May 12, 2014 Fixing the Road, Trapping Chickens & The Mother's Day Curse

Our Friday evening visitor.

Wild flowers I discovered on
our Saturday drive.

Friday 5/9. The dogs let me sleep in til 5:45 am, so I just stayed up.  Got a fire going, then finished and posted my blog.  I worked on inside projects, including defrosting the refrigerator, until lunch, hoping the wind would die down a bit.  It never did, so I went out for another load of wood.  Finished the pile by the tall pine tree and started on the pile at the top of the ridge.  This load was mostly kindling.

BJ left for Down There at 11:00 am to pick up the parts for Miss Kitty he had ordered, which included a repair manual.  Of course he picked up the mail and a few groceries too.

The new issue of Countryside magazine has a one-page article on canning cheese and butter.  Sounds fairly easy.  I may try to do them both.

My arthritic fingers are getting weaker, all ten of them.  This is very frustrating, but seems to be making me more patient.  I don't ever remember asking for patience.  If I had, it would have gone something like this: "Please Lord, give me patience and give it to me right now!"  I can only imagine the many unwanted life lessons that request could cause to rain down on one.  But I must admit that just living Up Here is making me a more patient person.  Everything in its own good time. . .

The humming birds had insisted on my filling their feeders Wednesday morning before we left for Down There.  We have several kinds of humming birds Up Here, but the rufus and the ruby throated seem to be the most aggressive.  I keep trying to tell them that there is enough for everyone, but they just don't seem to listen.

While we were watching the last two episodes of season two of Homeland this evening, a small deer cautiously walked down almost to our fence.  It was just losing the last of its winter coat, which made it look spotted.  The dogs never noticed it, so I was able to get some good pictures.

Saturday 5/10. It was 37 and breezy this morning.  Sandy called.  There is nothing like a stimulating conversation with a good friend to start the day off right.  Even better than a cup of coffee.

I mentioned to her that one of the magazines that comes with the Sunday paper had an article about things that had happened fifty years ago.  My first thought was, "That can't be!  I remember that!"  Which got me to thinking that my fifty-year high school reunion will be next year, if they have one.  The last one I attended was our ten-year and I wasn't very impressed.  I have a membership to Classmates.com and several people have visited my "site".  I had a fleeting thought that it might be fun to communicate with them, possibly make new friends fifty years after the fact and attend the reunion.  That thought was very fleeting. . .

JB drove the tractor down the road to the sandstone corner and used it to fill some of the potholes with sand.  He dumped it and I spread and smoothed it with a shovel.  Seems to have worked quite well.  

It was such a nice day (our high was 59) that when we got back to the house, we decided to take a ride in Miss Kitty.  We left the dogs in the house to nap after all their exercise, and drove up to one of the neighbors who were up for the day.  We knew they were there because we could hear them shooting.  Then we drove up to see if one of our other neighbors had come up for the weekend.  They had not, but we had a great drive.  

JB received a phone call when we returned home from his sister-in-law who told him that his Mother had fallen and the doctor wanted them to take her to the emergency room for xrays.  Several years ago she fell on Mother's Day, breaking her wrist and badly bruising most of her body, and ended up spending a few days in the hospital.  For the next three years - on Mother's Day - she fell and hurt herself despite everyone watching out for her on that weekend.  Then for the past two Mother's Days she has been fine - until today.  

Turns out there was nothing broken, but she is so badly bruised that she cannot get out of bed or walk by herself.  So JB will be going over there to take care of her while everyone is at work during the day.  Hopefully it will be just for the week, but he will stay as long as he is needed.

Sunday 5/11.  It was 38 and clear when we both got up at 7:00 am this morning.  JB wanted to leave by 9:00 am, but he also wanted to fix me a nice breakfast for Mother's Day.  So I got up early too, and we had German pancakes with peaches and brown sugar.  He fixed an extra one also, so I could heat it for breakfast tomorrow.

I sat out on the porch after he left.  There is no such thing as a quiet Spring morning.  Nature's chorus of birds and bugs creates the most amazing symphony.  And every day it is at once the same and different from the day before.  The landscape is a symphony in green for the eyes.  A myriad shades of green all coming together to delight.  Have I mentioned how very much I like Spring?!

After seeing the photo I posted of Elsie's chicken, Bella, my Aunt Nene said it looks just like the one of her Mother's that she caught in a coyote trap!  When Nene was about eight years old, one summer morning she got out one of the many coyote traps her Dad had.  She had seen him setting them, so she tried and was quite successful.  Not thinking anymore about it, she went in for lunch.  As the family was all sitting there eating, they suddenly heard a commotion out in the yard.  Running out, they found one of her Mother's chickens caught in the trap.  They had to sell it as its leg was broken, and, needless to say, Nene never touched her Dad's traps again!

My son called to wish me Happy Mother's Day as he was dashing from one plane to another at the Atlanta airport.  He was on his way to Maryland for two weeks of active duty, as he usually does in May.  He called me again this evening after he was all settled in his hotel and we had a nice chat.

After lunch, I drove Miss Kitty down to our hair-pin corner and loaded her up with wood, all of it good-sized kindling.  Then I took a nap and so enjoyed it.  It was such a beautiful day.  Blue sky, a little breeze, and a high of 58.

The ants are out - and in - enforce once again.  Time to spread corn meal around the doors and porch posts.  It is the best non-toxic way to get rid of them.  Ants cannot digest it, so when they eat it they die.  And they tend to take it back to their nests to share.

I was watching Downton Abby after dinner when Larry and Elsie drove up to visit.  They brought a beautiful hanging basket of yellow flowers for me for Mothers Day!  And a dozen eggs.  We had a great visit, as usual.  What a perfect end to the day.

Monday 5/12. It is 42 and clear this morning.  JB isn't here so my coffee isn't ready when I get up.  Have to make my own.  Life is rough.

Thought for the day: Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky is by no means a waste of time. John Lubbock