Two barns

Still have not found my battery charger for my camera, so I am digging back into my archives. I made this photo a b&w and smudged the edges. Still have the boxer. He went to the vet tonight for a check-up. He does not have heart worm. He is now supplied with medicine for every month (just like we do with the others). He will return for shots when the pocketbook has time to recoup. Puppies are set for their 3rd round of boosters and rabies shots next week. Then it will be back to Slade for his round of shots. This vet guessed him at 1 year old. He is only 63 pounds. I could have sworn he was 90. He is one strong canine.

Not to forget Sable, she has a cough. The vet was kind enough to prescribe medicine for her without seeing her. The pharmacy she sent me to (Giant Eagle) will give us her antibiotic free. How cool is that?

Life is on Tilt

Taken from a road trip September 2007

My life is still on tilt shift. Still have the boxer. Not one call for him. I am thinking that family number 2 was just notified today about him being available. We shall see what the week brings.

I am now battling a sore throat, aches and pains and fatigue. I am headed for bed.

Welcome September

Jeff County Fair August 2009

Leaving August and moving into September. Labor Day week-end is just about over. I still have Slade. Ho, ho, ho. I have contacted possible family number 2 to come and get him. I've given up on family number one with the eight year old boy. I have heard nothing from them. My telephone with the answering machine is broken. I do have caller i.d. on the other phone. No calls.

I grilled chicken, hamburgers and hotdogs today. Potato salad and baked beans. Finished up with lemon pudding cake and vanilla ice cream. The cake was store bought. I am very tired.

We watched "Race to Witch Mountain." I feel this movie was much better than Dwayne's "The Game Plan" but nothing close to "The Rundown."

Yep, I'm gonna miss him

The Boxer poses for my camera

I just gave up on calling him Slade. It never did roll off the tongue. If the family that are interested come to get him this week-end the boy wants to call him Tank. I just decided to go with "The Boxer" like the Simon & Garfunkel song. Like "The Boxer" he leaves his family and finds himself in the company of strangers, runnin' scared.

I called them yesterday afternoon and told them they could come to get him any evening after five, or Saturday morning, or wait until Sunday/Monday. Personally, if I want a dog, I'd have been right there that evening at 5:15 to pick him up. No call. What if they changed their mind? Could they do that to their 8-year-old boy? I don't know.

They will probably come get him this week-end. Get him settled in over the long holiday week-end. If not, I have another family interested. I couldn't sleep last night. He has been sleeping by my bed and he keeps jumping up into my bed. I don't discourage this. If it were long term, he'd be sleeping out in the living room with Sable. He has chased most of the cats down to the basement and they are not showing their faces.

And, I do this every time. When I need to get pictures, I can't find my battery charger. Both batteries are dead and I can fire off one or two pics before I have to shut the camera down. I figure I have hours left with him and I want to get as many memories of him as I can. Early this morning (since I couldn't sleep) I looked at him in the moonlight. He seemed so lost and needy.

I wished all good things for him. I hope his new family takes him to the vet and ensures that he his healthy and well taken care of. It sure is hard to let go.

Foot warmers

Chong chewing

I have two of the most adorable foot warmers wrapped around my feet as I sit at my computer. They do not need electricity or batteries to warm my feet. They are manufacturing their own heat. Sleeping. Ahhh.

No more incidents from poor Chong. At least I know what to do, now. It is funny with the boxer. He is sleeping on the couch. Every once in a while he will snort. Our big (alpha) cat, Casper just sits in amazement and watches him. I am not entirely sure what he is thinking.

I did catch him rub up against the boxer yesterday in the kitchen. Mmm Hmm. Yeah, Casper. I saw you!

I had advertised the boxer on 'Craig's list'. I received a very nice e-mail from a person who loves boxers. They warned me of the "puppy flippers". They had recently lost a boxer to cancer and have a new one that is four months old and if I couldn't find the real owners and could not keep him for myself that they would take him. They also told me of the health issues that plague this breed.

Friday evening I will call the interested family and give them the opportunity to come and get him. I will stipulate that if for any reason they don't want him or can't keep him that they are to return him to me. No questions asked.

Oh, all right. Here he is.

I can't stay angry with him for very long.

It even has a name.

I am so traumatized tonight I cannot bring myself to muster up the energy to find a picture to post. Work was so-so. Nothing there. I did have that wonderful check-up after lunch today that women get where they smash your breasts between plates of cold steel. Yep. It could have started then, I suppose.

I come home and again, not much to harp about.

The new boxer was playing with the puppies. The puppies are getting a bit bigger and want to uh...want to err... show the boxer who is the alpha dog, I guess is the best way to describe it. Well, Chong does since he matures a week or two quicker than Cheech. Chong has been going to town since we got the boxer and he is leaving poor Cheech's head alone. Cheech is relieved, I suppose.

The boxer barely gives Chong a second glance while he humps away. He probably adds to the horseplay with flipping him around from time to time.

I scooted Chong off of the poor boxer's leg for the umpteenth time and Chong kept crying. I thought he got stuck between the chair and the fan and he yelped. He kept twisting around trying to lick himself.

I looked closer. "What is the matter with you?" I asked him. He twisted again and yelped. I got a closer look. Oh, good grief. He was uh... it was err... well, it was out there and it wasn't going back in.

I have to admit, I really didn't know what to do for him. Should I blow on it? Oh good grief, Peruby! But really? What do you do? I picked him up and took him to the bathroom and shut the door for some privacy. The other dogs were not helping us.

I ran warm water in the bathroom sink and sat him down in it trying to get him to relax. He seemed to really like this feeling and did not squirm. We sat there until the water got cold. It didn't help. I wrapped him in two big fluffy towels and turned to Google. It even has a name.

Some of the sites said to rub Vaseline on his extrusion. I called my vet. She was gone but the receptionist was there. She asked the other lady and she said to rub Vaseline on it.

Back to the bathroom. I got my old jar of Vaseline out and picked up a good glob. Was thing going to hurt? I looked at Chong. "Sorry" I said. I dabbed some here, some there. Nothing. Oh, how about the base? I applied some to the base. It was all red and looked like it was bleeding. Zip. In it went like a flash. Wow! It works! I was so relieved. Maybe not as much as Chong, but I was relieved. I called the vet back (it took all of 45 seconds) and thanked them and told them it worked.

I wrapped him back up in the warm towels and held him while I sat on the couch. He slipped off into dreamland all warm and snug. After about 15 minutes he wanted his brother, they snuggled, I covered them and they went back to sleep.

Oh, you think that was it? Ha, ha!

My daughter came home. I reminded her it was the last day of August and to get the $2 off per gallon of gasoline from our grocery store points, we needed to go today. She drove her car, I drove mine. Her boyfriend mows our grass and he said we should take both our gas cans and fill them. I thought that was a good idea, so I grabbed our good plastic container and an older one that I had not used in ages. It didn't have a lid, but a long spout.

We filled my daughter's car up. The attendant told me I couldn't fill two cars up. Only one. I didn't mind. I said "Sorry. I didn't know." She was very nice about it. "Can I fill my gas cans up?" She said sure. I filled them. I put them in the back hatch of my car and drove off. The first turn I heard a thump. I immediately pulled over and opened the hatch. Gas was pouring out of that old gas container all over the back of my trunk. I could smell it everywhere. I picked it up and cursed under my breath. Great! Just Great!

I got home and my garage door would not open. I began banging it on my steering wheel, enraged by the gas fumes consuming me. The little insides of the opener slipped out and I didn't notice the garage door open. I put the opener back together and pushed the button. The door began closing. Ack! I screamed. I pushed and pushed, but the stupid door would not open back up. The gasoline fumes were really starting to get to me now! I became livid.

I shut off the car. Got my keys to open the side door to the garage so I could open the door for my car with the opener attached to the wall. It opened. I pulled my car in and opened my door. It crashed against something metal and I didn't care what it was. I began slamming my car door against the metal again and again and again. I was full of rage. I hate this smell!

Finally, I stopped. I picked up the metal (old bars from one of my daughter's old boyfriend's trampolines) and almost flung it against my car. My senses were beginning to get the better of me and I tossed them off to the side. I grabbed those gas cans and sat them off to the side.

I reached in and tried to pull the carpet away from the back of the hatch but it was all connected. I ran inside and knocked poor Sable over (she is always laying in front of the door). She almost fell down the basement steps. I grabbed a bucket of warm soapy water and some rags. And then I saw it.

Folks, the honeymoon is over.

There between the kitchen and the dining room were shreds of my carpet. Bare wood peeked up from the corner door frame. The rage boiled back up again. "Who did this?!" I screamed. Dogs ran every which way to get away from me. I stomped my foot. "Who did this?!" The smell from the gasoline was making me act like I was on some kind of bad drug trip.

I grabbed the bucket of sudsy water and flew outside to try and wash out the gasoline smell from my car. The fumes were overwhelming. I washed the carpet. I pulled out the chintzy piece of plywood that separates the carpet from the spare donut tire. I washed and I washed, but that gasoline smell consumed me.

I was in such a rage. I threw the rags, I threw the bucket. Soap was everywhere. I left the hatch open so that the car could air out. I turned out all the lights, closed all the garage doors and calmly now, walked back into the house. I had to calm down.

The dogs were excited. They were hungry. The needed to go outside. Somehow I kept it all together. I took them outside. The new boxer did nothing. I brought them all back in. I fed them. I watered them. I cleaned up the shredded carpet. I did not cry. I am not a crier.

I took the boxer out for a second time by himself. I walked him around the block. Twice. I needed the cool evening air to clear my head. My foot was killing me. I was glad it was dark so the neighbors could not see me limping. He still did nothing. We went back inside. I cleaned up the puppy pee pads and put new ones down. I sprayed Febreeze.

My head is swimming. I am drinking cool ice water. I cannot get rid of the gasoline smell to save my life. I put my clothes into the dirty clothes basket and took it down to the basement. I washed my hands and arms about seven times. It remains with me. All the dogs are sleeping. The cats are hiding. There are two cats that I have not seen since the day after we brought the boxer in.

I think I now know why he was abandoned. The separation anxiety can be a killer. I went through it with Sable. I'll get medicine if those nice folks don't want to take him. He will grow out of it I suppose.

Well, my head is still swimming and I think I will call it a day before the headache has a chance to hit me.

Me and My Big Mouth

Here is Cheech about five days after we got the puppies.

They are so much bigger now. Taller. Leaner. And, much faster.

The boxer? I opened my big mouth at a store on Saturday and by evening I had a small family looking at the dog. The lady said she has been thinking of getting her 8 year old son a dog. I said "He has to be strong." The boy looked like a football player. He was very smitten with the dog.

The Mother and Grandmother came also. They agreed he was a beautiful dog.

I said I wanted to wait another week just in case the owners were on vacation or something. Still nothing. No phone calls.

I guess by labor day I'll give him away to this family if they still want him. There are a few annoying things he is showing us, but the pros still outnumber the cons. But, they are MY pros and cons. Not the boxer's pros and cons.

I have to do what is right for the boxer. He needs more attention and exercise than we are prepared to give to him.

The boys even have Sable wrestling with them. The house is rocking with the horseplay.

I will be very sad to part with this boxer, but I have to be realistic. Maybe.

Roller boy

My hair is always limp and tangles easily. I used to wear a long perm, but have not had the money or the inclination to keep that old fashioned style. It is outdated. But, I loved it. It suited me and my stringy hair. To keep my bangs feathered back, I use one roller when the humidity is high or when I am in a hurry or travelling. This is one of the rollers that I use.

This little boy belongs to the girlfriend of my nephew. He was quite shy at first but warmed up to the rest of us over the evening that we camped out at the fair. It didn't take him long. We played ball with him. He has quite an arm. That is my cosmetic mirror that he is holding. After I put the roller in his hair he gave me a dubious look and then looked over at his mother. A plea for help?

I didn't leave it there long. My daughter is constantly saying she hates kids. That is because she has not been around them. If she were around them all the time she would REALLY hate kids. Actually she doesn't know what to do for them or with them. This boy always takes a shine to her when she is around. His mother has jet black hair and my daughter is blond, so I don't know why he is attracted to her. He will not let her be. By Sunday she was holding him most of the time. Her arm hurt for two days after the fair. I laughed. I got pictures of the girl who "hates kids" holding him.

We've named the boxer. Slade. It doesn't roll off my tongue easily, though. When I yell quickly at him - heaven only knows what comes out of my mouth. Sl-l-loane! S-s-suh-lade! Until my brain registers and I get the name right.

A very nice veterinarian (not mine) offered to scan him for a microchip. I called all the vet offices in the neighborhood. I have called our county dog pound, our humane shelter (new this year), the sheriff's office, the police station, two radio stations and four vet's offices. She scanned. No microchip. I thanked her for trying. Everybody wants to hear the story. They can't believe that somebody would abandon this beauty of a dog. The vet guessed his age at 1 year or 2. That is what I guessed.

He and the pups are sleeping quietly at my feet right now. They rough house a bit and then crash. The pups yelp when Slade gets too rough, but they come right back for more, so unless I see them cowering and trying to hide from him, I pretty much let them work it out amongst themselves. He gets rough and pounces at them sometimes stepping on them with his giant paws.

We needed new harnesses for the pups (they outgrew the little ones we got them last month) and figured we would get one for Slade also. The choker chain chaffed his neck and made it bleed so I needed another way to contain him while walking him.

My daughter and I went to college orientation yesterday. Coming home, I was not even thinking. I opened the back door and yelled "Outside!" without putting a leash on Slade. He came bounding out. My daughter yelled , he took one look back at me and off he ran. I was crushed. I was kicking myself and in shock. I grabbed the little leash we had been using and scooted in the direction he ran. I was mortified. All I could think of was "What is going to happen to him now?" I felt that I had failed miserably. I had let him down. Finally he ran around a house and I crouched down and pleaded with him to come to me. He acted all shy and coy and he threw his front paws out and kept ducking his head in a playful manner like "Aw, shucks!" All I could think of was "Hey! Don't be so shy, we slept together for Chrissakes!" He came to me, I got the leash on and I doubt that I will let that happen again.

Anyway, now I have the harness and a sturdy leash. The pups have their new harnesses for when we walk them. Poor Sable. I think I saw her pack her bags and head north to my sister's house. I called her and said to expect her. LOL! Not really. I do have to find some time and give her some extra special lovin' this week-end. She is being very, very good.

Well, it's time for a fresh cup of java. I dread it because when I move, they move. Then they are awake and back at it. Sigh. But I will tell you this. Our house is full of laughter. Some boisterous yelling, but laughter none the less. We are having a ball with all these critters. I'll cry with the vet bills, but until then - let's just romp and knock things over. Run and hide and then peek out and romp some more.

Another challenge

As if my life isn't hard enough right now, I took in a stray. Temporarily, I say! Temporarily. Right? Right!

I left work yesterday. It is very difficult pulling out onto the major highway near my office. I turn left onto a two lane street and the cars are nonstop. As I waited and mumbled under my breath for a break in traffic (preferably both lanes at the same time) I was very angry because to my right all traffic seemed to be stopped.

What is the problem?! Then I saw him. A beautiful reddish boxer leaping out of the highway into a yard and running behind a house. I used to live over there. I thought "People! Do you know that your dog is running loose?!"

The traffic continued. I figured I was already going to be late. I had company coming to see the pups, but I couldn't help but worry about the boxer.

Since I used to live around the area where he ran, I decided to drive the alley ways. There he was just nosing around a bag of garbage. I thought maybe that is where he lived. Nobody was around. I stopped my car and the sweetest dog I have ever encountered ran up to me, dropped on the ground and started rolling around on his back in a playful manner.

I crouched down to cautiously pet him and rub his tummy. "Where do you belong?" I asked him in a soothing voice. He was so happy to see me. I got up and looked around. Nobody. I opened my car door and he jumped right up into the back seat. I drove around asking everyone who happened to be standing outside if they knew where he lived. Nothing.

I went behind the alley ways at work. Nothing. I had no choice but to take him home. He had no collar. He was panting as if he had run a great distance.

My daughter said "He is ugly!" when she first saw him. I didn't think so. My sister came with her grandson. We were very careful. Of course the grandson paid no attention to the pups or Sable (the coffee table) and wanted only the new dog. I was as nervous as a cat on a hot tin roof.

There were no incidents. The boxer could not have been friendlier. He does have a shrill bark to him and he developed a rash on his neck where Sable's choker chain rubbed it, but he is very sweet. And very slobbery. We have another leash for him that does not irritate. I am afraid to take him out without a leash, but he runs right back inside the house with the rest of my clan.

I was going to post at all our local radio stations and stores but my daughter told me to wait and let someone report him or just post "Found Boxer." She said let them tell the details of what he looks like because someone will say he is theirs and then turn around and sell him and the real owner will never get him back.

Huh. I thought. How does she know this stuff? She watched a dog show where handlers warned of this happening. Slimy, filthy dirt bags who would do this.

He has been very well taken care of. He is clean. He is well-fed (not over fed). He had his tail docked (my daughter said recently). He is house broken and very mannerly. He does not bark in the house. He was playing with the pups until he became irritated with them and tried to get away from them. He wants to play with the cats but he is very cautious of them. I was so glad he didn't chase them or torment them. He and Sable could care less about one another. He is probably the most mild mannered pet I have seen in a long time.

He didn't seem to know what toys were or rawhide chews. Once he figured out the rawhide chew he was in heaven. He walked on a leash very well. He did pull me a little while trying to investigate our yard. He did not devour his food. He is very noisy when he drinks water, we laugh.

Oh, and sleeping arrangements? Of course I was worried about him. My daughter took the pups into her room with her. I couldn't leave him out with the cats. Sable was no help. I put a rug on the floor of my bedroom. Did he stay there? Nope. He is a big bed hog and he snores.

I will be sorry to see him go. Maybe.

Dressage

No, I know that (dressage) isn't the correct term for this class of horse show, I was referring to the gentleman at the lead. He was quite the looker, most of the others were dressed in Western flash, you know rhinestones and neon silk shirts. If I remember correctly, this duo (trio?) pulled a second place in this event.

The fair (and it's greasy food) is a distant memory. I am catching up on my sleep (one night I think I slept nine hours - almost a record for me). My feet are still hurting. As soon as I get paid this Friday I am off to buy new shoes for work, play and walking. They have to tie on the top is what the doctor says. Wear a shoe that does not let the foot separate from the shoe bottom when you walk (flip flops are horrible!). I despise flip flops. In a couple of weeks I will take my new shoes and have the doctor slip the insert into them and cut it to fit my shoe I will wear the most. I guess that would be my work shoe.

After that is taken care of I have a few more medical procedures. I am hoping that the main one does not require a hospital stay. It is just minor and will hopefully make my life easier. I keep telling folks by Halloween I should be feeling much better. Maybe I'll even be able to do more yard work by then. I hated letting that go this summer. When I have the pups outside, I'll pull weeds and trim some around my Hosta. My moon flowers are doing so well in front of the patio, I am going to keep the big set of them there and let them take over as much as they want. The smell in the air at night is heavenly. It covers up what the pups are doing. Ha Ha!

The pups had their second set of boosters yesterday. They are 8 and 8.5 lbs, now. (When we first took them in mid-July they were 2.25 and 2.50 lbs). They are getting taller, leaner and can run like little rockets. We may have over-watered them.

Work is going well. Schools are starting back up and techs are anxious to get their networks started out on the right foot. The filter is a big part of that and I am busy making up "how to" documentation. I really enjoy doing that. Step by step instructions with pictures.

I talked to an old friend this evening. I've not seen her since the spring. She has 14 cats, only 2 inside. She thinks some dog is getting the baby kittens. I could not let that happen. For starters I'd be getting a slew of them fixed. The ones I couldn't get fixed, I'd be taking to a shelter. But, she was raised different out in the country.

Her grandson started 4th grade today and she had to tell me all about it. Her older granddaughter is out west and is in dire straits. Seems she is pregnant with her boyfriend's baby. He happens to be married and is staying with his wife. She (my friend's granddaughter) was staying with his sisters, but they kicked her out. Now she is staying with one of her boyfriend's buddies. Yikes. My friend is so angry and upset with her. She won't listen to reason.

On the movie front, we watched "Identity" last week. It was a thriller. Remember "And Then There Were None" by Agatha Christie? Or it's other name "Ten Little Indians"? It kind of reminds you of that story. It has John Cusak so it was great in my book.

Fair weather

This little girl is pretty in pink

I went to my home town county fair yesterday and my daughter, myself, 3 sisters, one nephew, one niece and two toddlers stayed over night in one small camper. Today was the "beautiful baby" contest. I am not big on this type of exploitation, but I was happy to take some pictures. My grand niece pulled first place in her birth year, and pulled 3rd place in costume. She played Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. The girl above is my grand niece's first cousin on the "other" side. Other being "not my family side". Their grandfather on the other side is the fair board president. Yikes.

There is high tension and rivalry in this family already.

I really love that white blond hair.

And the weather was anything but fair. It rained buckets. Fortunately the event was held inside a pavilion where we were all covered.

I am severely sleep-deprived. Not only from the cramped quarters but from laughing so hard because we realized that my sisters and I have not all stayed in the same close quarters in over 40 years. We joked that we were all much smaller back then. My head is pounding.

Lame

Has it really been since Monday that I posted? I have no idea what I have been doing, I have not been all that busy. (Not in the evenings, anyway). The migraine monkey started yesterday afternoon. Well, I didn't realize it was that until I woke up and the headache was STILL there. With the storms coming through, I thought maybe it was just a sinus headache. It kept waking me up through the night with it's sharp pain inside the eyeballs. I chose to ignore it. I should have known. The headache was not responding to OTC medicine.

This morning I thought I was going to be sick. I stumbled around getting the pups outside, feeding the cats. Coffee was the last thought on my list. That is another sign. Not wanting coffee first thing in the morning. I grabbed an Imitrex and quickly swallowed it. I tried to drink a dose of alka-seltzer. I lay back down making the room as dark as possible. It was 5:30 so that wasn't too difficult. The pups settled down beside me and we drifted off for an hour.

I woke up and realized I was not going to make it into work today. I felt like a limp washrag. I am just now able to get some coffee in me. I know that I need to eat something, but it has to be toast. I cannot stomach anything else. I am trying to cut way back on bread, but that is what I crave. It is my comfort food. Growing up it is what I had for breakfast every morning. Hot buttered toast dipped in coffee. I think my Dad gave me coffee with cream and sugar when I was nine or so. I didn't drink it - maybe just that once. I did dip toast in it, though. For years.

I have a busy week-end so I figure I will stay home the remainder of the day and just rest. Rest. Rest. Mmmm. Sounds good.

Coming along

I like how this photo looks like Sable is watching over the pups.

Just a week or so ago I swear she tried to lead them astray and lose them. I caught her and stopped them all. She is even playing with them now. They have stopped irritating her so much (not completely) but they are getting better and she is getting more tolerant.

I am still coping with a lot this summer, but the puppies are a welcome distraction. (I could only think of extraction there for a minute!). They are going through that thieving stage where they will run up (or into your room) and grab something, anything and run away with it. Then the chase is on. They love it. A sock that didn't make it into the clothes basket. A napkin that falls on the floor. It is all fair game to them. If I don't get the napkin it gets shredded into a million little pieces. The sock also gets grabbed quickly, I am not sure what damage they can do to it.

They have a dozen little toys and though they do play with them from time to time, they get tired of them and look for something new to chew. Shoes are a big favorite. I keep mine in the kitchen which is still off limits to the pups. That is where we feed the cats and Sable and these little rat scavengers will eat every last crumb found in the cat's dishes or Sable's. Not their food mind you, they grab at it and then leave it sit. But forbidden fruit, eh?

I am trying to get a little organized in paperwork this week-end. It is much too warm to work outside. The interesting thing about being a pack rat is I can tell you what my electric bill was years ago. I keep my old check registers. It fascinates me to read over them, but it is also a huge time waster.

I have not finished Q&A yet, and I picked up some books on watercolor painting and digital art. I have not carved out much time to read this week-end. Oh, and the Cloris Leachman biography. I love to read biographies. As do most bloggers.

My daughter is getting excited about going to the University here in town. She wants all new clothes and a new haircut. All those years (between 6 and 15) when she did not care about clothes are long gone. It is Tommy Hilfiger, Abercrombie, and Lucky's now. I kept telling myself way back then 'remember how cheap this shopping is, because soon enough it will be the other way around' and that is exactly what has happened. Oh, well. She could have wanted the expensive brands all along, so I figure I lucked out.

She tried so hard to find a job. There are times (as any parent knows) when I have to bite my tongue. When she applies for jobs, she kind of reaches for the stars. I have to be careful about what I say because I get the backlash "See?! You want me to find a job, but you knock down every idea I have!!!" Ouch. So, I let her call and ask questions. She calls. She finds out that to be this or that you have to have certain qualifications. It is hard to sit and listen to this, but it is an important (growing) stage in a young adult life.

Recently she tried for work as a maid. Now, this in itself is very comical. I have nagged her to no end to help me clean up around the house. We all know where that gets us with most teens. I had to smile to myself. In a motel? My first instinct was "Do you know how gross that could be?!" But, I bit my tongue. So, let her find out. It didn't pan out. Not yet, anyway. It is a job I would never want to have. She still is adamant about not working around food, but she may be bending a little there.

So, we are marching through August. The dog days of summer. I am still limping (it gets really old), but it takes time to get appointments to get the insert made. I figure maybe by the end of September or at least October I may be feeling much better. That would be okay with me because October has always been one of my favorite months (if not my very favorite). I do like September, though. I love the changing of the leaves. I like a little cooler weather. I have to find my camera battery and take more pictures!

A long August

My niece in San Diego last month

I had the family reunion on the 2nd of this month. Since then this month has not been much fun for me. I have had five doctor appointments, with two more to go this month. I have had two car appointments (my car and my daughter's car), I have had jury duty twice, two college scheduling sessions, and have one dentist appointment and one veterinarian appointment yet this month.

In July, I had four doctor appointments, and two veterinarian appointments.

In September (so far) I am looking at five doctor appointments (one a mammogram, yay!) and a dentist appointment for my daughter.

But, today was the worst. I had a cystoscopy. If you ever had one of these, you would remember it. It is much more painful for men, I suppose. Still, it hurt like the dickens. I am still having pity pains.

I am not seriously ill. Not in any way. One is a procedure I am finally dealing with, the other is my foot and the others are routine. Everything is just falling in this 60 day time span.

Sprinkle in a migraine about once a month and I am very chummy with pain these days. My foot is currently soaking in Epsom salts. The water has long gone cold. Chong tried to drink out of it, I stopped him. Silly pup.

And, they threw in a tetanus shot for good measure! It is swelled up and as sore as a bad bruise. Scientology and their belief of keeping doctors and medicines out of their life might be looking pretty good to me right now. (Just kidding!)

A Personal Choice

I am a member of Neflix. One of the features of this service is that they recommend movies for you based on the movies you have watched and rated. You go through the list periodically at your leisure and rate the movies from the following five choices: "Loved it, Liked it a lot, Liked it, Didn't like it, to Hated it". Then, they give you a list of movies they think you will like.

One that was recommended for me was: Whose Life Is It Anyway? with Richard Dreyfuss. It had me in tears in certain parts of the movie. I read up on it and it was said that Mr. Dreyfuss did not remember any part of making the movie because of his drug addiction. Nothing? A big plus was Christine Lahti. She is one of my favorite actresses.

The movie is about an artist who became a quadriplegic from a vehicle accident and faced with a life of nothing he wants to be released from the hospital to die.

I also borrowed the book Q & A from the library. This is the book that Slumdog Millionaire is based on. Between the movie and the book I am running pups out into the wet grass to do their business. It was a long hot afternoon at work sitting in a wiring closet on the 3rd floor of a school with the air conditioner broke. Sweat rolling down my face and neck. I was miserable.

I came home to air conditioning and sat in front of a fan until my brain cooled down enough to be able to comprehend my reading or the movie. It was close to turning into mush in that sweltering closet. I'm talking so sticky that my finger could not move the cursor with the touch pad. I was like "Are you kidding me?"

Needless to say I did only the bare minimum that needed to be done to get this school up and working again. The tech person had many more questions and I could have shown him another 5 neat tricks to help him troubleshoot his network, but I wanted out of there as soon as I could get away. I hate working like that. Especially when I am not used to it.

At my doctor appointment's this morning the doctor told the nurse to add another test to the blood work that was taken this morning. The test? To see if I was menopausal. Yeah. It was a great day!

Playground puddles

The kids at the reunion didn't care if there were puddles of rain at the bottom of the sliding board. They were here to party!

Getting back to normal

Pups at about 11 weeks

Yep. We are thinking rat terrier. This picture shows one that looks just like our little buggers. Still can't comprehend how somebody can drop off 4 pups that look this cute, this sweet and leave them out in the elements with slim chance of survival. What would it have taken to drop them off at a humane society or a shelter? Since I have never dropped off (only picked up) maybe they beat the owners or something. I don't know. I need to shelve these torturous wondering thoughts before I let them ruin my day.

They are doing very well in the potty-training department. My daughter has really worked hard with this. We let a neighbor clip their toenails yesterday and Cheech bled on one. My daughter was very upset (as Cheech is her baby, Chong tends to favor me). Afterwards my daughter said we are getting our own clippers and she is going to clip from now on. It all worked out though, because Chong threw up on the neighbor. She was swinging him on her porch swing. Really though, the neighbor lady felt horrible about Cheech's toenail. She has a small poodle of her own. She loves little dogs.

Cheech and Chong met about 10 new people this week. Today I am headed back to my sister's house for dinner. Some of our luggage was left in her car after the reunion trip and I need to retrieve it. She wants me to bring the pups again so her grandson can see them. The pups will get more socializing done this way. I read online that it is important to get them exposed to at least 100 people while they are little so that they have a healthy social demeanor in their adult life. It isn't very hard to do, as everybody wants to see baby puppies.

Still exhausted and recovering from the reunion. Jury duty is a thing of the past. The lady in the clerk's office said that if I get called again within the next 5 years, just to tell them I served in July 2009 and I won't have to serve until the 5 years is up. Unless, of course, I want to. Don't see that happening, but you never know.

We watched Slumdog Millionaire last night. This movie was hard for me to watch. For starters I get confused as to which boy was which when they were young and growing up. Is that Jamal or his older brother? And, why did the older brother turn so mean and rotten? There is a book (Q & A). I'll try to get the time to read it. I get frustrated by the violence. I know and understand that it is a fact of life, but some of the choices the characters make irritate me to no end. I sigh and tell myself that I do not walk in their shoes.

Even more confusing was the closed-captioning in English to let us know what they were saying in Hindu. It was super tiny and I had a hard time reading it so I was lost a little bit. I followed the story line the best that I could. Why was their Mother killed? Maybe the book will have more detail. The other book Six Suspects does not sound too bad, either.

We missed the Italian festival and a car show in town this week-end. I thought about it, but both my daughter and I are running low on energy. I had a sore throat and an ear ache yesterday (still could be the air conditioner), lower back pain and general malaise. One good thing, my heel didn't hurt as much as the previous weeks. I see the insert office (for my foot) on the 20th, everything takes time. My August is still full of Dr. appointments. I can see a little clearing though beginning in September.

edit: reading the excerpts from this author's books, I can see I am really going to enjoy them. I like his writing style very much.

Let's cut the air conditioner

I dreamt that it snowed. In August! I remember getting my camera and telling my daughter, "Never in my 49 years have I seen snow in August! I wish my Mom were here so I could call her and see if she has seen snow in August!"

Yep. Time to cut back on the air conditioning.

My crew

My crew filling up water balloons at the reunion. My daughter is on the left. My niece (who lived with us for 5 years and my nephew - both I consider mine at heart). This was when the weather was still cloudy and the rain had not moved completely out of the area. It became very humid and warm and the water balloons were put to great use.

I am still extremely tired and still in some foot pain. The orthopedic surgeon has decided it IS plantar fasciitis and I will have a custom-made insert made that will cover the entire foot and I will have one for the right side for balance. The plantar fasciitis has created a spur to form on the bottom of my heel.

No sympathy for this devil

Thornton-gets-40-years

Success!

I circled my head in red. We had 125 show up for our first annual reunion. Not all are pictured because some just would not co-operate. The day started out pouring down the rain in torrents. It ended up humid and muggy and hot!

We ran behind in time. We skipped the adult games altogether. Folks were more interested in the auction and the 50/50 drawing.

I discovered that I was pretty good at auctioning items. I have a big mouth and can be very friendly after working the crowd for a couple of hours. We did a silent auction, but the few last items I actually auctioned off. Much more money can be made this way because I can really milk it.

On a more serious note, I had a very disturbing close call at jury duty today.

The case was dismissed. The defendant chose to take 40 years in prison w/out parole. The stories listed here do not tell of his dastardly deeds, but as the judge was telling us the story he almost began to cry. The girls were 7 and 8 years of age. They were sisters and they were raped. He didn't go into detail. He said to just be thankful that we didn't have to sit through this trial and I am. So very, very thankful.

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A bitten dorsal fin

This is another shot from my nephew's collection. I am not posting my own because I am on a new computer. Well, new to the household. I am setting up a spare PC to use in case mine fails. It was purchased in 2003 and Dell will not issue a warranty for it anymore. Yes, I purchase the extended warranty on my computers. Yes, I work on computers. I know what can happen and I know that I don't want that much down time when the hardware fails.

So, on this new computer I have Internet access, but no personal pictures. But, check out the dorsal fins on that shark. I asked my nephew about it and he said he hadn't noticed. Since he posted 92 photos from Sea World, he was probably just clicking and uploading. He said he would look at the photo and get back to me.

At the reunion motel we will have plenty of devices with Internet access. Most of the younger crew's cell phones are equipped with all the bells and whistles. Service may be tricky in the hills, though. My daughter is taking her new laptop. She gets bored easily at these gatherings. Still, it is great because I am the type of person who has to know "right now!" and she looks stuff up for me in a flash.

When somebody is talking about a movie and they say "Who was that guy who played so-and-so?" I run and look it up. The other day my sister sent me an e-mail asking me "What was the name of that movie where the skinny girl dies in the end?" What?! I laughed and replied exactly that: "What?!" I mean, can she give me a little more information? I guess we were talking about a certain movie one day, but I'll be darned if I can think of what she means. This morning I woke up and thought "Passengers" with Jane Hathaway. Maybe that is the one she is thinking of. If you have not seen it yet, I don't want to spoil it - but she does NOT die at the "end" of the movie.

I'll be seeing her today and riding in the car with her to WV so I can find out if that is the one she is thinking of. Speaking of movies, I watched "The Life of David Gale" from my Netflix choices. Not my favorite movie, but it was a mystery.

I have to go and roll my cheese balls into the chopped walnuts, now. About everything else is done and ready to roll. Ah, I need to put my name on my lawn chairs. We were laughing because we told folks not to put just "insert our last name here" on their stuff because ALL of us just about have the same last name! LOL!

Update on the pooches: they are growing like a weed. Their legs are double the length as when we first brought them home. No more pot bellies, especially Chong. He is getting lean and lank. I have to remember to take my camera outside to take a small video of him running. Cheech still does the little hop and run (he is a bit bow legged) but Chong runs full tilt. His ears are flat back against his head and he is off and running like a rocket. We are pretty sure they are rat terriers, now. Check out the picture at this site of the 5-week old pup. Ours look(ed) exactly like that shortly after we obtained them. Adorable.

Family Fun

Photo courtesy of my nephew (1977) from San D!ego's TorrÉy P!nes State Reserve.

This is a family week-end for me. First I want to say that I am extremely blessed with family. Gobs of family. My Mom was an only child and she had 8 children. I was the eighth. I thanked her one time for "not stopping". She thought that was hilarious. It's true. After me she began sleeping on the couch. I always tell folks she stopped at perfection. My siblings laugh and say "Yeah, right!"

When I was little, folks would ask me "Are you Catholic?" I always just said "No" and wondered what to say next. Awkward silence. Ooookay. Now days if somebody asks me that I will say "No" and have a twinkle in my eye, a big smile and maybe wink at them. LOL!

We are filling up 10 rooms this week-end at a motel in WV Saturday night and a couple of rooms on Sunday night.

My niece and nephew are in San D!ego for vacation (coming back today) and then will join us this week-end. They had wonderful weather. I was so disappointed when they closed the Sea World in Ohio. It was such a shame. I didn't like it when I was younger because next door was an amusement park and that is where I spent my time. The fishes were boring to me. But, once I had my daughter and my niece (who loves sea critters) Sea World was a great treat for us. We went every year until they closed down. Maybe it was just too cold up here to keep it comfortable for the critters, I don't know.

But, back to happier things. My family. The only one who will not be present is my sister that is still in prison in Marysville. (The Mom of the two out in San D!ego). Ah, well. She usually only ruins family gatherings anyway. We keep hoping for change. I typed up a letter for her yesterday where she is asking the judge to re-consider her release for the fall. Fingers crossed. We used to like it when she was put away because of the gatherings being ruined. It may sound cruel to some folks, but you have to realize that we have been putting up with this for about 30 years, now.

Here's hoping that your week-end is blessed and fun-filled, too!

It is not plantar fasciitis

One of the photos on the web that helped me decide to see the doctor. The little purple branched 4-fingers is where I have my pain. The fluorescent yellow/green is where I would always feel my plantar fasciitis.

Well, the photo, research and I was really tired of the pain pushed me to call. 45 days. It had gone on long enough. At first I believed it to be plantar fasciitis. A few weeks ago I began to suspect that perhaps there was something more to this pain.

I had plantar fasciitis before and this was turning out to last a lot longer and I began to get shooting pains into the heel even while resting. And that burning feeling was just not usual for plantar fasciitis. To me that sounded like nerve damage so I began to investigate on the web.

I made an appointment with my dr. They got me in that day. This was good because my schedule is pretty tight these days, especially with jury duty hanging over your head. When I called for an appointment I was thinking to myself " Jury duty could be tomorrow, won't know until after 5 p.m." How do you tell a dr.'s office I may or may not be able to make your appointment? When you are calling in pain to get in a.s.a.p.? I'm sure they would understand, but I didn't need to worry.

Building a relationship with your doctor and staff is very important. I did not fully realize this before because I didn't need doctors when I was younger. I've been darn lucky.

Anyway, she diagnosed Tarsal tunnel syndrome. I see an orthopedic surgeon next week. Wow. They actually picked one of the only free days I had on my August calendar. LOL! Not really, but it feels that way sometimes. It is pretty full.

I am resting the foot as much as possible. Taking ibuprofen when I feel that I need to and will be applying ice packs as I can. No jury duty until Tuesday (and I may not even have to go then, I call the evening before for further instructions). So, that leaves me free for the reunion! I took today and tomorrow as vacation days and next Monday. Tuesday also, if I don't have jury duty. I see the surgeon on Wednesday. Don't let that word fool you. I won't be having surgery. Not anytime soon. I will try everything before I take that step. Pun intended!

They are growing

By leaps and bounds. This photo does not show how long Chong's legs have become. He runs so fast and if I lay on the ground he runs either far away from me or he is right on top of the camera, so there are no photos today of his legs.

Here is how I spent my first day at jury duty (written at noon):

Jury duty - first day

I thought I was getting there early. There must have been 40 people seated in the hard church pew benches before me. It was hot outside. I parked 6 blocks away in the church designated lot.

My foot hurt before I began. I walked up a flight of steps. My heel was pounding. My head was too.

The hard church pews were full. About 10 people were standing around. I walked over to the window. They said to have a seat and wait. Reminded me of the old joke "Pull up the floor and sit down."

I saw a lunch room with empty chairs. "Can we grab chairs out of there?" "Yes."

I grabbed one, and a couple of other folks did too. I sat down. Sigh.

We waited there about 30 minutes when a gentlemen told us to get in line and sign in.

We did.

Then we were taken downstairs outside to another building, went through a security check where almost every person was setting off the alarm. I breezed through, but the poor officer that had to go through the fifty compartments of my purse was not pleased.

I walked up three long flights of steps. By this time my foot was really hurting and my head had begun to ache.

At the top, I found a seat on a hard church pew bench. I took out my book. They had recommended bringing reading material. I could not look up as the lights were far too bright. I thought I might be sick but nobody had mentioned to us where the restrooms were.

People kept coming out of doors and looking around for somebody that they never seemed to be able to find.

The would call names and nobody would get up. Did they have the correct list?

I finally took a migraine medicine tablet, drinking from a water fountain next to me.

After 40 long minutes, we were ushered into a court room. There stood a gentleman with a yellow suit and a pink tie. No lie. Well, okay the suit was kind of tan color, but it was really a yellowish tan.

The gentleman introduced himself as a judge, apologized but said the case had been demoted to a misdemeanor this morning and our services would not be needed. He did however, go through a complete definition of what a juror is and what their responsibilities are.

He was very nice and the information he gave us was very good and quite interesting.

The case was a customer had written a check for services in the amount of $2500.00. The check bounced. He was being charged for passing a bad check and for receiving stolen goods (in this case - labor services).

The judge told us to go home and check back on the date that was given to us on a little piece of paper when we got our jurors badges. We turned in our badges and were free to go home.

I stopped back in to the original office to get my work slip signed and I will call back on Wednesday night to see if I am to report Thursday for duty.

Wow. Now my headache is a dull ache, I am hoping the ibuprofen I just swallowed will alleviate it. I do not do well having my routine upset and today was definitely out of my normal routine.

I'll get some good lunch food into me and take it easy the rest of the day. I am in the cool air conditioning and the chicken (one of my favorites) is steaming along nicely. Yum. I can smell it.

~ Back to 10:00 p.m. time.

We watched "Role Models" tonight. We chose the uncut version instead of the theatrical one. So, it was very raunchy. But there were also parts where we laughed out loud. It did have it's moments even though it was a little bit too raunchy for me. It was worth it to see the four main characters dress up as the Kiss band, with little Bobb'e in Demon make-up.

Goat head

Another species from the fair. Just popping in here to say "hello". I'm not much in the mood to write anything. In pain. Tried soaking my feet in Epsom salts tonight. It took the burn away, but it has all come roaring back after doing a few household chores. Ugh.

Have jury duty tomorrow (or will be interviewed for selection). We shall see.

If things go my way, I will be off Thursday and Friday in time to prepare my food contribution for the reunion.

And if things REALLY go my way, I will have Monday and Tuesday off to recuperate.

Pig pots

I saw these pots right outside the pig barn

I thought they were cute. And appropriate. It has been a very busy July for me and my family. I have done a lot of walking (both at work and around the area). A lot of get-togethers. My heel is beyond hurting today. I will take more ibuprofen but have come to accept the fact that I am going to have to consult my doctor. Drat.

I was hoping it would go away but since I won't stay off of it, I cannot expect it to heal. I need somebody to heel the heal. Heh, heh. I am off and walking again today. I said that I would make a flower arrangement for the auction at the reunion and I am off to Pat Catan's to pick up some new material. My daughter has ALWAYS wanted to take puppies into the pet center so we plan to do that today, too. I know. Not good for my foot but I promise to stay off of it tomorrow. No, scratch that. Grass needs mowed.

I called last night to see if I need to show up for jury duty Monday morning. Nope. I have to call again Monday night to see if I show up for Tuesday. What an ordeal. This is going to put a bit of a crimp into my long week-end out of state for the reunion. I'll have to hitch a ride with my brother back to Ohio if I need to show up for jury duty on Monday the 3rd. I got a 2 week stint. Great. My first call to civic duty and it lasts two weeks and surrounds perhaps the second biggest week-end of my summer. Double drat. I'll need to squeeze the doctor in there one day if I can.

I am not one to call her (my doctor) and beg for pain pills. I'd rather ride it out and get to the root of the problem, get it fixed and get on with my life. Especially after witnessing what pain medication can do to a person (co-worker). She went to a doctor in Columbus yesterday to see if she qualifies for disability. I certainly hope so.

Hot and boring

The pig looked hot. The pig looked bored. I felt bad for a lot of the animals. So many had fans on them. The 4-H members freeze water in big 2-liter bottles and put them in the rabbit cages to help to cool them down.

The puppies are growing fast and furious. They are full of mischief. Whoops a big clap of thunder just sent them scurrying to bury their heads in the pillows. I nearly jumped out of my chair. It has begun to rain here.

Showing

My grand niece is three. To properly show the cow, the shower must keep their eyes facing the judge (in the white shirt in the middle) and most showers will walk backwards.

Eye see you

One of the many animal species that I took photos of at the Carroll County Fair today.

I have many, many more photos, but my head hurts (too much sun) and my feet hurt (too much walking) and my face hurts (too much laughing). I am taking 2 ibuprofen, taking out the garbage and going to bed!

Moonflowers are blooming

It is difficult to explain the fragrance of these beautiful flowers. It drifts across the yard. If you are outside in the evening you can catch a faint whiff of something so clean, so fresh and fragrant and they are hard to miss.

The ones on the side of the house have completely disappeared (I guess I cut them back before they seeded) but I have a new spurt of them in the front of my patio. Rather hardy stock.

I didn't even know they existed until I moved into this house and they began to bloom late in the summer of 2002. They are just "wow". They bloom at night and on very cloudy days. Their bloom lasts about one 24 hour period. Then they droop and fall off like big, used, cloth dinner napkins.

My Paternal Grandmother

Holding her birthday cake

Not certain what year. I think the back of the photograph said 86th? Maybe. She went blind long before I was born. She died when I was eight. I vaguely remember having to stand at her knee and letting her feel my face and hair. It wasn't horrible or creepy. Just something I remember.

She was a big tobacco chewer. It was kind of gross with her being blind and all. She usually did not make it to the Maxwell House coffee can that was their designated spittoon. My Mom made sure to warn us kids about getting between the chewers and the cans. I think that is why we stayed outside so much when we went there to visit. Well, that and we were very active kids and it was always summertime when we went there.

Still gearing up for the reunion. This is all descendants of this lady and my paternal grandfather. We are hoping that at least 50 show. I know that some live far away and some are too old to travel. We just have to start somewhere and get this reunion thing going.

Puppies are doing well. Full of energy and mischief. Medicine is running it's course. I am supposed to give my daughter a break this week-end but wouldn't you know her new laptop came today (for college) and she won't leave the house. She needs a break away from the babies. I heard her on the phone with her beau. She is headed out soon.

Hurry, here they come

Cheech (on the left) and Not Chong run towards me

I've mentioned before my Canon has a serious delay while it auto-focuses on the subject. This camera is definitely meant for still life photos. This is about the only picture I could capture that actually created an image of these little hoodlums before they reached me and the little black box that they are so curious about.

The name? My daughter does not like the name Chong. So she calls him "Not Chong". It does cause a bit of confusion sometimes.

Me outside with the pups.

I holler inside to my daughter "One of them pooped!"

Daughter "Which one?"

Me "Not Chong!"

Daughter "Cheech?"

Me "No, Not Chong!"

Daughter "Which puppy pooped first?"

Me "Not Chong!"

Yeah. It's a menagerie around here.

Cheech makes a stand

My daughter is tiring of the adorable puppies. She is finding out they are a lot of work. I took them outside when I got up this morning. Sitting there in the cool morning air, I considered running back inside to feed the cats who could not figure out why I was taking care of the needs of these two rats before them.

I am so glad I didn't leave the puppies for even one second. As I sat there in the quiet, out of the blue trots a golden fox right up my back alley. A fox! I was close enough to know that is what I was seeing. The fox was on a mission. It was getting the heck out of Dodge. As if he had stayed too long after the party and was headed home.

Introducing.....

Cheech and Chong

My daughter said "No, we are not naming them Cheech and Chong." She wants to name the two boys Turner and Hooch or Inky and Dinky. I didn't tell her until she looked into the tote and saw them. I told her I was going to pick up my sister's dog to watch her and she decided not to go with me. I tried. She is very excited to say the least.

Somebody dropped them off. I can't believe it.

That is Sable's big head checking them out. I am not certain if she is trying to mother them or eat them. She had a lot of slobber while examining them. I was a bit worried for them, but so far so good. They adore her of course.

I'm going to need a big one of these...

...upside the head, after today. I said "Yes" about 4 days ago. I was given time to think about it and I have not changed my mind. I am going this afternoon to pick up something(s) and will post pictures later. Hurry, somebody shoot me now.

The bumblebee

Taken five minutes ago outside.

A bee gathers pollen from my fast fading orange flowers. Too bad I didn't have fuchsia flowers. Then I can make up a tongue twister. A firefly flits by my fast fading fuchsia flowers from afar. I have not been near as busy as this bee. I mowed last week and since then my foot really took a turn for the worse. I am still dealing with pain and a very uncomfortable burning feeling. Just so you know, Solarcaine does nothing for this type of burn. Hey, I was desperate and it was sitting out because my daughter got a sunburn.

She went to her first outdoor concert yesterday. Mom warned, advised and nagged. It fell on deaf ears. Daughter has learned her lesson. She said "Never again!"

I watched Seven Pounds. I liked the movie. I knew pretty much what it was about, somebody filled me in. I like a lot of movies that Barry Pepper has been in, I just find it difficult to look at him. He makes me uncomfortable. As does Willem Dafoe. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I just don't like looking at them. They creep me out. After looking at photos of both of them, I think it is the eyes and the mouth. They are similar on each man. I just shivered.

A week or two ago, I watched Tell No One. It was French with English sub titles. It piqued my interest. A romantic mystery with a bit of thriller added to it. My Netflix list is pretty long. I still only get one movie at a time and that suits me fine. Tell No One was in the Instant list so I was able to watch it whenever I wanted to and on my computer.

I am hoping I get to mow tomorrow. Heel be damned. The nest is gone. My brother called and told me he would stop down one evening and take care of it for me. I was sitting here the other evening and I thought to myself 'I have the Hot Shot'. I got it out and the first blast flattened the nest against the wall of the porch. I blasted again. Mind you, one foot was in my living room and I was ready with my front door as a shield. I hopped inside and watched out the window. I actually felt bad for them. Most of them dropped dead on the cement porch below but a dozen or so flitted around the pulverized nest for an hour or two. They can't land, they will also die.

My brother did stop the next morning and scraped it off the wall for me. Yuck.

Speaking of yuck, this story causes my throat to burn with the wretched taste of bile.

Out on the porch

My swinging paternal grandmother and aunt sitting on their front porch. Circa 1943.

Been scanning a lot of old family album pictures in an effort to get ready for the reunion.

It is amazing. I have looked at this album a hundred times and I don't recall most of the pictures. Until you carefully take each one out and scan it (spend some time with it) you don't really take them all in.

I recommend this activity for everybody.

Edit: LOL! Activity being: sitting on the porch with loved ones AND scanning old pictures!

Side view of the blast

Nephew 1977 got a shot of the cannon blasting from the side.

Loud

My nephew 1972 had a friend who brought a cannon to the party. It was sister 1944's house, she is the one who said "Oh, my Lord." I am the one who said "God, I jumped."

More time

A flower from sister 1944's butterfly flower garden.

Less folks at the family get-together means more time to chat with the host and a few others that showed up. Sometimes we get so many folks at these family gatherings it just seems that we don't have time to see and talk to everybody and every now and then you leave feeling like you missed something or didn't accomplish enough mingling.

We had some fireworks set off by nephew 1972. I will post one or two videos in a few days (the smaller ones).

My 1972 nephew's wife made some treats that I have not had before and I loved them. She took the little bent pretzels and smashed them into a semi-soft Hershey's Kiss. Then topped them with an M&M candy. Some she smashed into Hershey's Hugs. Those were my favorites. Of course my 1977 nephew told me today how to make them. He had overheard her telling somebody else and it sounds very easy. I don't even have to open the oven door. Well, perhaps the microwave oven, but I think I can handle that.

I love hot dogs but I don't care if I see another one for a month or two. Blah!