed to do so.
The plot thickens ...... after she had painstakingly provided the necessary information on the registration and got to the area requesting your license plate number, she seemed to be baffled, so I told her to just leave it blank. I asked how many people there were in her party. This is a question I ask frequently and it is clearly stated in all my literature that my prices cover 2 adults and 2 children. After that it is $3 per person per night extra. They had 7 adults and 7 children in their party. This number was accomplished after much counting by names on fingers.
That is 10 extra people. This equates to $30 a night in addition to the base price of $26 ...... or $8 per person for a two night stay. I always say the amount out loud before I input it into the machine that takes credit/debit cards. I want to make sure you are aware of the amount coming out of your account. I could tell she was not happy that she was paying for her extra guests, but the transaction went through and she agreed to move to the other side of the park.
This all happened before the office was open for the day. I realized my garden visit was not happening and I was busying myself with the making of my bed and general tidying up when they returned and asked for a refund. All of this and I was not even open for the day. I tried to void the last transaction, but because it was a debit transaction, I had to refund it. When I tried, the machine deemed it an unauthorized transaction.
Right at that moment, HeWho digs holes in the road happened into the office and I turned it over to him in order to let the dogs in and use the bathroom unhindered one more time before opening. I skipped my bathroom break. It occurred to me that they would just take the refund and not pay for the night already spent here and HeWho would be none the wiser because I had not specifically told him that.
My assumption was correct and I caught them just in time. Despite the very short stay, I took note of the huge amount of trash put in the dumpster on the way out. Confirmed my suspicion that people coming to camp brought all their household garbage along with them! It was just too early to start the day!
Thursday, July 13, 2017
Grasshopper Mowers
I think the heat is getting to me. I tried to mow this morning. It was hot, but there was a breeze that made it bearable. I was annoyed, though. The mower needs a new blade. It wasn't even chopping the heads of clover off. I found myself going over the same spot without results, so I quit.
I realize I blog about mowing ..... a lot. Is it sad that this is a big part of my life? That I spend more time with the mower than I do with my husband? Doesn't matter that he is usually mowing at the same time that I am.
When we first bought this new and exiting endeavor, we had no idea how much of our time would be spent mowing. There was a tractor that was part of the existing equipment that was used to mow. The smaller areas had to be mowed with a push mower. I didn't mind doing my part. It was just a very small area between the parking lot and the building, and the fenced in back yard.
The tractor mowing was okay, just didn't look well groomed. Then there was all this wide open space. Not many trees at all. A couple of maples, 3 apple trees and three cherry trees. The cherry trees have since died, but I have replaced them with other trees. I added peach trees and flowering pear trees purchased on clearance. The skimpy patches of grass between the building and parking lot has been replaced with daylilies and ground cover, along with clematis and whatever I decide to add in annually. The wide open spaces are now defined with trees and bushes and perennial plants. Lots of tiger lilies and iris and black-eyed suzies. All this planting came with a price for me. Not $$. But I planted my trees to create a sun screen and a wind break for the main building. That meant a tractor would not be able to navigate between my trees.
This was a lesson learned when the very first tree I planted here, a black walnut, met with disaster and was mowed down. HeWho I am quite sure murdered my little tree tried to blame it on the nice man who was helping with that chore. I am well versed in the ways of HeWho mows. It was about this time that HeWho purchased his first zero-turn at the co-op in town. He paid a lot of money for this mower that was previously owned and was always breaking down. He also purchased an off brand tractor that never worked right, but that is another day's tale .... not to mention the dump truck with no brakes.
After a couple of seasons of an unreliable mower, I convinced him that we needed something that was known to be reliable. I was appalled to learn how much he spent on his new Grasshopper. He spent more on that than he did on the car I drive!
He did his research and spoke to the salesman at length about the work load this mower would have to endure.
Lately, the mower is in the shop more than it is mowing here. They keep
Even though I am very adept at pushing one, I just can't do nearly 14 acres! I mow around my gardens and my trees .... a very wide swath, so that cut grass is not slung into my beds. I mow the dips a valleys that a wide blade will not groom well. I mow around the pool and anywhere the big mower cannot easily access. Another kamper helps out by mowing sites.
So, when the Grasshopper representative, aka Grasshopper Guy decided to drop by today, I was not in the best frame of mind, being still hot from mowing. I was in a sharing mood and I shared quite a few of my thoughts about what customer service means. I am not shy, as you might have already guessed.
Rumor has it that a loaner mower will be in my future and will be delivered when ours is picked up.
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