October 13th, 2013. Friday the 13th comes on Sunday this month. I'm sure all are enjoying its charms. For me, a lazy afternoon after a busy week or so. Since my last bluggy of a while back in which I rambled regarding our recent RV trip to La Grange and Huntsville, nothing has happened which can be described as earth shattering. I haven't trapped a fleeting terrorist, dated a Kardashian, flown to the moon on gossamer wings, on won a bingo. So bear with me here. Gonna change font colors; that should be exciting.
.
There we go.
.
We have had one heck of a time with our schedule. Those unretired don't know how busy a calendar can become. The Texas State Fair is this month, and I like to go. It is FREE on Thursdays for old folks. On Wednesdays, for three cans of food, the admission is $3. These are number not to be sneezed at. Parking runs $15. You gotta really want to park to pay $15. Some of the locals allow you to park in their yard for $5 or $10. I do not feel comfy doing that. We pay the $15 thinking that we are doing a service for the community.
.
All - make that Every - Wed. and Thurs were full this month with some happening. We picked a Monday, the Monday following going to Canton's First Monday Trade Days, an enormous flea market. Let me stall here for a moment and say that Canton was just like all Cantons. We saw new little puppies, ate at the Chinese buffet, browsed booths of bartered belongings, turned our noses up at brand new products and spent maybe $10 on stuff. We are not big payers, just big shoppers.
.
The State Fair of Texas was just like all State Fairs. They have the rides - we never walk through that area of clamor. They have the guys and gals bartering the games - games which are winnable to the few. There are people selling carrot cutters, jalapeno hackers, mops that mop all types of surfaces - booth after booth of mattresses - player pianos, scarfs - mile after mile of colorful scars, jewelry; I think we walked through 4 enormous bldgs of products to buy...bought none. In the morning a lady bought a mop - she carried that mop around for the rest of the day. Why?
.
A question: kids were everywhere. It was a Monday. They can't be all home schooled. How do parents get off taking their kids out of school to ride rides and get underfoot?\
.
Of course we did the obligatory trip by the new Big Tex for the photographs. He was just fine. I understand that some have complained because his skin is painted too dark. Nothing pleases some folks.
.
We spent an hour plus walking through the automobile display. I would like to find the money to buy a new car. My Marauder is now 10 years old with over 150K miles. I do not want it to fall apart. A classic should be treated better. My wife wants a car which will hold all 3 grandgirls, and they are grand - which can be pulled behind the motorhome. Thus we can make a trip and take the girls along. Good Plan.
.
The motorhome has a limit of 5,000 lbs to be pulled. You go looking for a car that weighs less than 5K and has extra seats. Few and far between. So we walked through the display checking the weights and appearances of so many buggies. We found a few, nothing that I crave and can afford right now. Here is where the kids got to me. They were everywhere. 10 year olds runnnnnnning around from car to car - sitting behind the driver's wheel. With an adult standing waiting these kids play with the radio of the car. Where are the parents? There was a cute VW convertible bug. Every child had to sit behind the wheel of that VW and have their photo taken by laughing parents. Gads.
.
All in all it was a good car visit other than the loud noises and kids. Next year will be better cause I plan to take super glue and squirt it on the feet of all the little kids. If you are stuck tot he floor you cannot run,
.
Last night the Corsicana Swing Orchestra played for the Hanger Dance - a dance held in the Hanger at the local airport. This is a fund raiser for the hopefully soon coming airport museum. I enjoy playing with this band - good people. Maybe I will write more on that in a bit - it is 5 o'clock now and Fritz needs supper. Stay tuned for more.
m
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Sunday, October 13, 2013
Friday, October 4, 2013
La Grange - Quilts - Huntsville
Here it is the first of October - ghost and goblins lurking in the shadows. As they might say in Alcoholics Anon ( I can't spell anonymous with confidance or is it confidence? ) as they say: it has been 3 weeks since I last entered a comment on this page. Does this mean I am not addicted?
.
Certain family members told me to write a blog - instead of sending them email stones. I bit and began. Now they don't read the blog either. Tho ( sic: so ) I will continue wallowing in my self, alone pity. Can anyone hear me out there?
.
anyway, nuff of that stuff
.
We made a motorhome trip about a week ago to La Grange, TX. They have = what is billed as = the Texas State Quilt Museum. Our daughter Christine drove down from Round Rock - great name for a town - and stayed in the M.H. with us for a couple of nights. If you have not been through La Grange, and stopped, you should. It seems to be a very nice little town with things to do and see.
.
1st: the quilt museum has its limits. It is housed in two downtown bldgs which have been redone quite well. The quilts are pretty and the folks are friendly. Every 3 months they change their display of featured quilts. Oct. 1st will be the new display; I guess I should say that Oct. 1st was their new display. The Sept. one was a display of art type quilts. Scenes made from cloth and swirly things made from cloth.
.
My family is into traditional quilts, so this was not the best thing. Yes they were pretty; but, they were not traditional quilts. We enjoyed the viewing however. As it turns out, while we were in La Grange it was festival day. Every small town has at least one day of festivities. This was their county's 175th birthday. That's a long time in Texas. They fired a cannon off on the hill top, they did this, they did that. At 4 on the courthouse square the party began. Politicians recited at 4 as well as local well-respected folks who probably have been politicians.
.
A crowd gathered beneath the courthouse balcony and listened to - at least - 45 minutes of speeches about the wonderful day. Yes, it was a Wonder, Full of speeches and the crowd stayed. They had an oldie car display, little ole ladies sitting and quilting in costume, a guy making cornmeal with the help of eager children and and and..
.
but my favorite was the Round Top Brass Band which struck up after the speeches. I don't know who they were . . . . a bunch of old guys and gals in black pants, white shirts, and cute, little, period-black box hats - reminding me of olden days fireman hats when they weren't working. Some were terrific players; others could have done with another rehearsal or two. While they were a brass band, two clarinets sat in and warbled beautifully.
.
What I noticed is: the band played a song. Then, the band sat around a talked for a while; then the band played a tune. Then, the band sat around a talked for a while; then the band played a tune. sat around a talked for a while; played a tune. My guess is, they only knew about 6 or 7 songs. The drummer on a trap set started each tune with a woodblock knock knock. All in all, it was a fun group, and I would be please to play with them if asked.
.
Our motorhome park was right on the Colorado river. It had rained the day before - as we drove that way, all day, rained, drove, more rain - I had not experienced this much driving fun since we drove through Pennsylvania one year as part of a hurricane blew through. Rain rain rained. Back to the river: it was flowing with all sorts of tree litter flowing as well. We walked along the shore with the 5 dogs and looked for squirrels and other deeply hidden critters. I can say, that I believe La Grange would be an excellent place to retire if you are tired of the big city.
.
One last thing - my wife really enjoyed the streets. It seemed that all over town, they built streets that left giant trees standing in the middle. The street would just go around both sides of the tree - put up a warning marker - travel on. I suppose that was nice. It might be a hindrance to a certid dddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd ncvvvcvv
let's stop here for an explanation. I was typing along. I wanted to type "certified." The "F" was stuck in the down position. How's that happen? Must I quit eating and drinking while I type? I just went in between the keys with my handy dandy pocket knife and removed cracker crumbs, cheese, hair, garbage, and elephant dung. Maybe I should take the back off the keyboard and blow the thingy out. Or maybe I shouldn't. Let's leave air compressors to the professionals.
back to original paragraph. trees in road. It might be a hindrance to a certified drunk. And I would think in a Czech/German community - there might be a few.
.
move on
.
We decided to take two days to get home. Our next stop was in Huntsville on I-45. They have the Huntsville State Park. Now this is a nice State Park. You should go see. Trees and Water. Lovely picnic area. Really nice. Next morning, we took our time and loaded up. Walked the dogs 4 different times to empty certain body parts, and took off for town. Finding a place to park the motorhome, pulling a car, at an eating place was hard. Eventually we squeezed into an area behind the Golden Corral of Huntsville.
.
I have been in thousands, if not millions, of Golden Corrals. I believe this one is in dire need of refurbishing. I thought it was a tad scuzzy. The food was the same. I know, some of you think the food is scuzzy at all G. C. or buffets, in general. it was okay. We sat in a secluded area beside a group of 6 adults. Next to them was an elderly Spanish man and his wife, who had their laptop opened on the table. The screen showed their playlist and the music was being played through those little tiny speakers. Yes, this couple had brought their own elevator music to enjoy as they feasted at Golden Corral.
.
Wanna guess what kind of music? Go ahead.
You're wrong.
It was music from the 40s and 50s. All of the stuff I truly enjoy. Good big band sounds, old songs and dances - all pop. It was a pleasure having this gentleman sitting near with his playlist emitting the golden sounds of a golden era. Is this a trend for the future? Little kids bringing in laptops to play Barney music while they eat? Some acid punk rock dude playing his trash for the world to hear? Think about it for a moment. Why not? They left, leaving us alone in the area with the 6 adults.
.
A phone rang; the lady picked it up and started having a conversation. She was not obnoxious or anything...very pleasant. She passed the phone around the table. Finally it reached this one low-middle age guy who talked briefly. Then he said: "Yes, I just got out." He described who was there: his mom, his brothers, and so forth.
.
I'll cut to the chase. "I just got out." Huntsville. Gray uniformed individuals picking up several containers of food to go. Where are we? Huntsville. Home of the State Prison - one of them. Yes, this guy behind us with all his family had just been released from prison. And, where did he choose to go eat lunch with his favorite people? You got it. Golden Corral. If you had been in jail for any period of time, you would choose Golden Corral too, I imagine. None of that fancy Mexican or Italian food for you. Go to the trough.
so with that I close. It was nice to get home. It was nice to leave home. Soon we will travel again. Y'all take care now.
m
.
Certain family members told me to write a blog - instead of sending them email stones. I bit and began. Now they don't read the blog either. Tho ( sic: so ) I will continue wallowing in my self, alone pity. Can anyone hear me out there?
.
anyway, nuff of that stuff
.
We made a motorhome trip about a week ago to La Grange, TX. They have = what is billed as = the Texas State Quilt Museum. Our daughter Christine drove down from Round Rock - great name for a town - and stayed in the M.H. with us for a couple of nights. If you have not been through La Grange, and stopped, you should. It seems to be a very nice little town with things to do and see.
.
1st: the quilt museum has its limits. It is housed in two downtown bldgs which have been redone quite well. The quilts are pretty and the folks are friendly. Every 3 months they change their display of featured quilts. Oct. 1st will be the new display; I guess I should say that Oct. 1st was their new display. The Sept. one was a display of art type quilts. Scenes made from cloth and swirly things made from cloth.
.
My family is into traditional quilts, so this was not the best thing. Yes they were pretty; but, they were not traditional quilts. We enjoyed the viewing however. As it turns out, while we were in La Grange it was festival day. Every small town has at least one day of festivities. This was their county's 175th birthday. That's a long time in Texas. They fired a cannon off on the hill top, they did this, they did that. At 4 on the courthouse square the party began. Politicians recited at 4 as well as local well-respected folks who probably have been politicians.
.
A crowd gathered beneath the courthouse balcony and listened to - at least - 45 minutes of speeches about the wonderful day. Yes, it was a Wonder, Full of speeches and the crowd stayed. They had an oldie car display, little ole ladies sitting and quilting in costume, a guy making cornmeal with the help of eager children and and and..
.
but my favorite was the Round Top Brass Band which struck up after the speeches. I don't know who they were . . . . a bunch of old guys and gals in black pants, white shirts, and cute, little, period-black box hats - reminding me of olden days fireman hats when they weren't working. Some were terrific players; others could have done with another rehearsal or two. While they were a brass band, two clarinets sat in and warbled beautifully.
.
What I noticed is: the band played a song. Then, the band sat around a talked for a while; then the band played a tune. Then, the band sat around a talked for a while; then the band played a tune. sat around a talked for a while; played a tune. My guess is, they only knew about 6 or 7 songs. The drummer on a trap set started each tune with a woodblock knock knock. All in all, it was a fun group, and I would be please to play with them if asked.
.
Our motorhome park was right on the Colorado river. It had rained the day before - as we drove that way, all day, rained, drove, more rain - I had not experienced this much driving fun since we drove through Pennsylvania one year as part of a hurricane blew through. Rain rain rained. Back to the river: it was flowing with all sorts of tree litter flowing as well. We walked along the shore with the 5 dogs and looked for squirrels and other deeply hidden critters. I can say, that I believe La Grange would be an excellent place to retire if you are tired of the big city.
.
One last thing - my wife really enjoyed the streets. It seemed that all over town, they built streets that left giant trees standing in the middle. The street would just go around both sides of the tree - put up a warning marker - travel on. I suppose that was nice. It might be a hindrance to a certid dddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd ncvvvcvv
let's stop here for an explanation. I was typing along. I wanted to type "certified." The "F" was stuck in the down position. How's that happen? Must I quit eating and drinking while I type? I just went in between the keys with my handy dandy pocket knife and removed cracker crumbs, cheese, hair, garbage, and elephant dung. Maybe I should take the back off the keyboard and blow the thingy out. Or maybe I shouldn't. Let's leave air compressors to the professionals.
back to original paragraph. trees in road. It might be a hindrance to a certified drunk. And I would think in a Czech/German community - there might be a few.
.
move on
.
We decided to take two days to get home. Our next stop was in Huntsville on I-45. They have the Huntsville State Park. Now this is a nice State Park. You should go see. Trees and Water. Lovely picnic area. Really nice. Next morning, we took our time and loaded up. Walked the dogs 4 different times to empty certain body parts, and took off for town. Finding a place to park the motorhome, pulling a car, at an eating place was hard. Eventually we squeezed into an area behind the Golden Corral of Huntsville.
.
I have been in thousands, if not millions, of Golden Corrals. I believe this one is in dire need of refurbishing. I thought it was a tad scuzzy. The food was the same. I know, some of you think the food is scuzzy at all G. C. or buffets, in general. it was okay. We sat in a secluded area beside a group of 6 adults. Next to them was an elderly Spanish man and his wife, who had their laptop opened on the table. The screen showed their playlist and the music was being played through those little tiny speakers. Yes, this couple had brought their own elevator music to enjoy as they feasted at Golden Corral.
.
Wanna guess what kind of music? Go ahead.
You're wrong.
It was music from the 40s and 50s. All of the stuff I truly enjoy. Good big band sounds, old songs and dances - all pop. It was a pleasure having this gentleman sitting near with his playlist emitting the golden sounds of a golden era. Is this a trend for the future? Little kids bringing in laptops to play Barney music while they eat? Some acid punk rock dude playing his trash for the world to hear? Think about it for a moment. Why not? They left, leaving us alone in the area with the 6 adults.
.
A phone rang; the lady picked it up and started having a conversation. She was not obnoxious or anything...very pleasant. She passed the phone around the table. Finally it reached this one low-middle age guy who talked briefly. Then he said: "Yes, I just got out." He described who was there: his mom, his brothers, and so forth.
.
I'll cut to the chase. "I just got out." Huntsville. Gray uniformed individuals picking up several containers of food to go. Where are we? Huntsville. Home of the State Prison - one of them. Yes, this guy behind us with all his family had just been released from prison. And, where did he choose to go eat lunch with his favorite people? You got it. Golden Corral. If you had been in jail for any period of time, you would choose Golden Corral too, I imagine. None of that fancy Mexican or Italian food for you. Go to the trough.
so with that I close. It was nice to get home. It was nice to leave home. Soon we will travel again. Y'all take care now.
m
Monday, September 16, 2013
running running
Not much to see here folks. I awoke this morning with fluid flowing from my nose ( GROSS ALERT !! GROSS ALERT !! ). A clear, liquid-flow, mighty as a river gushing after the hurricane [ from the previous post ] has unleashed its liquid fury.
One Kleenix, Two Kleenix,
Three Kleenix, A Dollar.
All for Tissues
Stand up and hollar.
.
Today I stand in awe at the "mighty lowly" Tissue. Continuing our gross alert, the way it works in my head - the nose runs. If I lay down, it continues, sometimes flowing down the back of my throat. While I never know it is flowing, it is for sure. All of this gross-sit-ity is followed by an increasing sore throat. Pretty soon, the ears start to stop up. That was fun to write. Start to Stop. Try it, you'll see.
.
Historically when this first started, it was a spring time, just prior to concert contest. I went into sight reading unable to hear my students play - everything seemed 5 blocks away. We were fortunate to have survived that competition - the band did great. I tried to smile a lot.
.
So, running nose and all, today we went to town. Gotta go to the bank - the post office - and, of course, Wal*Mart. That, plus a few more tissues, and I invite my wife to have lunch at a local Italian place we have never tried. It was okay. Big bread rolls brushed with butter and garlic. The portions were large. My piece of chicken was enormous for a restaurant that is still in business. We brought home supper plus 2 big rolls.
.
Once home - a half box tissues later - I called an allergy doctor. Answering service: "Doctor's answering service," she recites. I ask, " You are the answering service?" After all it was early afternoon. "Yes, they will be back at 1:30." 1:30. I set an alarm clock for 1:35 and gave them a 2nd call. Response --- Tomorrow morning sometime, I will visit my new best friend. The doctor will look into my eyes, my ears, my throat, and perchance, my nose, if he is wearing plastic protective garb. He will emit a hmmmmmm and say, "I need you to come back in, and we will do some tests."
.
You see, I have done this before. I took allergy shots in Austin for 4 years. Then, in 2003, I stopped. Not one runny nose since 2003 until this year. The allergy devil has re-found me. Tomorrow, a new adventure. wish me the best.
.
M
One Kleenix, Two Kleenix,
Three Kleenix, A Dollar.
All for Tissues
Stand up and hollar.
.
Today I stand in awe at the "mighty lowly" Tissue. Continuing our gross alert, the way it works in my head - the nose runs. If I lay down, it continues, sometimes flowing down the back of my throat. While I never know it is flowing, it is for sure. All of this gross-sit-ity is followed by an increasing sore throat. Pretty soon, the ears start to stop up. That was fun to write. Start to Stop. Try it, you'll see.
.
Historically when this first started, it was a spring time, just prior to concert contest. I went into sight reading unable to hear my students play - everything seemed 5 blocks away. We were fortunate to have survived that competition - the band did great. I tried to smile a lot.
.
So, running nose and all, today we went to town. Gotta go to the bank - the post office - and, of course, Wal*Mart. That, plus a few more tissues, and I invite my wife to have lunch at a local Italian place we have never tried. It was okay. Big bread rolls brushed with butter and garlic. The portions were large. My piece of chicken was enormous for a restaurant that is still in business. We brought home supper plus 2 big rolls.
.
Once home - a half box tissues later - I called an allergy doctor. Answering service: "Doctor's answering service," she recites. I ask, " You are the answering service?" After all it was early afternoon. "Yes, they will be back at 1:30." 1:30. I set an alarm clock for 1:35 and gave them a 2nd call. Response --- Tomorrow morning sometime, I will visit my new best friend. The doctor will look into my eyes, my ears, my throat, and perchance, my nose, if he is wearing plastic protective garb. He will emit a hmmmmmm and say, "I need you to come back in, and we will do some tests."
.
You see, I have done this before. I took allergy shots in Austin for 4 years. Then, in 2003, I stopped. Not one runny nose since 2003 until this year. The allergy devil has re-found me. Tomorrow, a new adventure. wish me the best.
.
M
misc. & birthday & water
Today, September 15, my wife's birthday. She was born in Levelland (TX) six weeks before I arrived in Oklahoma. I am not sure, but I think she may have been the first in her entire family to attend college. Her parents - pre marriage - moved to Levelland sometime during the 20-30s, went to and graduated from LHS, met had 2 children and so forth. I would tell you how old my wife is, but you can figure it out on your own in six weeks when I announce my own birthday. Never ever thought I would hang around with an old lady as much as I do.
.
It may never rain again in this part of the country. Our lake is going down inches daily. We are told that it is 10 ft below normal. Folks, that is a lot of water under the bridge. From our house looking north, we can see land moving our direction. The cows from the other side of the lake are starting to move down our shore and eating our weeds. Not that I would complain. The rancher rode down last week and had a round up. On his horse? you may ask. Nope, apparently, the four wheeler has taken the place of the rancher's horse. Sorta sad really.
.
This too shall pass. All things, if left alone, will return to their normal state. Of course, it could be that the normal state is 15 ft down - and we have just been having a rainy several years. That's sorta like global warming. Just a few years back they were crying about global cooling - this has been during my adult lifetime. This too shall pass - hurricanes will come again - the snows will once more bless the highlands - glaciers will begin to grow instead of shrink - Republicans will return to office. You name it. It will evolve.
.
So we pump water out of the lake to water our yard. We paid a one time fee, and we get get free muddy water if we are willing to pay for the electric pump to shove it up hill. We did & we paid & we are willing. But the lake went down so far that our inlet valve is out of the water. We paid a guy to extend our line somewhere around 400 more ft into the lake. We pump again. It was interesting seeing this kid walk out into the lake 400 ft pulling a plastic pipe to be buried in the mud. We will have water for a while, but without rain, even that pipe will come out of the water. Whatta ya gonna do?
.
I'll tell you. I have so much influence with all things religious - I have been praying for a hurricane to hit Houston, hit Houston hard, and then, come right up I-45 to my house, replenishing the lake. I know that some of you will find this to be ethically incorrect - known in the world as E.I. Sure maybe hundreds or thousands of people will lose everything they own and a few relatives. But our lake will refill. And, if you think about it, bus companies will make more money busing people out of the lowlands to west Texas...gypsy roofers will have a great new area to fleece...politicians will make hay from all the visits and concerned looks. Hurricanes create a whole new world of making money - take house repair - shovels - soap - new cars to replace the drowned older models (which will be dried off and sold south of the border to unsuspecting Guatemalans - the funeral industry - so many things. C'mon Hurricane. I hope it will be named after some female and not one that is hard to pronounce or spell.
.
or we will just wait for the spring rains.
.
Meanwhile, I haul water hoses all over the yard on Thursdays and Sundays sprinkling away. The Tarrant County water district limits us to Th & S. Soon it will be limited to one day. It really is an interesting feeling to look north and see the edge of lake moving - no marching steadily south. It is almost like Sherman's March to the Sea over Atlanta. And all those fish are being squeezed south - hungry and confused.
.
A little side note: the guy fixed our water on a Friday about 3 weeks ago. He has yet to ask to be paid. At the time I offered. He said he had to go home and figure it; call me back Monday. He didn't. So I wait, cash in one hand a water hose in the other and a longing eye poised towards any cloud that drifts my direction.
.
Back to birthday. Did I mention my trip to Walmart where I bought her a black T-shirt with the words HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY emblazoned across the front?
later,
m
.
It may never rain again in this part of the country. Our lake is going down inches daily. We are told that it is 10 ft below normal. Folks, that is a lot of water under the bridge. From our house looking north, we can see land moving our direction. The cows from the other side of the lake are starting to move down our shore and eating our weeds. Not that I would complain. The rancher rode down last week and had a round up. On his horse? you may ask. Nope, apparently, the four wheeler has taken the place of the rancher's horse. Sorta sad really.
.
This too shall pass. All things, if left alone, will return to their normal state. Of course, it could be that the normal state is 15 ft down - and we have just been having a rainy several years. That's sorta like global warming. Just a few years back they were crying about global cooling - this has been during my adult lifetime. This too shall pass - hurricanes will come again - the snows will once more bless the highlands - glaciers will begin to grow instead of shrink - Republicans will return to office. You name it. It will evolve.
.
So we pump water out of the lake to water our yard. We paid a one time fee, and we get get free muddy water if we are willing to pay for the electric pump to shove it up hill. We did & we paid & we are willing. But the lake went down so far that our inlet valve is out of the water. We paid a guy to extend our line somewhere around 400 more ft into the lake. We pump again. It was interesting seeing this kid walk out into the lake 400 ft pulling a plastic pipe to be buried in the mud. We will have water for a while, but without rain, even that pipe will come out of the water. Whatta ya gonna do?
.
I'll tell you. I have so much influence with all things religious - I have been praying for a hurricane to hit Houston, hit Houston hard, and then, come right up I-45 to my house, replenishing the lake. I know that some of you will find this to be ethically incorrect - known in the world as E.I. Sure maybe hundreds or thousands of people will lose everything they own and a few relatives. But our lake will refill. And, if you think about it, bus companies will make more money busing people out of the lowlands to west Texas...gypsy roofers will have a great new area to fleece...politicians will make hay from all the visits and concerned looks. Hurricanes create a whole new world of making money - take house repair - shovels - soap - new cars to replace the drowned older models (which will be dried off and sold south of the border to unsuspecting Guatemalans - the funeral industry - so many things. C'mon Hurricane. I hope it will be named after some female and not one that is hard to pronounce or spell.
.
or we will just wait for the spring rains.
.
Meanwhile, I haul water hoses all over the yard on Thursdays and Sundays sprinkling away. The Tarrant County water district limits us to Th & S. Soon it will be limited to one day. It really is an interesting feeling to look north and see the edge of lake moving - no marching steadily south. It is almost like Sherman's March to the Sea over Atlanta. And all those fish are being squeezed south - hungry and confused.
.
A little side note: the guy fixed our water on a Friday about 3 weeks ago. He has yet to ask to be paid. At the time I offered. He said he had to go home and figure it; call me back Monday. He didn't. So I wait, cash in one hand a water hose in the other and a longing eye poised towards any cloud that drifts my direction.
.
Back to birthday. Did I mention my trip to Walmart where I bought her a black T-shirt with the words HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY emblazoned across the front?
later,
m
Friday, September 6, 2013
MRI Festivo
Not much to this. Back in June, I think it was, might have been late May. My wife asked me to go walking with her. I grumbled "sure" cause I need to do that sorta thing. She has a route that covers a mile, up and down our hills. Part of it can be tough on an old guy who is out of shape. So, I walked up our driveway to the road and took maybe 3 or 4 steps.
.
All of a sudden there was a pain in my left foot. I can't remember if I have told this story or not. So, I walked the mile in minor pain. Later I figured out it was under my left ankle. After 2 weeks, I went to my primary care doc (we use to just call them doctors). He essentially thought it would get well soon. 3 weeks later I went to my foot doctor. He felt around, having me move my foot in all directions.
.
I really don't like people messing with my feet. He gave me this brace to wear around the ankle. It was a problem with a tendon, not the Achilles, another one. I wore the brace for a month and went back. He told me to continue. I went for another month and called for an appointment.
.
This time he wanted me to get a MRI. Aside thought. That should be an MRI. There is a place near his office. However, the nurse suggested that I drive 20 miles to Ennis for the work to be done. She implied it was less of a hassle with book work. Okay. Fine. Sure.
.
Went this morning. Checked in and paid my $14.19 co-pay. Hmmmmm The tall guy took me to a round lady in the back. She prepared the machine with a device to hold my foot. Stuck that rascal in their container and laid down. She turned the lights off in the room and moved my lower half into the round machine.
.
I think I was on that table for an hour listening to hums and noise and seeing a bright red light in between noises. She had given me ear plugs to cut the noise. I crossed my arms on the chest and tried to sleep. I didn't get great sleep. I was so worried that I'd move my foot and have to start over. That would not be a joy.
.
MRIs don't bother me. It is just something you do. My doc will get the results from another doc who will interpret. Then a decision will be made about our next step. Meanwhile, I continue to wear my ankle brace. What is that old line. Getting old is not for sissies.
m
.
All of a sudden there was a pain in my left foot. I can't remember if I have told this story or not. So, I walked the mile in minor pain. Later I figured out it was under my left ankle. After 2 weeks, I went to my primary care doc (we use to just call them doctors). He essentially thought it would get well soon. 3 weeks later I went to my foot doctor. He felt around, having me move my foot in all directions.
.
I really don't like people messing with my feet. He gave me this brace to wear around the ankle. It was a problem with a tendon, not the Achilles, another one. I wore the brace for a month and went back. He told me to continue. I went for another month and called for an appointment.
.
This time he wanted me to get a MRI. Aside thought. That should be an MRI. There is a place near his office. However, the nurse suggested that I drive 20 miles to Ennis for the work to be done. She implied it was less of a hassle with book work. Okay. Fine. Sure.
.
Went this morning. Checked in and paid my $14.19 co-pay. Hmmmmm The tall guy took me to a round lady in the back. She prepared the machine with a device to hold my foot. Stuck that rascal in their container and laid down. She turned the lights off in the room and moved my lower half into the round machine.
.
I think I was on that table for an hour listening to hums and noise and seeing a bright red light in between noises. She had given me ear plugs to cut the noise. I crossed my arms on the chest and tried to sleep. I didn't get great sleep. I was so worried that I'd move my foot and have to start over. That would not be a joy.
.
MRIs don't bother me. It is just something you do. My doc will get the results from another doc who will interpret. Then a decision will be made about our next step. Meanwhile, I continue to wear my ankle brace. What is that old line. Getting old is not for sissies.
m
Monday, September 2, 2013
Names Names Names
We got an appeal last week to send money to some organization that
helps pregnant women and those who have just had a baby - but who are having a
hard time. They help the females. That is all well and good. This missive is
not to talk about the organization even though that might be a nice thing to do
someday.
.
I lost (trashed) the flyer; thus, I cannot tell you the
organization. The front cover was a photo shot of a protruding stomach - i.e.,
a pregnant female's baby bump. It did not identify the female - just a picture
of this rounded mass of skin...someone might say that was a beautiful photo.
Personally, I think some things should be kept more private.
.
Inside on page 2 was the story of two different females they had
helped. Pictures of smiling females and children littered the 4 page flyer.
The second story was of a recent mother - her story is important to her and the
organization, not to me - what was interesting was her new child.
.
She named the girl Psi Lent.
.
With that, I move on.
===========================
Names. Normally you cannot be blamed for your name. Sure there
are folks who go to court and choose a name. Do you know anyone who has done
that? Not me. If I were going to choose a different name, it would have to be
special ... like, maybe, Abraham Moses Sue. That would make my initials
AMS. SLIGHTLY unimportant.
.
FYI: I was named Michael Eugene M. On TV - scanning the channels
over the weekend - I arrived at a football game just as some guy made a tackle.
His name is Mike Eugene....did think of that as some type of
omen.
===========================
moving on a 2nd time.
Local newspaper puts out a slick magazine this time of year
featuring all the football teams in the area. It has several shiny pages of
football player photos, stories of the team, a well-thought out photo of the
cheerleaders, and usually a picture of the band. What caught my eye was the
first names of the cheerleaders. As I think this through, I will look at first
names of the football players. The band kids are never listed by
name.
.
Corsicana Cheerleaders: there are 23 of them. Yes, 23 girls in
cheerleading outfits. Some of their names are quite common. Here we go --
Claire, Mariah, Katie, Caroline, Logan, Caroline, Dolcya,
Dominique, Emily, Delaney, Moesha, Emily, Jourdan, Alisa, McKenna, Reagan,
Payton, Makenzie, Brooke, McKenzie, Kayla, Caraline, and Macy. Those are
lovely.
I'll save the football names till later -
.
One final school: We pay taxes to Mildred ISD. FIRST names of the
Mildred Eagle cheerleaders: Bethany, Brianna, Kallie, Molly, Callie, Sagen,
victoria, Jodie, Maddie, Jessica, Katie, Alexa and Karlie.
.
Enough of that. see ya guys
m
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Trying to get back on track
Help !! I've fallen { behind reading my daily newspaper }
and I can't get { caught } up.
.
Yes, I am behind in more than one thing, this bluggy blog being one. I couldn't think of a "B" word for one. bluggy blog being bone - see that doesn't really make it. Add the "B" and it changes the meaning altogether. But, we move on.
.
While falling behind for sure, I have been a busy bee (more of those B words).
.
Yesterday, a Friday, as an example, it was hot. For those not living around here in Texas, hot means hot. I think it got up around 109 or so yesterday in the shade "and there was no shade." We had originally planned to go to First Monday Trade Days in Canton yesterday. On Thursday when the TV weather man on channel 5 predicted a high of 105 degrees, a change was in order.
.
Friends of ours: Jerry and Brenda Ballew live in Teague about 30 - 40 miles south of us. Jerry is the "Boss" business manager of the Corsicana Swing Orchestra of which I have written more than once - and Brenda is the band's singer and Jerry's boss, I assume. My wife bosses me - should work that way in most houses. Both are retired now primarily working on their home and other civic projects. Well sir we HAD made plans to go to Canton with them.
.
We called Thursday afternoon. Right off hand we learned that Jerry was not home; he had gone to the auto parts store - a rather nice adventure I am sure. Almost the first thing out of her mouth was Jerry coming in from outside talking about the heat. That led us right into our conformation of the same news.
.
Let me stop here and point out that conformation is normally spelled confirmation. However, I felt in this case, we were confirming her information - thus a combination of the two words seemed to be Presidential. Which brings me to...
.
We decided that we would drive to Teague and pick them up, then, drive on to College Station to visit the George HW Bush (#31) Presidential Library. We had never seen this library and thought it would be a good excursion. The big drawback of course is College Station, the home of A & M. I try to avoid anything Texas Aggie in nature. We did that. Out of here before 9 a.m., picked them up about 10, Brenda B gave my Brenda M the grand tour of their home built in the 1920s, and in College Station before noon. We found a nice Cracker Barrel and ate lunch. Don't you just love to walk around their gift shop area. We found 4 different 16 month Duck Dynasty calendars to buy - didn't.
.
Now, folks, if you have not been to that Bush's Library, lemme tell you, bring your reading glasses. There is a lot to read, and I finished little of it. Of course, of course, we were scanned and prodded and searched and seen by security at the front door. Only one machine really; we kept our shoes on... Often wondered if they check George and Barbara when they visit or if it is merely us gangsta types. The big exhibits include a full sized fighter airplane, a 195? red Studebaker, and his Cigarette boat. You add in many beautiful gifts they receive in office and special displays about their family and Barbara Bush - it was a busy afternoon...a busy afternoon of looking and reading. They have had quite a family history.
.
I figured ( planning ahead & based upon visiting the LBJ Library in Austin ) that it would take about 2 hours tops. They ran us out at 5. I barely had time to browse the gift shop. I would explain more about the Library, but you need to go see. Libraries have a way of glorifying the residing President, as they should. So if you have a Bush hangup, this may not be for you.
.
The trip home on I-45 at 75 mph was truly an adventure. The Labor Day holiday traffic was beginning to pick up. All in all, really enjoyed the day - the wife did too - we talked a bunch about the museum later - and it was fun spending the day with the Ballew clan. If you know us, you know we are not quality social animals. We have never socialized much. I always used my band directing job as an excuse, and she let me.
.
So getting out like this was fun. We have postponed our trip to Canton till October if all goes well. I love to just walk around Canton and see the people and stuff. The puppies are fun too.
.
This brings me to a slow close here. I have several other projects to recite that have happened over the past couple of weeks. My thought is to stretch those out over several days instead of writing a book right here.
so y'all take care.
and think of George HW and Barbara in your prayers.
m3
and I can't get { caught } up.
.
Yes, I am behind in more than one thing, this bluggy blog being one. I couldn't think of a "B" word for one. bluggy blog being bone - see that doesn't really make it. Add the "B" and it changes the meaning altogether. But, we move on.
.
While falling behind for sure, I have been a busy bee (more of those B words).
.
Yesterday, a Friday, as an example, it was hot. For those not living around here in Texas, hot means hot. I think it got up around 109 or so yesterday in the shade "and there was no shade." We had originally planned to go to First Monday Trade Days in Canton yesterday. On Thursday when the TV weather man on channel 5 predicted a high of 105 degrees, a change was in order.
.
Friends of ours: Jerry and Brenda Ballew live in Teague about 30 - 40 miles south of us. Jerry is the "Boss" business manager of the Corsicana Swing Orchestra of which I have written more than once - and Brenda is the band's singer and Jerry's boss, I assume. My wife bosses me - should work that way in most houses. Both are retired now primarily working on their home and other civic projects. Well sir we HAD made plans to go to Canton with them.
.
We called Thursday afternoon. Right off hand we learned that Jerry was not home; he had gone to the auto parts store - a rather nice adventure I am sure. Almost the first thing out of her mouth was Jerry coming in from outside talking about the heat. That led us right into our conformation of the same news.
.
Let me stop here and point out that conformation is normally spelled confirmation. However, I felt in this case, we were confirming her information - thus a combination of the two words seemed to be Presidential. Which brings me to...
.
We decided that we would drive to Teague and pick them up, then, drive on to College Station to visit the George HW Bush (#31) Presidential Library. We had never seen this library and thought it would be a good excursion. The big drawback of course is College Station, the home of A & M. I try to avoid anything Texas Aggie in nature. We did that. Out of here before 9 a.m., picked them up about 10, Brenda B gave my Brenda M the grand tour of their home built in the 1920s, and in College Station before noon. We found a nice Cracker Barrel and ate lunch. Don't you just love to walk around their gift shop area. We found 4 different 16 month Duck Dynasty calendars to buy - didn't.
.
Now, folks, if you have not been to that Bush's Library, lemme tell you, bring your reading glasses. There is a lot to read, and I finished little of it. Of course, of course, we were scanned and prodded and searched and seen by security at the front door. Only one machine really; we kept our shoes on... Often wondered if they check George and Barbara when they visit or if it is merely us gangsta types. The big exhibits include a full sized fighter airplane, a 195? red Studebaker, and his Cigarette boat. You add in many beautiful gifts they receive in office and special displays about their family and Barbara Bush - it was a busy afternoon...a busy afternoon of looking and reading. They have had quite a family history.
.
I figured ( planning ahead & based upon visiting the LBJ Library in Austin ) that it would take about 2 hours tops. They ran us out at 5. I barely had time to browse the gift shop. I would explain more about the Library, but you need to go see. Libraries have a way of glorifying the residing President, as they should. So if you have a Bush hangup, this may not be for you.
.
The trip home on I-45 at 75 mph was truly an adventure. The Labor Day holiday traffic was beginning to pick up. All in all, really enjoyed the day - the wife did too - we talked a bunch about the museum later - and it was fun spending the day with the Ballew clan. If you know us, you know we are not quality social animals. We have never socialized much. I always used my band directing job as an excuse, and she let me.
.
So getting out like this was fun. We have postponed our trip to Canton till October if all goes well. I love to just walk around Canton and see the people and stuff. The puppies are fun too.
.
This brings me to a slow close here. I have several other projects to recite that have happened over the past couple of weeks. My thought is to stretch those out over several days instead of writing a book right here.
so y'all take care.
and think of George HW and Barbara in your prayers.
m3
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