Have canner...will can.

The Split Pea Soup is done and canned.  I
processed 5 pts.  I didn't have quite enough for the 6th pt.  So...I ate it.  Yes, it is good.  I only made a small batch because of the heat, but hope to make another batch later.

I am running out of jars, both pints and quarts.  I will have to buy some or if I am lucky, I may find some at The Good Will Store.

My next job will be making the Barley Soup, but I will rest a couple days.  I have perspired enough for a couple of days.

I got the mower's battery charged, but it is spewing oil like a big old Mack diesel truck.  I will have to try to see what is wrong with it on Saturday.  I also want to go to the Farmer's Market on Saturday and see what is available.

Beverly is home from the hills...Colorado, that is.  She got sick and doesn't feel very well at the moment.  Nope, she didn't find any gold in those hills, but I think she had a good time and so did Stu.  He went flying in a vintage WW11 trainer.  Zoom!

Tomorrow is the last day to pay my insurance.  I guess I better get that taken care of, but I don't want to because the premiums went up quite a bit.

Because the canner is old...almost as old as I am...I have to keep a close eye on it.  The pressure fluctuates.  It does need a new pressure gauge, but I can't afford one right now.  It is the original gauge and is about 60 years old.  I did replace the rubber ring/seal.  I watch it carefully and adjust the heat accordingly.

While I am sitting in the Dungeon(kitchen)I can watch the birds make use of the bird bath.  Like people, some will share the and some won't.  The biggest bully is the Grackle.  The Grackle is a fair sized bird with black feathers and iridescent purple neck plumage.  It looks like a crow and is a pest like a crow.  There are also pretty Doves that come to the bird bath.  They are a sharing bird, but are often frightened off by noise or a bigger bird.  I have never understood how Dove hunting could be considered a sport.  They are hardly big enough for a meal, so why kill them?

I smell like gas and oil fumes.  I better get a shower.  Have canner, will can.  Have mower, won't mow.   

END

Onions

I planted a bunch of onions this afternoon wherever I could poke  a hole and stick them in.  They are long overdue for planting so I don't know how they will do.  Onions are pretty hardy 'though and if you forget them over winter they will come right back up again.

I also pulled out a few "volunteer" potatoes from the ground.  Not a lot, but enough for one meal.  There are more out there; I just need  to find them.

I was going to mow the yard today and got the mower out and filled it with gas.  It wouldn't start.  The battery is dead so it is on the little charger.  It takes about eight full hours to charge so I won't be mowing much until tomorrow.

I didn't waste my time 'though.  I have been busy cleaning off the fence line.  That is a some job.  Most of the vegetation growing along and on the fence comes from the other side.  There is Virginia Creeper and Morning Glory the length of both fences.  It is the kind of vegetation that just takes over a fence line and creeps right into the lawn.  It will ruin a fence and cause it to rust out.

The new neighbors say their kids can't play in the back yard because they are all allergic.  What am I?  Non allergic?   If I don't get out and do the job my mower gets all tangled up in the vines and that makes it more difficult for me.  Plus, it is a great harboring place for mosquitoes, chiggers and insects .

My Plum tree is so productive, but the wind knocks the plums off onto the ground before they are ripe, and then the ants get them, then the flies.  I am going to trim it back just slightly...sometime.

I added this picture from a previous post.  I have been buying them at yard sales and at the Good Will Store.  They are cast iron frying pans and a couple of small ash trays.  They sort of fell in a random order, in the center of the post

The hard, physical work causes me a little discomfort, and then my "everything" hurts.  I took a half of a Lortab around noon, but when they are gone, they are gone.  I have been nursing them along for quite a long while, now.  I doubt I can get them renewed as this whole area is drowning in drugs and meth. labs.  Oh Well.

I am/was too tired to cook and then clean up after myself so I made a fast trip to Wendy's...and no dishes to wash up.  Thank you,  Wendy's. Your just too good to me!

I have been outside most of the day, from about 9:00 and on.  As Alice says, the best laid plans have to change according to the needs.  I really wanted to get the grass cut.  Tomorrow is to be about 90 F. and I don't like working in the heat: I can feel my B/P thumping right along.

So, tonight I guess I will go to bed earlier than usual and recover from a busy day.  No, I didn't get my Split Pea Soup started, either.  Dang...shoot me with a pea shooter...remember them?

END

Five for for the money?

I went to the store this afternoon  thinking to get the five meats for $20.00 bucks deal, but came away with two nice ham butts instead.  They sliced them for me and now I need to separate the two big packages into smaller packages and put them in the freezer.  By just buying the two ham butts the price came out just about the same as I was thinking of spending for the "five for 20" deal, anyway.

I ate some of my bean soup that was left over from the other day's canning.  It tasted pretty good and will taste even better when the snow flies and the geese cry as they head south with the elderly "snow birds." 

I guess tomorrow I will start the Split Pea soup in the crock pot.  I like the crock for canning because I can go directly from the crock pot, to ready hot jars and lids, right into the canner.  While the crock pot its doing its thing I can be outside doing my thing...like mowing the yard.

I learned a new trick with the blender and I want to post it in pictures later.  My blender is about 40 years old now and is still going strong.  I hope to find another one at a yard sale or at the Good Will store, as a back up.

After I get all my canning done it will be time to get some home made bread baked and into the freezer.  It should be cooler by then, too.

That reminds me; I got my electric bill...yikes!   My auto insurance is due and I have been putting that off to the very last minute...and the last minute is here.
                        END

SOME DAYS...

There are some days when there isn't much happening..going on..or much to write about.  This seems to be one of those days.

It rained all through the night of Saturday and Sunday and in the morning.  Today it rained hard again.  We have had plenty of rain this past week.

Still no blossoms on my tomato plants.  I wonder if they have been treated  so they will not produce.  They are supposed to be "heritage plants.  The plants are lush, but there isn't a single flower to be seen.

I may start adding pictures again soon.  Of what...who knows.

Beverly  and Stu should be getting back from their " gold mining trip" late tomorrow night.  I am sure they will be all tired out from lugging all that gold dust around.

That is  my feeble mind can conjure up.

END

MOVING ON

I went to The Animal Fair...oops, I mean Farmers Market.  There isn't much available yet other than Crook Neck Squash and Green Beans.  I did buy 2 little muffins for a buck.  Later they will have more produce.

I ran into a friend who had run for City Mayor  last fall and lost.  It is still a Man's world, isn't it.  She took the lose very hard as she poured so much into it.  She stopped coming to our TP meetings and gained weight.  I was glad to see her.  She has put out 45 tomato plants and said she would sell me some when they get ripe.  Today she was running a booth for free door prizes...of course, you have to win first!  The door prizes are little boxes of fresh herbs.

Another lady had a both with local honey, but it is really expensive, even for a tiny jar.  I recently got a whole qt. for what she was charging for a small container.  I moved on.  Very small Zucchini bread was selling for $5.00 dollars.  The little loaves were about 1/3 the size of a regular loaf of home made bread.  Again, I moved on. 

As it is the first day of the Farmer's Market, I thought the prices were a bit high.  But(never start a sentence with a but)as Bill Clinton said "It's the economy, stupid."  I will say one thing about the economy 'though, gas prices are $3.29 right now.  The stock market is way down and oil prices are down with the stocks.  Got stocks?  I cashed mine out in favor of paying bills off in the face of retirement.  Now I have a new computer to pay for.

Going back to "But."  The reason you are not supposed to start a sentence with a "but" is because it is a conjunction, pulling two parts of a sentence together.  "But" we all do it, including me!  I had Mrs. Fenstermacher for an English teacher way back when.

  I am crock potting chicken bones, skins, fats and neck bones for making broth for my next batch of soup.  I will keep adding to it just as the French do.
The bones are loaded with calcium and bone marrow.  Later, I will need to de-bone any of the meat from the bone.  My time is my own so there is no hurry.  I need to decide which I want to make: Barley or Split Pea Soup.

Last year a can of soup coast $.50 cents or less if on sale.  This year the same soup will run you about$1.50 unless you can find a sale.  The only thing you can't process(pressure cook)in your home made soup is pastas, but you can do cooked(chicken and) rice.  Thus, I make home made soup for winter or when you just can't afford to buy food at a store.  You all know how I hate going out in the winter.  As for buying food, when I went to the Dollar Tree yesterday...a lot of the shelves were bare.  

The Bone Soup is de-fleshed and in the refrigerator.  What?  You never heard of Bone Soup?  Then you have never heard of the Great American Depression or Post WW ll in Germany or the siege of Russia during the war.  Hope that you never need to know of such history.  Anyway, the Bone Soup will wait until Monday to become real soup and canned.  Tomorrow is Sunday and I won't be working too hard...a day off from worldly toils.

I read today that wheat prices are about to take off like crazy because of all the droughts, flooding and poor yields...and that people are making "pasta runs" or stocking up.  You can count on your favorite brew becoming more expensive, too.  Boo Hoo on that one.

END

Hits and misses

I am doing my post in hits and misses; a little here-a little there or whenever something strikes me to mention.
I got up and cleaned most of my canning things up.  I still need to wipe the stove off, but it isn't too bad.  Swept the kitchen floor and then went over it with the vacuum.  I seem capable of making some good messes.  Then I washed(scrubbed) the broom out in the bath tub and turned it upside down to drain and dry in the bath tub.  I read once that you should wash your broom out every so often because the bristles get to the point that the broom is just moving the dirt around.  I vacuumed the bedroom a little, but need to do a better job of it later.

I have been intending to get the van washed; it surely needed it.  So, that is what was also taken care of.  It now looks like a new van, all shiny and bright.

I went and got a new sealing ring for the canner while it was fresh on my mind.  Then a zip trip to the Dollar Tree where I bought a couple of plastic containers to organize my canning lids, rings and tools in.  They are actually food containers, but the same size and price as a plastic shoe box.

I want to get a new pressure gauge for my other canner that I bought from Sears about twenty years ago.  It never worked right and I had it tested by the  Farm Bureau Extension Agency.  They cost about $30.00 dollars so I am putting that off for now because insurance is due on the van. 

I just came back from Wal-Mart.  I took that little Acer back and got a better one.  Yesterday I tried to download a program and it didn't have enough memory for it.  A new computer without enough memory...sigh.  Also, have not been able to get on the Internet without an Ethernet cord and that was very inconvenient.  Could not get the clock to set the right time.  I got tired of fooling with it and took it back.  I wasn't able to delete my bank account site so I just got finished setting up a new log on and password.  It was a pain to use, so it is gone.  Back to where it came from...China...I hope.

and that is the END of that.

BEAN SOUP-SOUP'S ON

I got up this morning ready to tear into my canning.  The beans stayed very hot in the crock pot overnight.  I put water into the canner, set it to heat, got my handy dandy tools out and was all set to "get er done."  Got the lids out and couldn't find the rings.  I know I have wide mouth rings here...somewhere.  Rather than waste time looking for rings I ran out to the store to get a box of rings and lids.  As I was going through the automatic doors they came back and hit me...ouch!  I did get the lids and rings.

Away we go!  Everything is ready and the beans, lids and rings went into the big pressure cooker.  It built up pressure very fast.  Too fast.  I had trouble regulating the pressure.  At one point the pressure was up to 30 pounds.  I turned it off and moved the pressure cooker to a smaller burner.  Even so, it was hard to keep the pressure regulated.  I watched it like cat trying to catch a bird.  I let it run a little overtime just to be sure that all little pathogens, fungus's or mold met their demise.  Done

I have 6 pints and one qt. of bean soup.  They all sealed well and they should have, at one point at 30 pounds of pressure.  The soup is a little darker than what you get from a can because I added 2 pouches of onion soup.  My house smells of onion soup and beans.

I need to get a new sealing ring for the canner.  I was going to do that last summer, but forgot.  I will also get a new safety plug. 

This canner is over sixty years old.  My mother used it when I was small and did a lot of canning on an old wood stove. After she passed away no one seemed to want it.  After several years I brought it home with me.  I sent away for the parts that were needed and got it into canning shape.  Then...others wanted it.  So sorry...they could have had it way back when. 

I will wait a couple of days and then  can some Barley Soup, but I won't take any great pains with it.  You don't have to soak Barley.  Because I love Split Pea Soup, I will also make some of that.  That will be the end of the soup making.

The Farmer's Market is going to open Saturday morning.  I think I will go see what they will have.  What I hate about the local Farmer' Market is that they are importing veggies from Mexico and down South.  You can see all the empty shipping cartons behind their tents, so you  know that you are being bamboozled into thinking your getting local produce.

I will clean up the kitchen tomorrow except for the things that must be done to avoid anything that might become stinky overnight.  I set the crock pot to soak.  I emptied out the canner, but am saving a few little things to clean tomorrow.  That old canner is one heavy container...they don't make them like that anymore.

I am going to bed fairly soon as I got up fairly early and am fairly tired...fairly.

END

NOW AND AGAIN-THE SAME

I put in a hard-working day.  I didn't get everything finished that was on my agenda, but I made a good stab at it.

I have not yet canned the bean soup 'though I should finish it in the morning.  I let it simmer for several hours, then turned it off to let it cool.  I just finished putting it all through the blender and then into the crock pot to keep it hot overnight.  I should can in the A. M.-that is if I don't get interruptions.

I suppose I take a few extra steps in my canning of bean soup, but I like it to be creamy and smooth.  I am ready with six pint jars, but may need to get a couple large jars out, just in case.

When I say I put in a hard day I do mean it.  I did a good job on the back yard and it looks nice.  Again, I need to trim.  There is Virginia Creeper, an ivy, growing in grate abundance on and along the fence.  The new neighbors think it is Poison Ivy and that is there reason for not mowing their back yard.  They say they are allergic.  I will have to pull all that Virginia  Creeper off the fence.  I wish...just once...I would get neighbors that would take care of their yard

I pulled some really heavy wooden objects out to the alley for pick-up in the morning.  I hope they take them because I am tired of mowing around them or trying to move them.  One item is a home made wooden trap for a wood chuck that was living under the shed a couple years ago and the other item is a wooden laying box that was for my "chicken house."  You remember the chickens, don't you?  LO Ls on that.  Anyway, trying to do that kind of heavy  work really bothers my arm.  I finally had to quit and come in.  I am probably not a good risk for surgery as I age, but I wish I had all those pins, plates and screws all in a little box that I could set out for the trash pick-up.

I think I will get a glass of mild, take an Ibuprofen and go to bed.

P.S.  The news said that Ky. is the worst state in the Union for eating out and obesity.  I'll buy that! 
Also, it is supposed to be the most poorly run state in the Union.   Do yo buy that?

END

STORMY WEATHER

We had some thunderstorms this afternoon and it broke the heat.  We really didn't get a lot of rain with it, just a lot of thunder and wind. Someone else got the better part of it as it was rolling in from the west and seemed to be headed toward Owensboro.

I ventured out before the storm and went to Radio Shack to buy a couple of memory disks for this new computer.  I still have not got it set up to get on the Internet directly via wifi and am using the Ethernet cord.  I need to call the tech. guys again.

I will change the water the beans are soaking in one more time before I start cooking and canning them tomorrow.  Beans are a great source for protein, vitamins, and minerals, but I like to add small diced potatoes, chopped ham and a couple of onion soup pouches for added flavor.  Most people do not add potatoes to bean soup, but you do need some starches in your diet.  When the beans are cooked I will use a blender to make it creamy, then re-heat it for canning.  I just can't decide if I want to use pint jars or quart jars.  I'll let you know how it turns out

Canning vegetables is not hard.  You need a good canner or a big boiler, be able to read directions and have good sense.  I prefer the big pressure cooker over the open kettle boiler.  Both are time consuming, but when your done you know what you have and what is in your food.  The pressure cooker is really the safest way to cook vegetables and meat.  When you open up a can of commercially prepared food you don't know what you are getting.

High acid foods , such as jams, jellies, and pickles and pickled veggies, can be processed by the boiling, open kettle method.

Guess what I really like to make...home made wine.  I make pretty good wine.  The problem is...I give it all away.  I can't remember when I last had a glass of wine.  Now, with the price of sugar getting higher, I won't be making any for a while.

As I do not have much to write about I guess I will wind this post up, check my spelling and post it.  Did I tell you I like commas,,,,?  I really do like,,,'s.

END

Computers, cooking garden and stuff

I'm getting ready to make and then can homemade bean soup.  It will take a couple of days for everything to come together.  I am soaking the beans now and will rinse and change the water a few times before I make and can the soup.  There is nothing better than home made soups.

I went to the eye Dr. this afternoon.  The pressure is on the high side of normal, but the pressure in the right eye is better.  I paid a co-pay of $40.00, then  I stopped at the store for some groceries and spent $20.00.  Who eats better...him or me?  Me...because I can cook and I think he is an old bachelor and as skinny as a rail.

I have stopped buying Nestle's Coffee Creamer.  Half the time I can't find it and it is getting too expensive.  I am buying reg. milk by the qt.  The reason I am only buying a qt. at a time is because a gallon, while cheaper, will not "keep" in this hot humid weather.

While I am still using this old Dell for now, I have my new little Acer 99% set up and going.  I am having problems getting it to connect to the Internet without using an Ethernet cable.  To connect by the Ethernet cable I have to sit in the living room because that is where the router is, by the TV.  It is not at all convenient, but it will connect.  The tech. people dont' know why it won't connect from here where I sit, without the Ethernet cord.

The Acer I bought, while it is "new" is an older model, something they wanted to get off the shelves.  I paid $278.00 for it.  It doesn't not have a slot for a sandisk, but I think I can get an add on peripheral later...when I have more money.  This year has been a drain on the money pot, if there ever was one.

As I was straining and rinsing  the beans I remembered that you really don't need to buy bean seeds..You can buy a bag of beans at the store, soak them overnight, then gently plant them.  They start to sprout within just a few hours.  And this is an excellent way to get a quick start on a summer or early fall garden.

I checked my plants and it looks like the cucumber plant has been bitten or damaged.  One tomato plant is missing and also one pepper plant has grown legs and walked away. I know there is a least one wild rabbit living under the shed and those black Grackles will pull plants up, too.

Anyway, I guess we have to share with all God's creatures, great and small.

 END

I checked the radar
The radar said
It is raining hard
go back to bed

No, I didn't go back to bed.  We did have a pretty good Thunder and Lightning Storm though.

I went out to Wal-Mart to buy that new computer.  They didn't have the one that was advertised-imaging that.  So, I got one that was the same model and with the same memory as my fried Acer.  "Bait and Switch."  It is supposed to be illegal, but done all the time...try and prove it.

I will set it up tomorrow when I have nothing planned.  My little Acer did last me about 5 years, so if this one lasts as long...well, that will be OK.

I just set a mouse trap.  Of course. it tried to "bite" my fingers.  I don't like traps, but hate sticky traps even worse.  I know that where there is one there is probably a whole family of mouseketeers and now they are starting to leave me little calling cards.

I went out and looked at my plants.  The rain did them good.  I still don't see any blossoms.  Where are the blossoms?

This afternoon I re-watched an old black and white video of the LITTLE RASCALS.  I am getting ready to cull my videos and take them to the library.  I have a collection of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby's old comedies, some are in color and some are black and white.  Slapstick was so good and relaxing.  You didn't have to think about the plot, the sub plots or the ratings.  You could just sit back and enjoy the silliness.

On Monday I get to go back to the eye doctor and have my pressure checked.  I hope it is better after spending my hard earned "entitlement" money these past few weeks.  I guess if it isn't I will spit nickles.  I am taking my glasses off to read now.  Up close and personal kind of reading.  I have to do that to read fine print, anyway.  I have to take my glasses off in order to see..hee hee.

I guess Beverly and Stu are busy panning for gold out there in the hills of Colorado...or maybe not.  I hope they are having a good vacation and visit.

Tomorrow I will check the online grocery ads for our local stores.  Gas has dropped to $3.36...for now.  You know it will be back up for the 4th of July.  If my father were still alive he would be 101 on the fourth of July.

I finely got the little picture hooks while I was at Wal-Mart.  I don't go to Wal-Mart all that often.  Imagine my surprise when I found out they no longer had a Lay Away.  I wonder what people do for Christmas...I need to get out more!

END

P.S.  Alice send me blossoms for my plants!

FRIED

Yes, my little laptop is totally fried; un-fixable.  Wal-Mart is having a sale on them this week so I guess I will put one on my credit card 'though I don't want to.  This old Dell is OK, but there is a lot it can't do, such as play play videos with sound or take a disk from my camera.  I really don't want to go into debt, but I guess I will.

We finally got a good, healthy dose of rain and my plants are looking a little better.  There is nothing like rain from the Sky King that is full of natural nitrogen that is formed from lightning that comes with a good storm.   My plants, such as they are, were starting to look a little haggard in the heat, even though I watered them.

I find it odd that nothing has put forth a blossom other than the one tiny Roma tomato  and some of the potatoes.  Wait and see, says me.

I watched my neighbor trying to mow her yard this afternoon.  I have never...ever seen her mow the yard before and she was struggling to push the mower.  She didn't make it before the rain came down.  She is a kind of elite...person...unused to outdoor work.  I wondered why she was doing the mowing instead of her husband or grown son.  One never knows what goes on behind closed doors.

I mainly stayed inside, other than a couple of trips in and out the back door.  I made some Sun Tea and did a couple of other quick trips outside, but I didn't want to start a job if rain was on the way.  And come, it did.  Good job Mother Nature and Sky King.

Does anyone remember the series of SKY KING, a radio program from 1940 to 1951 and then becoming a TV series in 1951 and running until about 1960?  You can get these old programs on DVDs now by just doing a search on your computer.  I know that remembering a lot of these old shows "dates" me, but what the heck...your going to get old..er, too.  They just don't make good shows like the old shows anymore.

END

Locked in...not out

I have managed a time or two to lock myself out of the house, but never did I manage to lock myself in...until today.  The one time I locked myself out was in the winter in a sleet storm when I went out to feed two pet ducks in my PJ's.  I had to break out the window on the back door with a brick, reach in and unlock the door.  Another time I had to remove a window, crawl in and unlock the back door.  I couldn't break the door window because I had replaced it with Plexiglas.  Try breaking that stuff.  The last time I locked myself out I had to call the PD to come and help me get in late at night after work.  You just don't want to be seen breaking glass and crawling through a window after 12 A. M. in the morning.  I don't, anyway.

This morning was a bit different.  I couldn't get the back door open.  Something of the machinations of the deadbolt lock wouldn't work.  I could have got out the front way, but then I couldn't get into the back porch which is also locked from within  via the outer storm door.  Of course, that is exactly where all (most) of my tools are.  What to do...what to do.

I do have a small box of tools inside for inside stuff.  So...with a hammer, a Phillip's Head screw driver, a lot of fussing, and a cold chisel I did get the dead bolt lock off and out the back door.  A burglar or a bad guy would have to be very determined and make a little noise to get into my house.  However, I now need a new lock and they are not all that cheap.

After working out in the yard I needed to cool off so I watched a video of Casablanca starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, an old black and white classic.  It was worth watching over again as it is timeless.  Gone with the Wind, if you can find it in black and white, is also a timeless classic.  Both are better without colorization.

It wanted to rain, but Mother Nature just couldn't work up enough local moisture.  It spit  once or twice and gave up.  Now, we could use a little rain occasionally.

END

DULL IS GOOD AT TIMES

It has been a dull day.  Other than doing what was necessary and dragging the patio umbrella out into the ally for trash pick-up in the morning, I have been lazy.  Tomorrow I need to get busy.

The little mouse came back, but this time I caught it in a bag and put it in the trash can.  Sorry, mouse.

 PLEASURE HUNT

*

Who says there's nothing here to do

And life for them gets boring...

You'll never find me idle or

in bed just merely snoring.

*

There's books to read and weeds to pull

Flowers that need smelling...

And roads to walk and streams to wade

And stories that need telling.

*

There's friends to cheer, when life gets drear

And gardens that need hoeing...

Or take the boat down to the creek

To fish or go a-rowing.

*

The song birds need a listening ear

God's creatures need attention...

Roll up your sleeves and go to work

That will rid you of your tension.

*

Lavonne Childers Minigh

*

END

EEEEK?

Yesterday I took a late afternoon shower as I was all stinky and sweaty after working in the yard most of the day.  So...imagine my surprise when I got up and went into the bathroom this morning...to find a mouse in my bathtub.  I went to find something to "defunct" it with and came back to find that it had squirmed up under the bathmat.  In order to send it to Mickey Land I would have to bash it under the mat and have mat-bash mess.  I therefore went to find the mouse bait only to find that said mouse got up, out, and away.  Which sort of pleases me because I hate killing little mice, mouses or moses, big or small.  I don't know how the mouse got into the tub or how it got out, but I am glad it is gone and stays gone.

I took myself to the beauty shop and got a haircut.  Now, some of the gray is gone and my hair is a lot neater.
I didn't get much done today.  It did rain; a nice, gentle rain.  We are expecting more tonight, but maybe not so summer easy rain.  I didn't get much done inside either, other than taking some things to the library for their sales table and getting a few books and a movie.

I have some items to go to the Good Will Store and will find more as I sort through some things as I continue to de-junk odds and ends.  I have several working TV remotes and several working phones that are going.  Why do we save such stuff?Tomorrow I will sort some of the other stuff I have "saved."

END

"THIS DAY..."

"THIS DAY GOD MADE, A BRIGHT AND GLORIOUS DAY..."

Now this was the kind of day that we all look forward to having.

I worked outside the better part of the day so I am tired.  It was a cloudy kind of day...not too hot...with a soft breeze to cool my brow, just the kind of day for getting things done.

I got the front yard mowed, reached over my head and trimmed some of the low hanging branches off the tree, (best I could) pruned along the fence in the front, and up part of one side of the fence on the other side.  I got most of what I pruned cut down to size and bagged.  I hope we don't have rain tonight because I didn't get the other side cut down to size and bagged yet.  I literly ran out of (physical) gas and decided that was enough for one day.  Do I have a lot more to do?  You bet your Bippy.  Another day, soon I hope.

I will not write too much tonight.  Beverly is one her ways to Denver and points west, early in the A.M.  I hope it is a good trip and the weather is good for their traveling.  Oh, I forgot...Stu is going , too!

*

LIVING THE WORD

*

Folks go to church on Sunday

And think they "have it made,"

But there are six more days in which

To practice what we've prayed.

You can't just read the Scriptures,

You have to live them, too.

And in your soul you must believe

God knows what's best for you.

Life takes a lot more giving,

Than most of us condone,

But everything belongs to God

...And nothing is our own.

*

Grace E. Easley

END

Pseudo-Hoarder

I am something of a pseudo-hoarder.  While not an extreme hoarder, I still have a lot of"stuff" to get rid of.  A real-true-hoarder can not stand to let things go and always has an excuse or a need to hang on to things.  Perhaps it is the result of poverty or some kind of emotional distress or an emptiness that needs filling.  I don't know.  In my case I was happy to get rid of a lot of unnessary junk and accumulation and will continue to due so, one room at a time.  No, you don't need to climb over huge piles of assorted debre' and yes, you can walk through the house from one room to another.  I still feel compiled to divest myself of unwanted, unused , unknown objects.  So-out-they-do go and the saga continues.

I have done a few things inside because I couldn't do things outside.  We did get some rain.  I must have slept through it, for the most part. 

I would like to get a few more tomato plants, if I can find any, and replace the one that went to 'mater heaven.  I have a few old potatoes that are going soft and I think I will put them into the ground and cover them with grass clippings.

It is time to think about that summer garden, but I also need to get a few things done within, before anything else without, such as touch up painting and hanging the rest of the prints and curtains.  I find that I can only do so much per day...getting old, you know. 

I am thinking of taking my metal detector and hard case to the pawn shop and getting rid of it.  Or perhaps putting it on Grieg's list.  I know my treasure hunting days are past, so why keep it.  I have even tried to give my stereo away with all the records and 8 tracks..no takers.  Oh well.

I have been going through all the coupons that Cindy sent me.  I already used the one from The Olive Garden and one for crackers while I wait for the week's sales to come out on Monday.  One thing I do not need at this time is meat.  Ah, but TP is always a necessity!

It has been a slow day and I am a slow thinker so I think I will slowly quit right here.

END

TOOTHPICKS

My living room walls are full of toothpicks.  Yup, they are holding up the walls!  I have been trying to hang pictures.  Every time I drove a nail it was in the wrong place and that left holes in the wall... ergo...toothpicks.  When I make a hole in the wrong spot I push a toothpick in the hole and break it off.  Then all I need to do is spot-touch up-paint it and it doesn't show up.  See, I told you I had a wall full of toothpicks.

I am having trouble hanging these framed prints.  I can still drive a nail, but there is no power behind the swing.  I can't drive a nail in straight anymore as my arm does not obey me as it did three years ago.  Still, I got three pictures up, one small nick knack holder and a mail holder up this afternoon...with the help of toothpicks.  I still have three larger prints to hang, but I need to get some picture hangers and do it right.

I checked my tomato plants and found that one is dead and must have croaked overnight.  I wonder if one of a number of stray cats has used it as a French Luv.  My pepper plants look fine and I see a tiny Roma tomato coming forth.

I spent all my time inside today because of the heat.  I hope it is cooler tomorrow...on Saturday.  I have a lot to do, including mowing the front lawn.  A little rain in the evening wouldn't hurt and it might make me grow.

TAKE TIME

*

Take the quite time of evening

At the setting of the sum

Before the moon arises

And all the work is done

Take time to thank the Savior

For the blessing of the day

And in the quite stillness

Just fold your hands...and pray

*

Betty Christman

*

END

2012

I'm tired and will go to bed early.  We went to the Olive Garden and had a really good lunch.  I had Chicken Scampi on Angle Hair Spaghetti and Debbie had Lasagna.  We both had double salads.  I really enjoyed the lunch as you can actually taste the various flavors.  However, I ate too much.  After the lunch we went back to Debbie's and watched 2012.  Now there is a scary movie.

I didn't get home until 6 P. M.  I was out almost the whole day.  At least the temperature dropped slightly and I won't have to run about naked in order to cool off.  Now, that would be a real scary sight!.  The humidity is a little lower, too.

The pump on the bird bath seems to have stopped working, but I filled it anyway.  I looked at my plants and they didn't seemed to be as shriveled up as on other days.  I need to figure out where I want to plant my sweet potato(s) and one cucumber plant that is starting to vine.  As it is predicted to be a bit cooler this week-end, I will get it done.  I am considering a small summer(fall)garden because some of the things I wanted to plant did not get planted because of all the rain.  I have time to think about it.  It may be a long, hot summer.

Beverly is getting ready to go to Denver.  I hope it will be cool for her out there.  I keep telling her she should go gold mining, but I don't think it appeals to her!  It appeals to me, 'though, esp. at $1,800.00 an ounce.  Two or three ounces and I would be good to go!

And I am going...to bed.

END

Lets all get naked

I am firmly convinced that the only way to deal with this extreme heat is to run about in our birthday suits.  Of course we may all get arrested and hauled off by men in white coats, but at least we will be cool.  I once took care of an elderly lady who did just that, and of course she wound up in a state facility and then over to the nursing home as she aged.  Of course, she was cool while she was running up and down the streets in her nothingness.

I didn't do a lot today other than go in and out the back door a few times to water some plants.  That was enough for me.  I think it was a lot more humid today than it was yesterday.  I waited until  6 P. M. to go to the store for milk and some other items.  As it was I felt like a wilted catus, if one can get wilted.

Tomorrow I don't plan on doing much, either.  Instead, I am going to the Olive Garden and let some one else cook or whatever.  I won't have dishes to do or food to cook or turn on the stove.  I wish you all an Olive Garden or something similar.

A WALK TO YESTERYEAR

*

Come walk with me to yesteryear

Down the road of childhood miles,

Lets turn our thoughts away from fear

And change our frowns to smiles

*

Lets walk together in memory

To times when we were young,

Lets live each minute in mimicry

And renew those years of fun.

*

M. Rosser Lunsford.

*

When we were young we didn't mind the sun or heat and stayed out and played until the 9 oclock whistle blue. Does anyone else remember...?

END

Hot..and that all I have to say about that

Contrary to my own advice I got out and mowed the back yard in this 97 degree heat.  Wearing a straw hat and only mowing two rows at a time, stopping often and drinking plain water, I got the back yard done.

Another sweet potato slip is putting out little green shoots..  I hope to plant the slips deep in a pile of grass clippings.  The extra heat and moisture from the composting grass clippings should make them take off.  I put coffee grounds and egg shells in with my pepper plants and buried them in about 6 inches of grass clippings.  They were shriveling in the heat in spite of all the water I put on them.  They perked right up after getting a nice blanket of fresh green grass clippings. I hope the produce like crazy.

I am still trying to cool down after my little job in the back yard.  I have drank a lot of H2O and Lemonade, but I wanted those clippings.  In between I cleaned out the bird bath which was becoming gross.  The water went right on the Peppers along with all the birdy poo.

Using a crass catcher is extra work and I don't do it every time I mow, but every other time I put the clippings on the garden, and now on the potato plants.  The garden soil is worn out and I am trying to build it up again without using chemicals.

One of the old fellow at the home had a perfect garden without tilling.  He had several inches of leaves in his garden spot and all he had to do was to make a hole and plant.  He had the biggest tomatoes you could ever imagine.  After Joe passed away Father Lindoure tried to carry on with the tomatoes for the home because all the residents loved the fresh tomatoes from the garden.

I did clean the bathroom today.  At least I got that done on the inside, and the dishes washed.  Bully for me.  I am all washed up or worn out..so I am outta here.

END

Big John and Sparky

Remember Big John and Sparky?  It was a radio show for kids from 1950 to 1958.  It was the kind of show that you didn't have to screen or find  the ratings for, to know that it was a really good show for kids and had an adult following as well.  It was my very favorite show when I was small.

I don't know why that old radio show came to mind.  Maybe because it was a soft and gentle Saturday morning show with soft moral teachings and ethics.  The kind of show or child geared entertainment that is hard to find in today's world.  Your going to say Sponge Bog, right.  Wrong.  Watch that show closely and listen well.  Read between the lines, if you can, and think about it.

'Most everyone I know that may read this, was born after the show ran its course and TV took over and became an insidious downhill slider.  Entertainment on Black Ice.  You can't see the spin until its too late.

My sister was crazy about Roy Rodgers and Dale Evans.    My older brother was addicted to Gene Autry.  We also listened to The Green Hornet, Fibber McGee and Mollie, The Lone Ranger, Dark shadows, Dick Tracy, and the original country and music station out of Wheeling, West Virgina.  On a clear night you could pull in a lot of distant stations or hear the sound of a far off whistle blow on  a train headed for somewhere or nowhere..  Your imagination could soar, esp. if you had a good antenna and the old vacuum tubes didn't burn out on that old time radio.

I have been at my de-junking job for three days.  I have a large bag filled with old books, old phone books, old magazines and various old papers and old mail.  I have made a lot of progress.  Now I don't feel like a hoarder...so very much.  It takes time to look through stuff.  I once threw out a check for $130.00 bucks, so I am more careful now.

The rug in the living room was shampooed this afternoon along with the couch and one chair that got "rained on."  The sofa came out fairly decent.  The stains are still there, but much less noticeable.  The living room looks much better, but I still have some signed prints to be re-hung.  I also vacuumed the carpet over and over trying to get as much debre' up as possible.  There is paint on the rug, some on the furniture and a lot of hits and misses.  At least the indoor swimming pool is now a bad memory. 

 Here is another sad fact.  I got my bill for my auto insurance today.  It has gone up...a lot.  I do not drink, do drugs, made no claims, have not had a ticket or done anything for such a rate increase.  I was told it was raised because of all the storms.  OK, a little raise is to be expected, but not that much.  Ouch.

So it goes and we go with it.

END.

DE-JUNKING

Today I am de-junking...again.  This time I am going at it with a vengeance and a scythe, hammer and nails and a big knife...sort of.  Anything that I have not used, looked at, old magazines and old mail, is going, going...gone.  I am finding some things that I thought I lost, forgot where I put or just plain forgot that I even had the stuff.  Some things I am keeping separate to go through later and think about whether I want to keep said objects(s) or not.  I think NOT will be the key criteria here.

It is definitely way too dangerous to work outside so this is a good time to be doing odd jobs in.  Even though the A/C is running flat out it is still warm and humid within.  I have stepped out a few times, but I stepped right back in again.  It is 99 F. out there, a near record. I still need to put fresh water into the bird bath and put the old water(full of fertilizer!)on my pepper plants.

I was happy to find that one of the sweet potato plants is putting forth shoots and leaves, almost overnight.  I have three more "slips" that may...look like...they are about to do the same.  If I have four productive plants I will be a happy tatter eater.  I have put out 13 plants and had a bumper crop, more than I needed and some went bad before I could use them up.

For some that have been getting their gardens out late; not to worry for the most part... unless you are hoping to have cold weather plants that will bolt in the heat.  Potatoes can be planted twice, as a spring crop or what is known as a "fall garden."  These, like lettuce and radishes and other spring crops, can be planted in the fall when it is cooler.

This area of Ky. is noted for it's extremes.  It can be extremely rainy and wet, or windy and cold, severe storms or droughts.  Toss in a few tornadoes here and there ...and you have the KY State.  Oops, I forgot. Ky. is not a state...it is a Commonwealth.

I saw two people out "running" in this intense heat, inviting a heat stroke or a heart attack.  This intense heat will bring on intense storms.

Even though it was almost dark out the birds were flying in for fresh water.  Hot, hot, hot a lot.

END

Nothing Much

I keep looking out the back door and thinking that I should get out there an mow the grass, but I have put it off, waiting for some muscle relief.  The pulled muscle is getting better, but it is taking it's time and I just don't want to aggravate it...just yet.

The computer guy called and it will cost an arm and a leg to fix my computer and he has to send off for a new hard drive.  Still, it will be cheaper than trying to buy a new computer and the new hard drive will be more powerful than what it will replace.  As I have this old Dell I can continue to use it while I wait.

I still have a couple of big bills to pay; one for the dentist and the other for upcoming insurance on the van...then maybe I will have a nickle or a dime left over at the end of the month.  I don't count on it 'though because just when you see the light at the end of the tunnel...the bulb burns out.  Your back in the dark shadows again.  HA!

*

God in the morning,

Peace for the day.

God at the noontide,

Rest upon the way.

God in the evening,

Will make the shadows flee.

God for all our lifetimes

Is Joy eternally.

By Dorothy Doane

Thus Ends This Day

"STUFF IS GETTING BETTER"

I didn't get much done today due to that pulled muscle which is still bothering me.  I did what I had to do; wash dishes, water plants, put a small load of cloths through the washing machine.  I did go to the library to take a book back and donate a couple of items for the sales table.  After that I stopped and got a few groceries and dragged them home.

On Monday I am having the carpet in the living room shampooed and the couch done, as well.  I hope that the couch can be salvaged and that the black stain can be removed.  I really can not afford a new couch.

  I paid my home owners insurance today.'though I was tempted to just drop it.  However, you never know what the future holds and if I ever need to file a claim again...something is better than nothing.

I plan on making a big pot of homemade bean soup tomorrow or the next day.  I need to go back to the store and get some carrots and onions as I forgot them today.

The grocery store was overflowing with shoppers.  I guess because it was payday today and tomorrow, all the checks will be out and everyone is stocking up.  I saw one woman literally throwing lots of meat into her cart.  There is a "sale" of "5 for $19.95" for various cuts of meat.  That is not necessarily a real bargain because if you buy your meat in individual packages according to your needs or usage, you will save more that way.  I don't think a roll of sausage is worth $5 bucks.  What I did buy was a package of chunk ham and a package of meaty neck bones for my bean soup.  I love homemade bean soup or pea soup.  My mother made the best homemade pea soup with a ham bone.  You can hardly find one (ham bone) anymore.

I am not following the sales much now.  There just does not seem to be any real deals to be had.  Gas went up a good 10 cents overnight.  "The powers that be" are cashing in on your checks, be they S.S., disability, welfare. or regular paychecks, fully aware that most recipients need to or must be out and about, buying groceries, medicines or other needs of daily living.  If anyone can possibly wait a week or so, some prices will come down.  The government will tell you "stuff is getting better," but it isn't.  Remember that quote...from "THE POSTMAN?"

My arm is very stiff and my neck and shoulder muscles are painful.. That is what you get when you get older.  LOL!

END

Birds and Bees

Whatever I did yesterday caught up with me today.  I didn't feel it yesterday or last night, but when I tried to get up this early AM I knew I had pulled a muscle and it hurt badly.  I tried to work outside, but didn't get very much done other than going  "Ouchy."  I am going to bed early and by tomorrow it will be all better...I hope.

There are other things I can do inside tomorrow.  I really don't have to go anywhere or have anything that really needs to needs to be done, although I will want to mow on Friday or Saturday and water some plants.  I am seeing honey bees in the clover in the backyard.  I hope they are on the comeback.

I have been sitting at the table where I can watch the birds flit in and out, visiting the bird bath.  I can see directly out the back door.  I like having a lot of birds in the area because they help keep the mosquitoes down.  However, I have yet to harvest a single blueberry before the birds get to them.

I took my little laptop in to the computer doctor.  It's $60.00 just to have someone look at it.  I am sure that I shouldn't spend the money, but I miss my little laptop.  This big old Dell is fine for some things, but has no sound or a photo slot.  I keep it because, as now, it comes in handy or to the rescue.  Maybe some day I can get this one worked on, too.

I will have new neighbors next week.  I am told they have an autistic child and that he is very talkative.  That sounds more hyper to me, but I don't know a lot about it.  Anyway, I am going to rub my shoulder  and neck with a pain cream and go to bed.

END