"My Garage"

I have been putting off cleaning out my Potting Shed/Retail Sales space all summer. When Far Guy and I built it years ago, we built it in mind that it would someday serve as "My Garage." I do not have to share with Far Guy, he has his own Garage/Lumber yard/Wood-shop/Workshop..I think maybe he parked his pickup in there a time or two. I am looking forward to parking inside, my car won't get covered with a foot of snow , my windshield wipers won't be frozen in place by rain that turns to ice. I will no longer be the car that has so much snow on it's roof that people laugh and point. A snowy blizzard coming off the top of my car will no longer force the people driving behind me to turn their windshield wipers on. This alone should reward enough...so why have I been procrastinating?

Years of stuff, mainly garden and greenhouse related..with a few antiques sprinkled in. Cupboards to clear out and shelves to clean off.. about 20 watering cans to get rid off..I am giving them away! Yes, I put the ad in the paper and I will be have having a garage sale, this weekend. Since we live off the beaten path, I am not expecting a huge turnout, but hey I will have gone through the stuff, marked it for sale and can have another sale in the spring..after all it is a pretty good sized garage and I have a little car. I am finding "stuff" that I didn't remember I had, so it is an adventure of sorts.

Far Guy is getting a tad nervous, he even offered to bring down some boxes that I had marked "garage sale" three years ago. These are stored in a special storage area "upstairs" that you need a twenty foot ladder to get to. I know that this is just a diversion..more boxes to keep me busy so I will stay out of his garage. How much do you suppose I can get out of that extra Ferris Wheel Seat he has?:)

Poor Customer Service

I have major problems with poor customer service. I have owned two businesses over the years, our greenhouse business which we just closed and a small fishing resort. The things I have learned could fill a book.

This morning I went into town to place an ad in the local newspaper. I was their only customer, greeted with a "I will be with you in a minute" ..big sigh..rolls eyes attitude. I place the order for my ad to appear on Wednesday and Saturday. She reads my neatly printed ad back to me. She wants to "Sell " me on an extra ad in the Express Shopper that comes out on Saturday and reaches 8,000 readers. I reply "Funny, I never get the Express Shopper until Tuesday." Oh my goodness I have now attacked the poor little things whole world. "WHERE IN THE WORLD DO YOU LIVE ANYWAY?" I reply "Osage." I am informed that "Everyone gets it on Saturday" (so there old lady.) "DO YOU WANT IT OR NOT?" "Yum, no thank you, I get it on Tuesday." "WELL IT MUST BE A POST OFFICE PROBLEM THEN" I pay the bill, and hand her the check. She says "I have to write you a receipt." I am thinking how extremely kind of you, should I thank you for going out of your way to write me a receipt. ( It is after all part of your JOB...Duh) She hands me the receipt, she doesn't say thank you, so long, farewell, or goodbye. IF she worked for me I would fire her.

What she could have said but did not "Hello! How may I help you?" "I am sorry to hear that you don't get the Saturday Express Shopper until Tuesday" "Thank you for placing an ad with us" "Have a nice day" Being the only newspaper in the area, I suppose they think they have the corner on all the business..and I guess they do..another thing they have is no customer service. She never asked me if I was a subscriber either, and I am not. I read all my papers online. So If I have this correct, she is just taking up valuable space, not greeting customers in a friendly manner, not "Selling" her employer, and not saying thank you to a customer that pays their bill. I hear that readership and subscriptions are down..imagine that???

Before I left I handed her a typed letter to the editor concerning a Trigeminal Neuralgia Support Group. "I have a letter to the Editor, I emailed in a copy a few weeks ago and it was never printed" She said "Sign your name" I did and left:(

A Traveling Song

Years ago I took the girls south with me, when Far Guy was TDY someplace..Florida or Mississippi. I drug them out of school on many occasions to go to Air Force Bases in the south, where their Father was. I absolutely hated that the Air Force put families second, and it was my way of "fighting back" for family time. I always traveled alone with the girls one way, then we would meet up with Far Guy and at the end of his deployment, he would accompany us back home to Minnesota.

The girls were good travelers, and they learned about the southern part of the USA. It was like a travelling History or Geography lesson. Now this was way before eyepods and personal music players..way before..DVD players in a vehicle. We played games...the ABC game where you had to spot something that began with each letter of the alphabet. The CAR game.. I still play this game with the grand kids if they are someplace and bored. It is harder to play now a days but back in the time that the girls and I played it, it was fun. Everyone picks their color, and they count the number of vehicles that you pass of their color. Back then you could actually play "The car game" picking Yellow, Orange, or Purple. Now a days you would get a big fat zero with those colors. We sang songs, the old ones, the songs you sang in rounds, Row, Row, Row Your Boat...and another .."Make new friends, keep the old, one is silver and the others gold." Since I am tone deaf and can not sing..but sang anyway very loudly..I am sure it sounded like a bunch of dying quails. Of course they did their homework in the car, and did lots of reading aloud. I used to divide and conquer them, one in the front seat, one in the back seat. With both of them in the back seat a "She is touching me" OR "She is over the imaginary line you drew again, and is on my side" argument would in sue. Just the kind of argument that used to drive me nuts. Then of course they took naps. They both felt important when I said "Help Mommy watch for road signs so we don't get lost." We listened to the Radio...and sang along with the songs!

On one return trip to Minnesota in 1983 or there abouts, a song by the Oak Ridge Boys was on the radio. So much so that the girls learned the song word for word, as did Far Guy..and can those three sing ..all on key..as long as I didn't join in and throw off the pitch. I can still hear them accentuating the Foreverrrrrrrrr in that tune called "Leaving Louisiana in the broad daylight."

It's just an ordinary story 'bout the way things go
'Round and around nobody knows but the highway
Goes on forever, that ol' highway rolls on forever.......

A really good traveling song! At the end of their song fest Far Guy would say "Thanks squirrels" :)

This Weeks Happenings

Little Aubrey our Great Niece had the first of her cleft lip and palate surgeries on Monday. They did the lip repair, and what a job they did, stitches so tiny they were hard to see. I visited on Wednesday night while all the guys were at the Fire hall, the twins were asleep so I missed my four year old fix, and Aubrey was asleep too..but with a beautiful lip. I marvel at what can be done for children now a days.

Our little "town" three miles away is getting its own Fire hall. My nephews are busy recruiting volunteers, younger volunteers for both of the Fire halls, the other Fire hall is at a different "town" if you can call it that..it has a Fire hall and a few houses and is seven miles away. The average age of the members at the Fire Dept is 47, so recruiting of new members is vital. We live on the south edge of an area of Minnesota that is either lakes and lake homes or prairie and farm land. Our hospitals are located either 14 miles to the east, 34 miles west or 60 miles north. These are small town hospitals. Most severe injuries are life flighted out of our area from the scene. The care victims receive before being flown out makes a difference. So I applaud the efforts of all the Fireman that are also EMTs or First Responders, including Far Guy, my brother and my two nephews. Way to go guys.. you do a great job! Far Guy does what he can to help out during the day time hours when everyone else is working out of the area.

We made our weekly trip to town, Gas has come down to $3.49 a gallon, and we have no shortages. I did notice that the huge jar of Skippy Peanut Butter that Far Guy purchases has gone up by another dollar. A year ago it was $6.99 now it is up to $8.99.

The highlight of my week was Thursday, with Survivor and ER premiers. ER was especially poignant with one of the central characters meeting his demise. Survivor is in Africa, the scenery is very green and the SNAKES are plentiful. There may also be some snaky players..Randy and Ace for two, if they ever link up there may be some real confrontations. I like Bob and the already voted off Gillian.. these are players my age..so Bob from Maine ..you go dude! This next Sunday The Amazing Race and The Unit premier, two of my other favorite shows.

Well we capped off our fun week with a "date" to watch the Debate. I was not impressed by either of the candidates. I wondered why in the world it cost so much to have the debate at that school in Mississippi. For five million dollars I expected more, some special podiums or something. I keep hoping that one of these guys will impress me, someone could have ditched the tailored suit for a T-Shirt... well maybe a sports coat and a pair of jeans. Mr. McCain smiled a lot..more than Mr. Obama. In my humble opinion..neither of them are exciting or talented speakers, way too may ums' and hesitations. I started off viewing the debate in an upright position, after all it was a "date"...Far Guy moved to the other couch and stretched out, I got a little more comfortable and stretched out on my couch..I desperately tried to stay awake, I just needed to make sure that my eyelids had no unexpected holes in them..so I closed my eyes for just a bit.. I was still technically awake..just multi tasking ..doing my eyelid check and listening at the same time. Then all of a sudden I fell ASLEEP...totally asleep..poor Far Guy had a date that was snoring. Yup, that's me a snoring boring date..kinda like the guys I was watching on TV:)

Far Guy and Trigeminal Neuralgia

WELL !! Where to start... Trigeminal Neuralgia is a "rare disorder." It usually effects women..I wonder sometimes if he is getting in touch with his feminine side through this disorder.

He has Atypical TN or Type II TN, which is not the "Normal TN"..but a more rare form of the rare disorder that I HATE. He takes Tegretol everyday, and now Baclofen a new med to boost the effectiveness of the Tegretol. He calls them his "Stupid pills" and yes it does make him a tad stupid..spacey..forgetful..frustrated and confused. He has been on this new mix of meds for over a week now.

Today we must report back to the Neurologist...

He sleeps really soundly now, he sleeps later in the morning. One morning he was not up, I waited and waited, went to the bedroom door and said "Sweetie, time to get up?" NO ANSWER... I moved to the edge of the bed.. "Honey, are you OK?" NO ANSWER.. I moved next to him observing his cute bald head...OH MY.. did he croak?? I touched his shoulder.. NOPE it's warm, so If he is dead I am just in time to save his forgetful butt.. He is breathing.. RELIEF..He is sound asleep and it takes me rubbing his shoulder for awhile to get him to surface from his deep sleep. Should I report this to the Neurologist??

Should I tell the Neurologist about his latest fiasco? He belongs to a Internet Group, but he can never remember his log in name, or his password...so he just creates a new account. He is truly an Internet Multiple Personality..and he is never really sure ..which one he is. Well I give up, I have tried to control all his log ins and passwords but I give up, did I already say that?? I REALLY GIVE UP.

Should I tell the Neurologist that I have to watch him like a Hawk, and I am considering Adult day care for both him and the dog? I am supposed to be a "kept" woman..and now I am the keeper. Did I mention that Far Guy has Adult Attention Deficit Disorder too..?? No wonder his Mother used to tie him to the clothes line with a dog chain when he was little...the woman was a saint.

Should I tell the Neurologist that Far Guy is experiencing some different side effects? One med makes slow pee pee, the other frequent pee pee..so he is a frequent slow goer. Yesterday on the way home from town, he said "Honey, could you speed up a little, I have to go really bad" I almost said "Well hang it out the window if it is that bad." Instead I sped up and took the bumps in the dirt road a little hard..he ran right from the car to the house. Now we live in the "boonies" and If I had to go that bad, I just would have gone outside. But he ran to the house because standing outside next to a tree for FIVE minutes..with me hollering out the window "Are you OK out there?" was just not on his afternoon agenda.

Should I tell the Neurologist that his poor memory is even poorer? He has even forgotten when he cooks supper, he has no recall from one night to the next and I can always convince him that it is his turn...night after night. No. I love not cooking, and I put in my thirty five years..now it is his turn. I probably won't mention this small side effect to the Doctor.

Should I tell the Neurologist that Far Guy is still not pain free? That is the goal, and that is what I will report.

I am not sure what to do about his multiple personalities on his favorite web site..they will just have to figure out which guy he is today. They are adult men, and they know how to contact me, I have not been in that chat room for awhile and I know they read my blog..so good luck guys! I have a hard enough time keeping track of his medications, however things are better since I implemented the Witness Medication Program. I still spell words for him, and fill in the blanks for him when he is visiting one on one with people. I draw the line at phone calls however, I have no idea what the other person is saying, I refuse to be a phone call translator. When the phone is for him, I hide my nose in a book or under a pillow. EXCEPT: I understand that someone who reads my blog everyday has been diagnosed with Trigeminal Neuralgia, and may be going through a hard time. To her I say, you have our phone number...pick up the phone and call us... I will be nice..I PROMISE. I am still an advocate with a hatchet for anyone who has this horrible disorder. WE will listen, Far Guy will listen, he may search for words, but having a friend helps:)

Update on Don the gentleman who showed up on our door step after his diagnosis. Don went to the Mayo Clinic, he has the more manageable form of TN and MAY be in a remission. He is getting along pretty well, he and Far Guy visit on a regular basis.

Newspaper Opinion Update: I have had no luck whatsoever getting my opinion about the increased number of cases of TN in our area published. Our local paper now has a new Editor, so I will try again. We would still like to form a support group.

A Chicken Coop

We had a number of old buildings on our farm. We had an old chicken coop and a little brooder house. The brooder house was a place where the cute little fluffy yellow chicks went to stay warm and dry under the lights until the weather warmed up enough for them to be outside. We used to clean out the brooder house and use it as a playhouse after the chicks were outside.

The laying hens were in the chicken coop, it was a small building with laying boxes on the walls and ramps that made their way up to the boxes. The ramps were made out of lumber, and each ramp had small lengths of wood tacked horizontally onto the surface, so the chickens wouldn't slip. These ramps were brushed off with a wire brush occasionally, sometimes we would take them out and hose them off in the summertime. Our chicken coop had a fenced yard, there were little doors that we opened in the morning and closed at night, little chicken sized doors. The chickens could come and go as they pleased during the day. I hated cleaning out the water thingy...it was a strange two part galvanized waterer one part fit over the part with the water in it, you had to carry it outside and clean it all out because chickens are messy and then fill it with water. My Mom was in charge of feeding them.

I was in charge of gathering eggs, you had to be quick..and learn not to hesitate or they would peck you in the arm. One small hesitation and those hens would nail ya. I helped with the cleaning of the eggs, we used soft white rags made out of diapers to wash them. It was a job that you wanted to stay on top of, because the longer that chicken poop stayed on the eggs the harder you had to scrub...and if you scrubbed too hard..you broke the doggone egg. We put the eggs in a funny colored purple tray, I think it held about 36 eggs.

We sold eggs to the neighbors. I do not remember exactly how much they were for a dozen, (35 cents a dozen rings a bell.) The little old ladies would drive into the yard, hop out of the car with their egg cartons in their hand, we would fill them up, collect the money and carry the eggs to their car. It was on one of these days back in about 1965 that I first met Far Guys Grandparents H. I grew up kitty corner from his Grandparents A. so I had known them forever. Grandpa H. always drove Grandma H. and she always wore a dress. Grandpa H. never got out of the car.

My Grandparents D (My Moms parents) had a real egg operation going on at their place, I can still see my Grandfather, dressed in his bib overhauls with his blue and white train engineers cap on, sitting on the enclosed porch in a chair, washing eggs and putting them into crates, often times I would help him. He would tell me stories, some I remember... some I wish I had written down.

Our chickens weren't the fancy kind, they were just plain old white chickens. Some of them laid brown eggs..my favorite. What I didn't like about chickens...you had to constantly watch where you walked, especially in the summertime when I was barefooted.

The first time I sent Far Guy to the chicken coop to get the eggs, he got them just fine, and reported back to me that he had picked up all the eggs. I had to laugh at him, and explained to the "City Boy" that it was called "Gathering." He replied "Whatever you call it, It is done."

Who was the first person to say "See that chicken... I am gonna eat the next thing that comes out of it's butt?" :)

Ellipsis Monday Photo Shoot #4 Welcome to Autumn

Carly over at Ellipsis asked me to participate in the Monday Photo Shoot.

The Challenge : Welcome To Autumn! So Chance and I took off yesterday to photograph our hearts out! We walked along our country lane and captured this wild Aster blooming on the edge of the drive.

Thanks for the neighborly invite Carly!

Old Photographs Part I

I love old photographs, I especially like old photographs of me! Gosh I was a cute kid! That would be me in this picture taken in 1952, my Uncle Al is holding me quite well. The two other little boys were neighbors of my grandparents. Norman and Louie I think..well I may be wrong on the Louie part..but there were a lot of little boys in their area.. maybe it was Norman and Charles..Norman and Fred?? I know it was Norman and his brother! This was taken at my Grandparents farm near Frazee, Minnesota. Note the clothes hanging on the clothes line and the chicken in the background. I love the simplicity of the black and white, the look on my face and the one little boys pants. My Mother took this picture.

I would like a caption for this photo, do you have any ideas? Please leave a comment!

Actually this is my way of saying I have to go work in my garage today, so I can fit my car in there. Far Guy finished with the installation of one of my best birthday gifts of all time! So I am off..well that is an understatement:)

"Make Do Attitude"

Well unless you live further in the "Boonies" than I do. You can't help think about what is happening on "the hill" this morning. I am not an Economist, I did take a class in Economics once, I ended up with a "C."

I am just a "Housewife/ Mother/ Grandma/ Business Owner Now Retired ." It is from my view that the following opinion is written.

Being the CEO of my household, I have a limited amount of funds. I have to make it from payday to payday and feed my family, clothe them, provide a roof over their head and think about their future. I have a checking account, a rainy day savings account, and a cookie jar. I must live within my means. I must "make do" sometimes, but that isn't so bad. "Making do" builds character. If there is no money in the checkbook, I don't write checks. If I have a major crisis I can dip into my savings account, but only for really important things like transmissions and hospital bills. If the cookie jar is empty, I have to do something extra to refill it, have a garage sale, anything short of selling my body or my firstborn. If I want to go on a vacation I save up for it in advance, that way it can be a vacation without quilt. Now if Suzy needs braces, we may have to go camping and sleep in a tent. If my husband thinks we will all die without a new boat, I tell him "You first Sweetheart." I make my grocery list and keep my budget in mind, I don't purchase anything impulsively. Sometimes my kids think they are deprived because their friends have more toys than they do. We are all "making do" within our means.

I have a neighbor, that struggles. She never seems to make it from payday to payday. First she borrows money from family members, then she maxes out her credit cards, she needs a new car, her husband is going to die without a new boat. She buys a new house that I envy, then a place on the lake, they vacation in Europe. Her spending is out of control. She gets "bailed out" by her wealthy parents. Does she stop and re evaluate her situation, heck no she continues her wild spending habits..she has learned nothing..of course she will be "bailed out" again and again..never learning a thing. Now why is she all of a sudden MY problem?

I have a real problem with the "Slick Talking Suits" that are testifying today. First of all they want "US" to make a decision very rapidly. My Grandma used to say ...haste makes waste. Well don't kid yourself..I am not waiting for the phone to ring my opinion is the last one they want. I say let the chips fall where they may, the buck stops here and "NO." It is time to "make do."

So who do we blame? the Republicans? the Democrats? How about ALL the Politicians, not a one of them wants to be held accountable..and none of them have ever had a "make do" attitude, they are all like my neighbor off in La La Land:(

A Simple Question

A number of years ago Far Guy's Mother was in the Nursing Home. She preferred to eat her meals in her room, we encouraged her to eat with her group at meal times. In doing so we would try to schedule a visit around the noon or the evening meal. She struggled with the food, I admit sometimes it looked very unappetizing. Her table mates were Blanche and Betty, when we would wheel her out to her table the "Girls" would greet her warmly. So we would hang out and talk to the "girls" and encourage Far Guys Mom to eat. If she ate she felt better, if she drank her milk and juice she felt better. If she felt better so did we. In the two years that she was in the home Far Guy visited her almost every day. I accompanied him once or twice a week.

On one of those visits Betty grabbed my arm and asked "Do you bake bread?" I laughed and replied " No, my Mother did years ago, and Far Guy's Mom was a really good bread baker ..hardly anyone bakes bread anymore." She sadly stated "I am so hungry for freshly baked bread, the bread in here isn't fit to eat."

On our way home Far Guy wondered aloud if he could learn to bake bread the old way. I told him perhaps he should take lessons from his Aunt Louise. I am thinking... hey this is a great idea, he is not only going to be a great cook but a baker too! Instead I opened my big mouth and said "Well your Aunt Louise bakes bread every week, you just need to ask her to share with Betty!" And he did, Betty got the fresh bread she dreamed of and a good bread baker was honored to share her baking skills. Aunt Louise bakes the best bread ever! I still think Far Guy should take lessons.

Do I bake bread? No, not unless you count taking out a loaf of frozen bread and putting it in an old bread pan to rise and bake, or dumping the required ingredients into Far Guys automatic bread maker. I used to watch my Mother mix and kneed and bake, I used to enjoy the smell and the taste of a freshly sliced warm piece of bread slathered in butter. Do you bake bread? :)

My Favorite Book

"To plant a pine, one need be neither God or a poet: one need only a shovel" Aldo Leopold


My Favorite book is A Sand County Almanac And Sketches Here and There by Aldo Leopold. I discovered this book in my "later the average college years." I was taking a Forestry Class, and it was required reading. I also had to write a paper on it, I might even have a copy of it around here someplace, probably "upstairs"... as everything I haven't used in awhile ends up upstairs. My book, sits in a basket on my Scrap-booking desk, my hard cover version was a thoughtful gift from Jen a number of years ago. I had an old used paperback copy, that was dog eared and highlighted, with notes in the margin, I must have given that copy to someone else to read. I did have several copies floating around here at one time, then when I would get a customer at the greenhouse that was a "Reader" I would send them off with my favorite book. But not my hard covered copy, I lend it to no one...a bit selfish perhaps..I guess it must be so. Somethings I just need near me..just in case..and this book is one of those things.

Leopold was a conservationist. a naturalist and a writer. His book is written in such a way that you don't need to read it from start to finish.although I suggest you do. You can pick up this book and just read a small sketch here and there. Possibly it could be read aloud, around a campfire, or to a grandchild. I enjoy reading it bits and pieces here and there. I look at this book, like a visit from an old friend, a wise old friend.

Maybe a book written in the late 1940's isn't for you...maybe your carrots have always come in a plastic bag instead of out of the garden covered with a little bit of dirt to make them taste better. Maybe your heat only comes from a furnace, instead of stored up in a woodpile ready to warm your very soul. Maybe you don't weep for the wildflowers being annihilated by the four wheeler tracks in the ditches. Leopold says " Maybe you can't grieve for something you never knew." If you never noticed the wildflowers ..you will never miss them:)

It's Not Easy Being Green

These are the pictures that I have taken, that qualify for the "Green" Round Robin Photo Challenge. I am a new person to their challenge, but it should be interesting! This shot of the Pine tree was taken in a local park in August.


This is a Burr Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) Tree with its catkins, this was taken in our yard in June.
This was taken in June in a local park, the Canadian Geese were raising their young there. To me all these pictures say GREEN!

A Birthday Gift!

Goodbye 56....... Hello 57! Far Guy says "You are really going to love your gift...it is one of those gifts that is going to say I love you every time you use it.. I can't wait!"
What?? A Dog?? I recognize that dog, he lives with us. he is Far Guys faithful companion...he loves me too..especially when I am eating. Oh my, what does that dog have? A remote...just what I needed... another remote to keep track of. AHH this is a different kind of remote...



A GARAGE DOOR OPENER ...Let me tell ya, I have died and gone to opener heaven with this one. I must have made it into the "Opener Big-Time" and Far Guy has firmly wedged himself into the opener Hall of Fame.
He splurged and got me a garage door opener that has, count em...TWO remotes...one for inside my car and one for inside the house...he has gone all out for little ole me!
Actually he claims "I DIDN'T DO IT" ...and it was really Chance that purchased the garage door opener. A dog with money? Well..don't that beat all.

My real gift was beautifully wrapped! Note the fancy two toned bow... Brace yourself...
A BEAUTIFUL GLASS CUTTING BOARD!! That I had admired in a local gift shop. This gift came from my guy.. Far Guy with a kiss and the offer of "Well there's more where that came from..wink..wink.." Guess I just might be getting lucky today, well I am already lucky...the other lucky..wink..wink...:)

Just Wondering

Well today I am just wondering what unique and very personal gift Far Guy will give me tomorrow? Today is my last day being 56, unless of course I croak by the end of the day...but we won't go there.

Far Guy has a way with gifts. In 1971, he went to a garage sale and bought me a puppy for $5.00. Now this may not seem like much to you, but back in 1971 $5.00 would actually buy a fair amount of groceries besides bread and milk. He bought me a puppy that was a Scottie mix, we named her "Snuffer" and she lived with us for 15 years. In 1975, two days after I gave him his dream of two little girls, He gave me a can opener. It was an electric can opener, top of the line, Avocado green. I still have it, someplace up in a box upstairs with a post-it-note on it that says "Jen, This should be yours as your Father gave it to me two days after I birthed you..enjoy!" Then there was the orange wheelbarrow, sometime in the 1980's, I still have that too. It makes my life easier. One of my most favorite gifts I HAD to sell..the mud flaps with Yosemite Sam on them that said "Back off," those mud flaps looked great on my old Ford Bronco II that served me tirelessly for 18 years. Through thick mud or a snowstorm, inches of ice..drifts ten feet high..oh wait..gosh I miss that vehicle.

I am sure there are those of you out there whose Husbands shower them with Flowers, Candy, and all sorts of things that you have promptly forgotten. My Guy.. Far Guy gives me gifts that are very memorable. What will tomorrow bring? Stay tuned as I wait with visions of puppies, can openers, wheelbarrows and mud flaps dancing through my head:)

Happy Birthday Jenny !!

Jennifer was born in 1975, so that makes my baby 33 years old today!

Does she know that I thought she would be a boy? Now this was way before having ultrasounds and finding out if you were having a boy or a girl. I was convinced she was a boy, Far Guy wanted another little girl (It was part of his dream.) She would have been a Travis nicknamed "Duke" by her big sister. I had Jennifer picked out for a little girls name. It was the most popular name from 1970 to 1984 according to the Social Security Administration who keeps track of some of these statistics.

There is a story behind her nickname of "Jenny."

I had a wonderful Aunt Jenny, she was a strong woman, widowed early in life and left with children to raise, she did it on her own. She worked at the Nursing Home on the night shift, hard, hard work. She was a very kind Christian woman, slight in stature but long on friendly and full of stories and smiles, I was always welcomed into her house, I loved to camp out on her couch on a Friday night for a school activity on a Saturday morning. It saved my parents a trip to town, and I could read all evening long, and drink coffee! The coffee pot was always on at Aunt Jenny's house. She loved to play Bingo and after I graduated from High School I would often meet her at the Legion for Friday night Bingo. She was passionate about bingo, it was her night out. She was a really good Aunt.

So perhaps I wanted my future Grand kids to have an "Aunt Jenny" that was just like my Aunt Jenny. Now the little girls call her "Auntie Jen," and they know that she will be there for them anytime, unconditionally. She likes Bingo too!

As for her middle name, Far Guy picked that...after me, we share the same middle name Joy. No one ever called her JJ thank goodness, but she is Jenny or Jen and sometimes even a nickname from her scrap booking friends, Dolly. There were too many Jen's that scrap booked together, so they just nicknamed her Dolly, and I became known as Dolly's Mom.

So today is her 33rd Birthday, funny it seems only yesterday that she was running around with her blanky, or sitting on a table enjoying her birthday. Now she is a lovely young woman with a family of her own, someone we are very proud of. If you would like to wish her a Happy Birthday go here: http://www.areavoices.com/dahlenje I made her a cake, and we are headed farther Up North to sing Happy Birthday in person:)

Evacuation and Email

My friend Charles who was evacuated last week for the arrival of Hurricane Ike, is back in his apartment in Aransas Pass, TX. He says "It was six days of hell." He was evacuated to San Antonio, TX when it came time yesterday to go back, he said his paper work was all messed up, but eventually they put him in a cab and he got a cab ride home..160 miles...our government at work at it's finest. There was no damage in his area of Texas.

The email was very welcome news for me, he is safe.. as well as sound..well that changes from day to day, being older with Alzheimer's. I try to send him email jokes everyday, something to stimulate his brain, he has good days and bad days, some days I think they have him over medicated. He didn't say where he was at in San Antonio, but there was a Nurse there that he argued with, so maybe a Hospital or a Nursing home or a evacuation center with health care workers. Anyway he is safe, and is busy reading six days of jokes!

I have a "core group" of about ten people that I receive jokes from and send jokes to, and some on the fringes that like jokes only occasionally. If it weren't for these people keeping me supplied with jokes, I would have to be out there on the Internet searching for jokes to send to Charles. I used to get jokes from Charles but in the last year he has gone down hill, I can tell he has had a good day when he forwards a joke to me, or responds with a "You cracked me up!"

I try to be neat and orderly when I forward jokes, removing all the unnecessary info, like a hundred names and email addresses. I send the email to myself and then Blind Carbon Copy it to who I think would enjoy it. It is an ongoing struggle for me to read all my incoming mail, today I have 96 messages in my inbox...but hey a week ago I had 150, so I am making progress. On Sunday when I sat down for awhile and send out about twenty, I am sure there were some people who said...oh my gosh..when will she stop. I do try to listen, if someone says "hold the emails" I do, and I won't send them anything until I hear they want back on the list again. I try to be polite, like the time I had to call the neighbor and tell her "Your email box is full, I can't send you anymore jokes, you are full."

So to anyone who emails me jokes, I thank you, you make three people smile everyday, Me, Far Guy and Charles!

Recently I got a cute one!

When I was younger I hated going to weddings. It seemed that all of my Aunt's and the Granny types used to come up to me, poke me in the ribs and cackle telling me "Your next." They stopped that crap after I started doing the same thing to them at Funerals!

Humor..something I enjoy everyday, thanks to my friends :)

Headed to the "Home"

Far Guy takes medication daily for the unbearable pain of Trigeminal Neuralgia. He is on a new form of Tegretol and the added med Baclofen. He must take his meds four times a day. The Doctor suggested 10-2-6 and 10. Well, fine we can do this, we are after all two fairly mature normal adults...RIGHT?..well maybe that is stretch of my imagination.

I got organized with the "new plan"..the container is filled at the end of the day. I did it a few nights, now Far Guy is in charge of doing it. On the weekend he "forgot" his meds at home, so his doses were late. Sunday was a pain filled day for him, at one point I was sure that we were going to end up in the ER. But he made it through the night and actually felt pretty good yesterday morning. With our new system he is supposed to tell me when he takes his meds. So he tells me "I took my pills", but then he forgets to take them. HE LIES..well maybe he just stretches the truth..he thought about taking them..but the container does not lie, if the pills are still there it is quite obvious to me that there is a problem. I have now enforced a Witnessed Medication Program ...he must bring the pill to me wherever I am at..put them on his tongue and I must see him swallow them.

I started this new WMP last night. Last evening around six o'clock I was having a really fun time catching up with a friend on the computer. Far Guy interrupted me and said "I need to tell you something, but you have to promise not to get mad and yell, or bitch at me all night." I agreed very reluctantly. He said "I have not taken any of my meds today" I replied .."But you told me you took them??" He quickly stated "You promised..not to YELL." I did a slow burn and logged out of the chat room. THEN I began to sing to him..singing is not yelling .. "La La..you forgot your meds again..I can't believe it La La..I am so upset.. La La I don't know what I am going to do with you La La LALAAA." About that time my brother knocked on the door and interrupted my singing which may have escalated to uncontrollable bitching. Far Guy was saved from my wrath and said to my brother "Thank God you are here, she will shut up now." I just held my head in my hands, we are destined for the "Home" if we don't get our poop in a pile pretty soon.

Truthfully, I was tempted to hit him with the invisible hatchet that I carry to protect him from insensitive people.

Today is a new day, the WMP is working, I set the oven timer for four hours..it will ding at the appropriate time for the next Witnessed Medication Ingestion. If either of us wore a watch perhaps we could set an alarm reminder, but we are retired and time is usually not an issue. When we get to the "home" someone else will be in charge and they will have a watch:)

Searching

I have a new quest. I was asked by a friend to help find her stepson. My friend would like to know where her stepson is, if he is alive and well. She is unsure if she will share this information with her husband. It is a portion of his life that has long passed and he doesn't like to talk about. It is quite a story.

Years ago, there was a family like many others struggling to make a living. Well it seems the wife had wandering eyes, and when the husband discovered his wife in bed with a younger man, the husband confronted the wife and her lover, he shot his wife in the leg. Well as you can imagine this must have been horrifying for the two small children. The husband was sent to the State Penitentiary, he served his time. In the meantime his wife divorced him, took the children and moved away. The wife has since died. Enter wife number two, who I am very good friends with. Her husband is not the same man that he was earlier in his life. His time in "the pen" changed him in many ways. He doesn't drink anymore, he put his life back together and has paid his dues. He is good to his second wife, she adores him. It is part of this love for him that makes her want to find his son, her stepson. She says "Well, we aren't spring chickens anymore."

I am really torn about this situation. On one hand, I would love to find her stepson, on the other hand..does this Father really have any right to rest easy after all these years? He shot the kids Mom for crying out loud, he could have killed her instead of just wounding her. Did he provide financial support for these kids? What right does he have after all these years to make contact with his kids?

The kids, their Mom is dead, their Father was a criminal, their Stepmother who they don't know from adam wants to make contact with them. I am not sure how I would feel??

I do know that their Father made a bad decision that must have affected the rest of their lives. Do they hate him? Do they wonder if he is alive or dead? Do they care? Is it too late to forgive? Well it will be too late someday.

But I tell ya, this man their Father has become is worth knowing, if he can forgive himself enough to go forward and reach out. I hope by that time my research will have come up with some results, something to reach for, and maybe someone reaching toward him.

So I will search. Why? Because I like a good mystery solved. I have searched before, once on the Internet with wonderful results. Prior to that I helped a friend find her birth Mother, I gave her some suggestions of places to look for information, and they were reunited. It was quite a journey for her, she then found her birth Father but only after he died. Some stories never have a happy ending.

Right now, I have a name, a birth date, place of birth, and a last known location. It's kind of like looking for a needle in a haystack. If anyone out there in the blogging world has any good suggestions of free Web Sites to search, please leave me a comment:)

Reunion Unveiled

Now for a different look at the reunion.

First of all this was Far Guy's Reunion and not mine. So I let him visit, I took some pictures and greeted those I knew, after all spouses are just tag alongs. I just tried to stay in the background. I did find one very interesting spouse to converse with on Friday night, he is a farmer. We talked about dogs, goats, sheep and cattle. On Saturday I spoke at length to another spouse who was a Perennial Grower, so we talked Greenhouses etc.. I did not make a connection with the Doctors wife, she apparently was put off with my friendly smile, or maybe it was my comment about the new bridge to nowhere that Far Guy suggested that by pass all of the Twin Cities. I did not make a connection with the guy from Arizona either, I have had more fun watching paint dry, or sticking my head in a snow bank in the middle of a blizzard.

The food served on Saturday afternoon was nearly inedible, chicken barely done, mashed potato's out of a box, gravy out of a can, stuffing out of a box, vegetables out of a can, a pasta salad, and buns. At 30 bucks a plate, I am thinking perhaps I should go into the catering business...but then I hate to cook. Maybe Far Guy should do some catering..he is a fantastic cook.

I talked to the people at the bar in both locations, bartenders are always friendly. I even spoke to the people who were marking off the tape for the Dart Game. I wandered around both places. I was patient, friendly and not to far from Far Guy should he require my assistance. I did get several hugs... a gal that I grew up with, one gal from the church, even one of Far Guys old girlfriends gave me a hug, and one from one of the guys I sat behind in Study Hall.

I thought it was kind of interesting that Far Guys table at lunch was filled with women, me and one of the gals who he used to talk to every morning because their lockers were next to each other, and two ex-girlfriends. I believe it was the only table in the place with just one guy and four women. Just goes to show you that 40 years later he is still a ladies guy! But he came home with me...good thing too..the last time I was in the company of the ex-girlfriends, they were involved in a "cat fight" about him and I got his attention and walked right out of the dance above the Municipal with him in hand.

I wasn't surprised that some of the locals, and there are about 48 of them in the immediate area, didn't show up. Some of the locals are just as stuck up and cliquish as they were in High School, two locals did show up late in the day, driving and most obviously three sheets to the wind...really mature locals.

Our time at the after party was very short, it was loud, noisy, and the more they drank the louder they got. Far Guy was seated next to a very boisterous classmate who at one point rubbed his head. I can tell, just from Far Guys reaction..sometimes his pain is increased by touch..that we will be going home soon..and that couldn't be soon enough for me.

Now don't get me wrong, some of his classmates are great, but they live in different states, were having hip replacement surgeries or were left totally out of the loop on this reunion thing. Those are the people I would have enjoyed seeing and spending time with. Floyd, Barry, Mark, Frank and Shirley all good friend's of Far Guy... I missed you:)
Far Guys take on the reunion can be found here!

Reunion Weekend

It was Far Guy's 40th class reunion. Now this was no small event for Far Guy, should he go? Who would he know? Last night he almost skipped out, but I knew he would be fine! Last night was an informal get together. Today was the more formal, reading of the names, 156 people were in his class and about 35 showed up. Most of them were hard to recognize, only a few stayed the same. All are older and more grey, many are retired or looking to retire in the next four years. Twelve are deceased.

I am not quite sure, why these type of reunions, must take place in dimly lit areas. Maybe it's because our flaws are less noticeable. Maybe we look younger and thinner. Late this afternoon the party switched to a Sports Bar in Park Rapids. The mood got louder and more boisterous as the evening wore on. Since Far Guy or I drink only occasionally, we found the noise and inebriation a bit annoying and came home early.

The highlight of the day, was when Rhonda arrived, her sister busted her out of the Nursing home to spend the afternoon with us. She was a trooper, and recognized everyone, but I noticed not everyone was comfortable talking to someone who was confined to a wheelchair. It must be hard to accept that a Cheerleader and one of the most popular girls in your class now lives in a Nursing Home and in a wheelchair. What they missed is that she is as funny and friendly as she ever was:)

"Houston, we have a problem"

Ike seems to be bringing Texas to it's knees. Luckily we purchased Gas yesterday, it was $3.54 a gallon. Now with Ike filling up the Gulf of Mexico, the News channels are going bonkers..and predicting gas shortages. Now that is something I know about from the oil embargo back in 1973, it wasn't any fun then, but people were calmer back then. I hate to think of the "road rage" out there if gasoline becomes scarce.

Have you noticed that some drivers are not very polite? We have been struggling with four way stop signs in Park Rapids the entire summer. The road through town is being worked on by the slowest most expensive construction company I have ever seen in my life. You know, two cars can go through a four way stop at once..North/South can go and then East/West can go. Most people don't "get" this. they want their very own turn, and will sit there through their turn..and then someone who wants to make a right or left turn..well that is way too far out for anyone to comprehend, plus I think it messes them up so bad that they forget who's turn it is. A long time ago, before stop lights, we only had four way stops in town. It really is not so difficult.

One day I was in town, the traffic was horrendously slow, well I made it slower. A number of cars were waiting to enter the traffic, well I was already stopped and when the traffic in front of me moved forward I just waved the waiting cars through. It was a Minnesota nice thing to do, I got lots of waves and smiles! The guy directly behind me must have been a tourist, he honked at me. Well that was a bad thing to do. Never ever honk at Farside, It propelled me to not only let all the cars waiting at Pamida to go, but those at Dairy Queen also. It took that "honker" a really long time to get out of town. Oh yes, I suppose they could have given me some type of traffic citation, obstructing the flow of traffic, or maybe "old lady being nice" and I would have had to explain it to the Judge. But there was way too much traffic for the Police to properly patrol the area.

When Far Guy was stationed at MacDill AFB in Tampa, we were in a hurricane watch. I had absolutely no idea what to do. I got a quick class in Hurricane 101 from a neighbor, fill the tub and every container you have with drinking water. Go to the grocery store and buy non perishable food, enough to get you through a week. Make sure you have batteries for your radio, and pack a bag. Luckily we only had lots of wind and rain that time, and never lost our electricity. High water, was the worst thing, lots of creepy crawlies were displaced.So Houston has a problem, I don't wish bad weather or flooding on anyone. My friend Charles was evacuated from his apartment in Aransas Pass, TX (Corpus Christi, TX area) ...he has the early stages of Alzheimers, I hope he can remember some of what has happened when he returns to his home. :)

I Forgot

I am guilty, I forgot today was September 11 th. I was reminded by Buffalo Gals Blog, thank you B Gal! We should never forget.

On September 11, 2001 I was in Mapleton ND helping Jen with her newborn son, Adam. Adam was just eight days old. Trica called us from Chicago and said "Turn on the TV" then she called Far Guy. Jen and I watched the day unfold in horror, it was almost too much to take in..we had been attacked. I was worried for Trica and her family in Chicago, I was worried for my friend Nellie working in a high rise building in the Cities, who's two boys lived in New York City. I was worried, when and where will these terrorists strike next? I felt helpless...some of my thoughts as a Mom were, I brought children into this kind of a world? I cuddled my new born Grandson close, I cried. Tears for the Firefighters and Rescue workers, tears for those who didn't know if their family members were safe, tears for an old America where I felt safe and secure. Later on the day, I drove home to Far Guy, I just needed to hug him and tell him I loved him, to hold his hand and cry. It was a day we should never forget.

The Librarian

When I was a Senior in High School, I had two study halls. Now when you had two study halls you could volunteer to work in the School Office. Working there you were just a glorified gopher, Go fer this, Go fer that. There were no openings, however I was told that there was an opening for a Library Assistant.

Our Librarian was a legend. Mrs. K. was an elderly woman, her short permed hair was grey, she had eyes that could pierce your soul, and some dark colored chin hairs that were accentuated when she scowled...which was often. She wore glasses, some people said she and her husband shared the same pair, she wore them during the day and he wore them at night. She wasn't very tall maybe 5' 4", she wore dresses every day usually some print, that buttoned down the front, had a lovely matching belt, and a pleated skirt that fell well below her knees. Her hose was light colored and she hadn't shaved her legs a day in her life. She always wore the old lady shoes, black, with a little bit of a heel, that laced up. She was a no nonsense, no giggling, no scuffling, no voices raised above a whisper Librarian. Far Guy says a "A nothing allowed Librarian." She was in charge of that Library, and she ran it like a kingdom and she was the Queen, and the rest of us were there because she allowed us to enter.

Now I love books, I thought about it a few days before I finally decided to give it a go as a library assistant. If worse came to worse, I could always go back to study hall. All of those books were just too much to resist. The first day, I showed up to "assist"..I was terrified..she said "So you want to help out around here?" I replied "Yes Mam, I will do what ever you want me too, I love books." She said "Well, we will see how you work out."I learned a lot that year, The Dewey Decimal System. how to properly shelve books. How to find a magazine or an article in the stacks. How to repair a book binding properly. How the Card File System worked, properly adding or subtracting the correct number of cards for the new books coming in or the old books that were leaving the Library for good.

When the kids from Study Hall would present a hall pass, Mrs. K would look at the pass and then at the clock, if more than two minutes had passed she would refuse entry into the Library. Sometimes she would come into the Stacks and talk to Mrs. M. who was a real sweetheart, she sat at a typewriter and her fingers flew over the keyboard. I talked with Mrs. M. about life, and books, she was very friendly. She could talk and type at the same time, that always impressed me.

Mrs. K was short on praise, I never knew if I was doing things up to her expectations or not. If she wasn't scowling it must have been a good day. I finally did get a hug from her on Graduation Day:)

Gilligan

Back in 1974, our daughter Trica was two and she watched two television shows everyday, Sesame Street with me and Gilligans Island with her Father. Everyday before Far Guy left for his night shift job at Steiger Tractor they had some quiet time together and would snuggle up in the big old burgundy rocking chair and watch the antics of the castaways.

One day Trica did something inappropriate...and promptly blamed it on "Gilligan." She started talking to Gilligan, she could carry on a entire conversation with her imaginary friend. Gilligan got out all of the toys and never put them back in the toy box. Gilligan played with the water in the bathroom, drenching everything in sight. Gilligan colored on the white walls...Gilligan was a troublemaker.

Trica would look at me so innocently, blue eyes sparkling and declare "Gilligan did it" and smile. What is a mother to do? I tried my best to just ignore Gilligan, sometimes it was really hard, I wanted to put him up for adoption, yes I wanted to do anything I could to rid myself of my childs imaginary friend..what kind of a Mother lets her child's imaginary friend drive her nuts anyway?

Gilligan lived with us for about three years, when her baby sister Jennifer got old enough to communicate, Gilligan slowly disappeared..probably back to his trouble making island. She was no longer an only child with the need for an imaginary friend to blame things on, she now had her very own sister:)

Blind Leading The Blind

Well today was Far Guy's appointment with his new Neurologist. I give this guy a 5, Far Guy says a 4. This is on a scale of 1-10. He is older perhaps nearing retirement age, and had no sense of humor at all. It must be a bummer to spend your life so serious. Our Neurologist that moved to Florida was at least an 8 on our scale, and he smiled!

The bottom line is he confirms the diagnosis of Trigeminal Neuralgia Atypical Type II, and says that it is his intent to make Far Guy pain free, but it may take lots of work to regulate many different medications. For now we will add Baclofen, we are to call with the results after one week. As for a remission. he says we can always hope for one, and it could happen but might not. DUH?? They have a few patients with TN , frankly his nurse seemed to know more about TN than the Doctor did.

Both the new Dr and his nurse were absolutely flabbergasted with Far Guy's GP in Park Rapids, that he actually prescribed chewable Tegretol, for a patient with face pain, this is just one more irritant added to their already miserable day. Plus Far Guy says and I quote "I would sooner eat the ass end of a skunk, than chew those tablets." They are pretty nasty..I get to hear and smell how bad they are twice every day.

I did some medication research recently. This new med was second on my list..so I think it is worth a try. Let me tell you I am no expert either, but I know more about Trigeminal Neuralgia than most GP's. If this were some foreign country I could probably go out and buy the stuff I need to make Far Guy feel better. Instead I must wait for a referral, and then wait for an actual appointment and now we will send away for the new medication. So in a week or ten days we can actually give this new medication a try. This is America's Health Care system at its finest.. the blind leading the blind.

I am Far Guys advocate, still with a hatchet, poised and ready to strike:)

Chances Adventures Part III

This is my third chance at writing for Farside! I communicate and she types. How did you like those pictures yesterday? Farside said I did awesome, she says I am photogenic. Did you know that Border Collies need jobs? We are high energy, and must play ball, or Frisbee if we don't have any cattle to herd.

I have been feeling much better, thank you to all of you who wished me good health. Farside thinks it was something I found to eat in the woods, or cheese that caused my diarrhea problem. I am still on a strict diet, but occasionally I get a corn chip or a bacon flavored snack. I am eating my Science Diet Dog food really well, I finally gave up on trying to stage any type of food strike. Farside said "Sooner or later he will eat" and she was right. Far Guy is still not allowed to give me any table scraps, and I am not supposed to eat anything I find rotten in the woods.

My friend "Odda" died. She was only sixteen weeks old, her little defective heart couldn't keep up with her rapidly growing body or attitude. Farside cried, I licked the tears from her face. We made a "Doggone Death" condolence visit. Hey Hooch! Sorry about Odda... wanna play Frisbee? Playing ball and Frisbee always makes you feel better.

We helped a Sheltie. We made a home visit for the Sheltie Rescue people. Farside said it was important, but not important enough for me to be allowed out of the car. How much can you see from the car anyway..they had a fence and a yard..big deal. Was there a warm place to sleep and food and toys? I guess it must have been OK cause Farside told Far Guy "Those people will make wonderful Sheltie owners" Some Sheltie named "Katie" that was rescued from a puppy mill now has a wonderful new home.

One evening I went to visit my favorite little boys, the twins next door. They are great ball throwers, well until they started throwing the ball deep into the woods. I came out covered in burrs, they were everywhere, in my tail, my ears and covering my belly. It only took Farside an hour or so to pick and brush them out of my hair. I have been told that I cannot sneak off to visit the twins on my own, and they aren't supposed to sneak off on their own to visit me..but boy is it tempting when I hear them outside playing:)

Ready, Set.. FLY!!

Chance enjoys his pool. Recently I captured part of his everyday playtime. Far Guy uses the flinger to throw water droplets into the air for Chance to catch!

This is one of Chance's favorite activities! After a good round of playing ball, he will go over and lay next to his pool...and wait ..and wait..and stare at you..as if to say " Time to play in the water now."

The story of the pool: I went to town in search of a pool for him several years ago. I found one at a local discount store, it was located outside with a bunch of other pools, some smaller some larger. There was only one left of the size I wanted. I took it inside, stood in line, paid for it and loaded it in the pickup.
Later on in the summer Far Guy was giving the pool a really good cleaning, and discovered that I had inadvertently picked up not only one pool but three, they were stuck together so good that they appeared to be one. I was a pool thief. Far Guy said "Never in a million years did I ever think my lovely wife was a thief, but I have the evidence." I gave one away to a gal that had rescued a Border Collie, she didn't have a pool so I shared with her. Far Guy said "You realize that you are aiding and abetting a known criminal by receiving stolen property?" He just couldn't keep his big mouth shut about my pool episode. I am still left with an extra pool, this troubled me for some time. Should I go back to the store, and tell them I only wanted one..but accidentally got three? I took them through the checkout, shouldn't the clerk have noticed that there was three instead of one? After all it was her job, I was just the unsuspecting customer. I did not go into the store to become a pool thief on purpose.
I decided it was not my fault, and made a donation to the Local Animal Shelter which more than equaled the price of the two extra pools. Kind of like taking from the rich and giving to the poor, or a Farside Robinhood! So now the whole blog world knows...What would you have done? :)

Phone Calls

Sometimes the Telephone just drives me nuts. Since Far Guy would not allow a phone booth to be out by the end of the road, I am stuck with it in the house. Well I guess I need it inside the house for the Internet connection. We have a high speed connection using the "bottom" portion of the phone line. I do not begin to understand this technology. It works, and on the few occasions that it hasn't I do use the phone to call and complain.

I do not like to answer the phone. Far Guy usually does that dastardly deed. If it were up to me, I would let the answering machine handle all the calls.

Lately we have been getting some automated calls, one was from some warranty company. I love messing with these people. if you say "uffda" to everything they ask you..eventually they hang up on you. I was probably taken off their list..so sad. We get some non-profit calls, I tell them to send me the information through snail mail...and won't divulge my address. One time I won a trip to Branson, Missouri..imagine that... me a winner of a trip!! I asked him if there would be more than ten people in town and more than two cars on the road at the same time..he hung up on me too. Why do these people call me if they are only going to end up hanging up on me? Oh ya, it is probably part of their job, to place many calls, and talk to crazy old women. Now they have computer generated phone calls, I had one that said "You are a very important customer, please hold for our first available customer service representative" WHAT?? Why in the world is some company calling me to put me on hold? Obviously they are wasting my time, I wondered how many people are actually stupid enough to wait? And then there was the time that they wanted me to verify my credit card number..I suspect that they were crooks..first I told him that if he would tell me his then I would tell him mine. Finally I told him that I was so poor I couldn't get one of those chargy cards, didn't he know that when the bank gives you one of those chargy cards they actually want you to repay them? He then wanted to know if I did everything with cash..he was a nosy little bugger..and wanted my checking account number..he was definitely a crook...I told him nope, I don't trust the banks..so I do all my business with postal money orders..he hung up too. Now I suppose all the political phone calls will start, I will have to keep track..because those that irritate me by the greatest number of phone calls may not get my vote.

We are signed up for the do not call list, and I am still surprised at the number of phone calls we get.

Now some women seem to be joined at the hips with all their phones, cells phones and the new Eye Phones ( I still can't figure out how an eye phone works..I am truly puzzled). I am not a joined at the hip phone user.. on the few occasions that I am in a fairly good mood I will answer it..if you are the lucky recipient of my "hello what the heck do you want" then consider yourself really lucky.
I do enjoy the phone call that begins "Hi Gramma" now those are real phone calls:)

Where Have I been??

Hey, Welcome to my blog. I have been blogging since last December.. if you would like to read what I have written previously everything can be found here ! Sit a spell, take your shoes off, relax, and please leave comments! Gosh I am glad you are here!!

The Garbage of Life

Do you keep your garbage of life, throw it away or shelve it?

Far Guy is a shelver. He can remember way back fifty years ago to some kid in the third grade that wiped a booger off on him. He shelved it then, he carries around his shelf, occasionally taking the "stuff" off of it, dusting the stuff off, inspecting it..thinking about all the stuff on his shelf...continuing to carry his heavy load. It might have something to do with his type A personality.

I am a partial shelver, but I have a really little shelf that never gets dusted or inspected. For me to put something on my shelf it had to have been something really bad...like an outright lie. My memory would have to be really good to shelve everything, so I am mainly a thrower. Something bugs me, I throw it out, or ignore it, sooner or later it will resolve itself.

Some people keep their garbage of life. They keep everything that they perceive as "bad" and keep it in their big bag slung over their shoulder. Then when they come to visit you, they get out their bag, strew the mess all over and expect you to go through it with them bit by smelly, rotten bit. I do not do this smelly garbage thing well. If you bag is so large and so smelly then you need the help of a professional counselor or perhaps a shrink. I have a friend that is a shrink, and I can make an appointment for you.

If you have one small shelved problem maybe I can help you to work it out. I am a fairly good listener, but if you don't want my opinion don't ask for it. Well sometimes you don't even have to ask, I have been known to give my opinions quite freely.

Sure I make mistakes, I am human, that's life, get over it and move on. Everyday is a new opportunity to do some things better. I like to think of everyday as a "do over" that's the beauty of being a thrower, you can start each day new and unencumbered:)