RAIN! Rain! RAIN!

Poocharoo is beginning to think she is a house dog. There has been so many storms this year that she is spending almost as much time indoors as out. Saturday night late she came in then went out when I got up to get stuff ready for church and fellowship dinner but I had to let her in again before I left because it was rumbling again (she is so afraid of thunder!). The rain held off until Sunday school was going then it just poured. It paused between SS and worship service then poured again. Needless to say the attendance was low for church and the dinner. Afterwards I hurried home to let Poocharoo out. But---later in the afternoon she came in for a couple hours as it rained AGAIN! Then about one a.m. I had to let her in AGAIN for the rest of the night! So far today she hasn't been back in. At least she can no longer wreck the storm door. If this keeps up I'll have to take her to the doggie beauty parlor to have her groomed. She loves to dig and roll in the dirt which is why she if NOT a house dog now. At 5 p.m. today (Monday) she conned me into letting her in for a few minutes until I checked and there was no thunder heard and it was bright sunlight. I tell you, she thinks she is a house dog now!

SUMMER----HOT AND MUGGY

Between the many days (weeks) of over 100 degrees and all the rain (way more than normal) the yardwork has gotten away from me. Thankfully, James has kept the lawn mowed, so the place has kept looking halfway decent, but my weeding of the flower beds is way behind. Now I'll have to snap myself with my rubber band for complaining. Last Sunday in church the message was on arguing and complaining and we all received a rubber band to help us remember not to do so. We are to wear it on our wrist for thirty days and snap ourselves when we catch ourselves complaining. I'm not black and blue YET but I have three weeks to go!

DESTRUCTO DOG

Another tale on life with a terrible terrier! Poocharoo's cost of living with me is going up fast this year. Besides the usual costs you expect, she has added another catagory: destruction!! Last year it was two new screens in the back storm door plus we added a heavier aluminum grill to protect it. The pavers to keep her from undermining the foundation of the house was another expense. But this year she has outdone herself: two more screens and TWO grills!!



When she tore the guts out of the second grill and screen while trying to get in when thunder started (and there has been a lot of that this spring) I gave up and last Tuesday we went to Hastings to get a different door, one with the screen on top and the glass on the bottom. We found one we thought would work (I even asked if they could be switched around), tied it to the top of the car and brought it home, got out the tools needed, opened the box, took the trim from around the window and screen to change them around......only to discover that they couldn't be moved, they were glued in place! So we (I say we even though all I did was serve as an extra set of hands for holding screws, etc. while James did the actual work) put everything back together and in the box, taped it up good, tied it back on the car and went back to Hastings. Add a tank of gas to Pocheroo's bill. I told James he didn't have to go the second time since he had to work that night but thankfullly he didn't take me up on that. Being me, I was mildly(?) muttering about the extra trip and expense and James told me that wasn't doing any good and wouldn't change anything.

(Moral: don't grumble about troubles....it can get worse!)

We had to stop three times because something was coming loose in the strong cross wind. The last time was just a couple miles out of Hastings and we were just pulling back on the road when a big semi went by in the other direction and WHUMP!! the rope broke and the door went flying, landing on the corner of the box. It kind of got bent out of shape!

(Moral #2: Don't use an old rope, buy a new one, it's cheaper in the end.)

All the parts were there but not exactly in working order. We couldn't leave it lay by the side of the road so James tied the rope back together, tied the box back on the car and we went on to Menards. We took it in and asked if they would dispose of it for us. No credit since it was our fault. We then picked out and purchased another door after first making sure we could switch the screen and glass around. We also purchased a NEW rope. Thankfully I had the money from a short time job I tried but learned that my body just couldn't do that kind of labor anymore. By the time we got home it was late so James just untied it and moved it into the house and went to get some rest. The next day we (I did my extra hands bit again) got it hung and working. That night there was another storm and the door held even though Poocharoo left muddy paw prints on the bottom of the glass before I got downstairs to let her in. She can't reach the screen as it is over five feet from the porch floor. She can still make it rattle though by pounding on it with her front paws while standing on her hind feet, I heard it all the way upstairs.


She can still jump straight up a good four feet even though she is nine years old. The other day another bird made the mistake of trying to distract her by dive bombing while others raided her food dish. She caught it out of the air! This makes the fifth one since we have lived here. James saw her and said she looked kind of sheepish and was trying to bury it! She does keep me company and amused. I wonder what that dog will be up to next. She is currently trying to tunnel under the wire and pavers looking for a cool place to lay.


There is a strong wind today and the two wind chimes on the front porch that David bought for me are really singing to me (and the whole block)!

GOING BATTY

6-7-2011
James possibly wishes he didn't live so close to Mom, though I don"t know what I would have done without him this last year. Yesterday was no exception. He worked hard all day: putting a new (from the old kitchen counter top) desktop on my computer desk so I have more and better space to work in, put a new handle on my front screen door (the old one litterally broke in two!), installed a scanner that works, then did some work on some programs on the computer. I did get him to stop and eat. Before he headed for home he jokingly asked if there was anything else he could do for me and I said that I didn't think so. About 11 o'clock I thought I saw something move in the kitchen and went to investigate then put in a call to James and asked him if he could do one more thing for me and he said "Yes, what was it?" When I said there was a bird or bat flying around the downstairs he said "Get out of here!" To which I said that I hoped it would! He came over and of course it wasn't in evidence then. We flipped on lights and looked until he finally saw it resting and hiding on the wire tomato cage that my big vining philo(?) plant climbs on. When his hand got too close it took off, flitting this way and that throughout the downstairs while we laughed and tried to catch it. I didn't want to try and chase it out the front door for fear it would go upstairs (nightmare) and if we opened the back door Poocharoo would want to come and join the chase! We chased that bat for about a half hour and James finally caught it by fashioning a net out of a dish towel clothespinned to a wire coathanger! He ran for the door with it while I held it open. It didn't take it long to fly away! We had a good laugh before we said good night again. Another thrilling bit of nightlife in Kansas!

POSIES

My neighbors forsynthia bush is beautifully loaded with gold blooms. My plum tree is blooming with beautiful pink flowers! The pear trees are all budded out and should be in bloom next week. Other trees are starting to show a haze of new green leaves. I finally got the bed by the front porch ready to put flowers into it when they are ready in the greenhouse. Four of the daffodils David put in last spring are shooting up buds and the others are all up and doing well. James got out the spreader and the bag of "weed and feed" and treated both of our yards so we'll see if it does any good. We need some rain. I need to check my seeds and see what I want to put in the garden. With the price of produce what it is right now I am looking forward to being able to pick some fresh from my own garden plot. It should do better this year since the tree if gone that was keeping it in shade last year. Live and learn! Spring means yard work but it also means sunshine and beauty. I need to get out walking again as I am way (weigh) out of shape after colds and flu and being a couch potato the last four months. HAPPY SPRING!!

I THOUGHT IT WAS SPRING!

Remember the old Burma Shave signs? One especially comes to my mind every spring: "Spring has sprung, the grass has riz where last years reckless driver is." It felt like spring here last week with a couple days in the 70's. James and I did some work in the yard. I had missed some of the tulip bulbs last fall and they were coming up under the ground cloth I had put down on the bed by the front porch so I had to pull it back, after first removing the rock on top of it, then James took them up with the spade and put them in the long flower bed along the alley. I hope they "take" where they are now, especially since the temperature dropped back into the freezing zone again. My daffodils are in bloom and my pussywillow has many pussies on it. My mums are showing green, the winter onions and rhubarb plants are up, the day lillies and iris are poking green points up through the ground. I had a pair of birds trying to make a nest in the exhaust pipe from the downstairs bath. James had to finally go up the ladder and put some screen cloth behind the louvers and then they fussed because they couldn't get in! We went down to Paul's for Jordan's 16th birthday last weekend and on the way I saw a church sign that I like better than the Burma Shave: "The birds are back and the grass is greening. GOD DID IT AGAIN!!" Isn't He wonderful!! I love spring. It spells HOPE to me especially after this last long difficult year. Take time to enjoy this beautiful world God has given us to live in.

THE DARK AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS

For over 36 years I rarely had to face it, that dark at the top of the stairs. David was a morning person while I was a night owl so most nights he went up to bed before me and would leave the hall light on for me. The only times when he didn't was when he was at camp, camp-outs, men's meetings , etc. and of course those six weeks when he made that first trip to Russia. I never rested easy when he was gone and I missed that light. I try to remember to go up early before it gets completely dark out and turn on the upper hall light on but many times I will be involved in something and forget so I have gotten so I can climb the stairs in the dark because some light does come in the windows from the street lights nearby. Worse than the lack of the light is the lack of his presence when I get there. This house is so empty and lonely without David.

ANOTHER EMPTY SPOT

One of the ways David and I used to unwind was to play a computer game. Besides solitaire a favorite was Jezz Ball and it was a mild competition between us trying to knock each other off the score board. We were pretty even though I did hold the record for the highest score. It takes concentration, patience and good hand/eye coordination. It is easy to get lost in it. I have played it often in the last few months. Last week it did me in. I was playing it and ran up a pretty high score and didn't realize the significance until the score board came up, then I just sat there and cried for a while. My high score had wiped David's name off the high score list so that my name was now the only one on it. One more place that screams out at me that I am now alone. Little things can trip you up! Lord help me.

FLANNEL TENTS

Sitting on the edge of my bed on one of the cold COLD nights of the last couple of months shivering as I got ready for bed made me remember similar times as a child. Looking back it seems that most of the houses I have lived in (this is number 50 to date) did not have central heating. Those old houses didn't have insulation either. The main source of heat, usually a wood, coal or oil heater, was on the main floor and the second floor was barely above freezing so we didn't linger in our bedrooms before getting beneath the covers, as many as we could pile on and on really cold nights we would add "Old Joe" (Dads tanned horsehide of one of his favorite horses) as the top layer. The trick was to get out of our clothes and into our nightgown as quickly as we could without feeling as though we were freezing. Mom made our nightgowns and they were huge. I think she used a full width piece of outing flannel ( it came n 36 inch widths then) for the front and the back. Deep hems allowed for lengthening and shortening to fit the current wearer. Maybe they just seemed huge to me being the youngest and wearing mostly hand-me-downs from my older sisters and cousins. Anyway they were big enough that Fannie and I got pretty good at using them as flannel tents. By pullling them over us but not down around our necks we had enough room to remove our day clothes before pulling them rest of the way down and putting our arms through the sleeves thereby retaining our body heat as we climbed quickly under the covers. Mom didn't have to worry about us coming uncovered in the night, especially if "Old Joe" was on the bed, because under all those covers we were so weighted down we could hardly move! My source of heat is a floor furnace on the main floor and I can close off the upstairs during the day to conserve heat so my bedroom got kind of chilly on those zero degree days and nights in January and February. Bless the person who invented heated mattress pads or I would have been wishing for "Old Joe" on my bed again! I was able to sleep in a nice warm bed. Memories are brought back by little things. Fannie, do you still have "Old Joe"? I remember Peggy screaming when she discovered it in one of the upstairs closets when we were clearing out the folks house when they went into the nursing home. Dan wanted it and became the proud possessor of "Old Joe". That was all a good many years ago! Love and God bless and keep you!

TICKLE ME CLEAN

I'm back--sort of. The last three months have been difficult--what with the flu, sinus infection, coughing, some bad bruises , the holidays, snow and cold almost every week for the last two months, the transmission going out on my car and through it all missing David terribly. Now I face March again and getting through Easter. It doesn't seem like it has been almost a year, but it has. With the Lord's help and lots of prayer I get through it day by day, some days more lonely than others.

Now to the title subject, my spring-offs should appreceate this one. When I was little I was very ticklish. When families would visit the kids would entertain themselves, you know in the olden days with no radio, TV, DVD's, sterios, etc., we would play games (even the board games were very limited in kind and quantity) . I wonder if Jack remembers when we came up with our "tickle matches'? The bed (preferably double size)was the ring and we would start off sitting on opposite corners and the object was to try to get the other person to laugh by tickling them. It was kind of the unspoken rule that once you had them laughing the round was over. We could go on for hours, on a cold winter day it was a way to pass the time. One day one of my friends came home with me for Sunday afternoon after morning church and before evening Bible study and we had a tickle match, only she didn't go by the rules. Once she had me laughing she straddled me with her knees on my arms and tickled me until I absolutely could not laugh anymore. That was the end of the "tickle matches" because the result of that match was that I was no longer ticklish. Only when I was very VERY tired with my shoes off and my feet up was I then ticklish on the bottoms of my feet and my kids discovered this. (I think someone told them, probably their Dad.) Each one at one time or another when they would catch me in that position after a hard days work would just have to try and "get Mom". I got pretty good at faking them out because if I was aware what they were up to (whispers and giggles would give them away) I wouldn't be ticklish and they would be caught and tickled themselves so they had to be quick on their feet to avoid being caught. Once in a while they would catch me, enough times to keep them trying. If I was really out of it and they managed to get a reaction they still had to be quick on their feet because my reaction was instant--the tickled foot would kick. The reason for this story, besides a fun memory, was what happened to me this morning. Have you seen the ads for the foot cleaner? I have been waiting for them to get in the store. Between arthritus and the added pounds I have put on it was getting more and more difficult to wash my feet in the shower. A friend had told me she had one and she loved it. Well I found one in Alco last week and put it in the shower yesterday to use. Have you ever laughed in the shower other than at the way you look? Well I must have still been half asleep (you know I'm not a morning person) because when I squirted the soap in that thing and shoved my foot in it to get it clean my reaction was instant. That foot kicked so hard and fast the suction cups came loose and there I stood with that thing dangling from my foot and the water running down me and laughing like a lunatic. I woke up in a hurry. They should put a warning on the box to beware of use if your feet are ticklish! It's a good thing I had a good hold on the grab bar or I could have had more bruises and not laughing. Such is life! I'll have to try it again when I am wide awake!

Lots of love and God's blessing. Keep on praying for me as I do for you. We need all of the heavenly help we can get.