MET FRIENDS FOR BREAKFAST

on Friday as usual.  Then left that restaurant and met friends for lunch.  Sylvia and Jim are in from Illinois for their grandson's graduation, and, Barb and Ben came in from Valley Forge.  I worked with Sylvia and Barb 25 years ago.  Just us 3 ladies in the engineering department with all of those guys.  Sylvia was a school teacher in her before-life and Barb, an English bride, was a secretary.  When the boss was gonna hire Sylvia full time, he hestiated and confessed to Sylvia that he didn't know if we three could co-exist.   Ha, we are still friends. 
So, came home, mowed most of the yard, loaded up Archie, went over to dad's but he was mowing also so I didn't stay long.  Went up to the fruit stand and got strawberries.   THE. TRUCK. WOULD. NOT. START!!!!!!!!  Nothing.  DEAD.  Now what to do, called Sam.  Wife says he just left for Tractor Supply.  Crap.  No use calling dad, he's mowing, remember?  AH, called Cindy and asked her if her brothers were still there fixing HER dead battery in her van.  She replied, "No, they left, but my son Chris is here, I'll send him."  Then I heard her say, "Chris, take my van and go up to ------  Hill, at the fruit stand.  Sharon's truck won't start, it's hot out and she's got Archie."  When I hung up, I laughed out loud.  Archie sure has a following.  Anyhow, he showed up, jump-started it and we came home.  I backed it down into the yard, so I could jump it to go to the garage on Monday, but, it has started with no problem at least 3 times.

Saturday, cleaned house and futtzed around.  It's getting too %^&* hot to finish my projects out doors.  Sue called and invited Archie and I over to the farm today.  Gotta get ready, everyone have a safe and enjoyable Memorial Day.  Remember....Freedom isn't free.  GOD Bless Our Troops, here and abroad, past and present, now and forever.

Later..............

SAD NEWS....

from my friend Trudy last night.  She called about 7:30 and I could tell right away it was not a social call.  She lost her dog on Friday, a dobie named Fancy.  The dog was 11 1/2, which is old for a dobe.  They usually leave us around 8, and are susceptable to heart problems.  Trudy came home and found her on the kitchen floor so she's guessing it was her heart.  Although there were no signs of her slowing down or having problems.  The really sad thing is this is the last connection to her late husband, Rick, and Friday was their aniversary.  Go figure.  Then her friend Phillip called to tell her that a very good friend in Vermont, Henry, who was 85, had passed.  She and Phillip had visited them last September and stayed with Henry and his wife.  They are master gardeners and still take care of their farm.  Trudy then had to tell him about Fancy, to which he replied, "I'm coming home."  Such a sweet guy.  I hope she gets another dog, but, with the economy the way it is, and she is living pretty much on a widow's pension as her unemployment has run out, the cost of keeping animals has to be considered.  She still has her cats, I think there's 9.  But, that's not the same as having a dog.  I told her if she needs a dog fix, come see me.

Gotta get busy, clean house and throw the wash in the dryer.  Even tho it's nice and sunny, I don't like hanging wash out on Sunday.

Later....................

HAD A DIFFERENT WEEK........

my friend Cindy, down in the village, went in on Thursday for her surgery.  She has 3 sons, Chris lives in Maryland and couldn't get off work.  The other 2, Bobby and Frankie, live out in the Pittsburgh area.  Frankie drove in and took his mom, stayed the night at her house then brought her home on Friday.  Went up 3 times a day to check on things,  was concerned about the dog in the house.  Cuddles is 17 and blind.  The other 4 dogs are out in the yard.  A passel of cats, 3 new kittens.  Assorted chickens, a duck and a goose.  Gathered 3 eggs the first day.  Cindy said to watch the goose, she'd come after ya.   Didn't have a problem with her, but the chicken didn't like me taking those eggs! 
Was glad her son spent the night because of the wacky neighbor across the road.  At least someone was there.  She has had a couple of her animals poisoned.  Her son Chris and his family are up for the weekend, and, I told her not to be doing things for them.  They can wait on you. 

Friday the Century Spouting guys showed up.  Took the 'Gutter Helmet' off and removed the Grackle's nest with 4 eggs in it.  Then he fixed it so she couldn't build it back.  Although I had to tell him what he first came up with wouldn't work.  So, he did it another way and that will suffice.  Just couldn't throw away those eggs so went up in the barn loft and got a hanging wire basket.  Put the nest in it and wire-tied it to the spouting under the eve, next to where it use to be.  Haven't seen her come back but  hope she does.

Mowed the yard yesterday, today will clean the mower, take the trash and recycle to the township building, maybe wash some windows.  Thursday, worked on cleaning out the barn.  Found one of the benches!!!!  I know there is another one in there somewhere!!!!  Got the old Cub Cadet started, so now I can pull the trailer instead of using the wheelbarrow.   Still need to finish the upper yard, trim some trees so mowing is easier.  Who planted all of these trees...............Oh, yeah, I did.  Can't afford a 'wooded lot'.  Buy a lot, plant trees, wait 20 years.  Gotta go, more coffee awaits.

Later.................

BEAUTIFUL DAY.......

sitting on the front porch, with the dogs, drinking a cuppa, enjoying a day that started out with a THUD.  Not good, something has been hit on the road out front.  All kids are in, must've been the groundhog.  Got up, took the dogs out and sure enuf.  There it was at the end of the driveway.  Crap.  Got a shovel and put it in the meadow for the buzzards.  It was a female, hope the younguns are now old enuf to fend for themselves.  Happy Mothers Day....life sucks sometimes.

On a better note, Fred was down yesterday.  Moved the old kitchen cabinets out of the garage and into the laundry room.  Now have much more storage for canned goods.  It'll be a good time to take stock of what I have and what I need.

Need to get the barn cleaned out and organized now that the cabinets are out.  Dad and I bought a snow blower from his neighbor that needed money.  Now dad wants me to get it out of his barn 'cause he needs the room.    I told him, first I need to make room for it.  That will be a good rainy-day project.

Birds are coming back to my feeders.  I havn't been feeding them for a while, simply because they stopped coming around,  and, the seed just got moldy.  Now they're back.  I love the red-wing black birds.  They come back every spring and nest in the meadow across the road.  I was going to take the bird feeder down that dad made me 'cause the post is looking rotten.  However, when I checked, there was a robin's nest with eggs in it.  Guess it'll have to wait.  Had to call the 'Gutter-Helmet' people to come out and take the birds nest out of the back gutter.  I had asked them to close off under the eve and they ignored me.  Sure enuf, black bird built a nest.  They shoulda listened, eh. 

On a closing note, Happy Mother's Day to all.  Even if it's only furkids, like me.  My mom died in 1998 and I miss her more than ever.  She would've had something to say about the state of affairs we are in, for sure. 

Later................

ON SATURDAY....

I met Sue and Sarah at one of the restaurants in the city.  Sue's friend, Kim, is in from San Francisco for the week to see her sister, Lisa.  She met us for breakfast.  We had a real nice visit and catch-up.  Coming home I noticed the car acting a little funny.  Since it has about 72k on it, I'm thinking...shocks or struts are needing replaced.  Stopped for the mail, none.  Said 'hey' to the post-mistress, MaryAnn, came home.  Parked car, got out, looked at right front tire..............going flat.  Damn!!!!!!!!!!!!  I know just where it happened, right at the top of ---- Hill.  Good thing it was a slow leak.  Funny thing is, on Friday night I had a dream that someone took all of the tires and wheels off of the car and left it in the lower yard on blocks.  Ha!  Anyhow, gotta take it over Sam's and see whats wrong.
Then when I was mowing, I hit the wood stack and all came tumbling down.  Later, that night, I put on my glasses and one of the nose pieces was missing.  OK, that's three now get on with it. 
Later................

Update....

Got the tire fixed, it was the valve, new one was $3, tire back on the car; got the wood re-stacked.  Today, went to the eye doctors and nose pieces replaced.  All is well.

GYPSYS........

were here on Thursday.  Two different ones.  The first guy showed up in the morning, pulled in my driveway and the passenger came to the door, knocked, setting the dogs in a frenzy.  First off, he called me 'sir'.  Wouldn't look me in the eye, showed the business card with a large ASPHALT printed on it.  I couldn't really hear the rest of what he was saying, so I told him I wasn't interested in paving the driveway, I just had it stoned last year.  To which he thanked me for my time and headed back to the truck.  The next 'gypsy' came in the afternoon, offering to sell me steaks and I'd get the chicken and fish free.  Virginia tags on the van!!!  Now, with the price of gas....how in the sam hill can they afford to drive around and sell this meat.  I was getting ready to tell him I was a vegaterian as I had to do that several years ago in order to get rid of the guy.  But this fellow wasn't that bad and when I told him I wasn't interested he said he was sorry for 'setting off the alarms' (the dogs) and left.  The only problem with these 'visitors' (last month, their was a young man in an old beater, pulled in the driveway and came up on the porch; asked me if this was 467 ------ road.  I told him "No, it would be up that way towards the village."  He left, but that's when I noticed there was no pizza dingy thingy on the roof of his car.  Hmmmmm), anyhow, like I said, the only problem is I have to open the door to talk to these goofs.  All three looked pass me at the dogs, but, they are gated off in the kitchen.  I really don't want to put a storm door on as the sun is wicked in the afternoon and would heat up the metal door to the point of warpage of the plastic around the glass.  I guess a wooden screen door will go back on, like before.  At least it will be a barrier.  Or, I suppose I could meet 'em at the door with a gun in my hand.  Ha!!

Later..............

IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE.........

but I'm sitting here on the 3rd of May, with the wood stove burning.  Temp is a balmy 52 outside, but it feels cold and damp.  Well, it IS damp, rained this morning before sun up.  In fact it was a fast-moving thunder storm.  Wasn't very nasty and sounded like it was over at the river.  At least the burning ban is off.  Suppose to rain on and off for the next couple of days, so, I think I'll burn tomorrow, or, maybe today.  Depends on what I get into over at dad's. 

He had his buddy Earl work on the JD620's and they are both running great.  Now he wants to keep one.  Both Farmall H's need their batteries charged and the JD60 needs a new battery.  When that is all taken care of, we can get into other stuff for this auction.

The lady down in the village, Cindy, is going in for an operation.  She told me the Doc will talk to her tomorrow and let her know how they are going to proceed.  She has another cancerous growth on her esophagus and this time they might go in thru the back of her neck.  Anyhow, she has a son in MD, about 30-40 minutes away, who would have to come up and feed her animals.  I live less than a mile up the road and I know she is going to ask me to do it.  6 Dogs, a passel of cats, two chickens, a duck and a goose.  I don't have a problem taking care of the critters, the problem is her goofy neighbor.  He yells at her and walks around her property.  Cusses at the four kids he has who have developmental problems.  My biggest concern is that he would poison the animals when she isn't there.  I'll know more after tomorrow.

Later...................

IT'S STILL ME...............

I just changed the look of the blog, for now.  Might change it again, who knows.  When we lived on the farm, my mom use to rearrange the furniture all of the time, .  She'd get a wild hair and before you know it, all of the rooms were different.  I always made sure I turned on the bedroom light to see if my bed was still where I left it.  I miss that place, never drive pass it as it looks a little sad now.  Most of the places my parents bought and sold have gone down hill after they left.  And, maybe that will be the meadow house's fate when I'm gone.  I hope not.  I told Sue and Sarah to sell everything and the Amish neighbor, Henry, has been salivating over this place for years.  The Amish are buying up all of the places around here.  They didn't use to bother with just houses, they wanted farms.  But  not now, I guess when you have such a large family of 10 or more kids, you gotta stick-em some where.  And, if they don't put family in these houses, they rent them out, charging terrible amounts.
Rain during the night, suppose to rain all week.  And, yes, I mowed yesterday.  Ha to old mother nature.
This will be good for the grass 'plugs' I put in yesterday.  Still need to transplant five little maple trees that came up too close to the house, finish picking up and raking the upper yard, and, do the big flower bed.  Been mulling over putting in a wild flower bed up there between the maples.  There roots are up and it's a bugger to mow, but, do I need another bed?  What-to-do, what-to-do.
Dad is doing a lot better.  He is finally taking the Tylenol for the pain.  I think this last episode scared the bejeebers outta him. 

Gotta go, fix breakfast..............later.