Roller Coaster Week

Even me--who usually remains on an even keel--emotionally, have had my emotions go up and down like a roller coaster, until I nearly made myself sick.

I watched too much of the Weather Channel and the news--too many hours for two days straight.  How can those people ever recover?  WE ARE TEXAS STRONG!  Well, of course that's a nice motto and supposed to be uplifting, and any State would say that faced with a disaster like the flood, but c'mon...at sometime in this tragedy, any normal person would break down.

Coming home to find everything destroyed with a couple of Water Moccasin's curled up on my flood soaked davenport, would put me right over the edge.  Let alone seeing every scrapbook and photo album I have, ruined.

Having to live in that big center, for more than two days, would put me into a catatonic state and mentally gone.  No privacy.  All the humanity--the noise.  How could you sleep--on a small uncomfortable cot, babies crying during the night, people coughing, snoring.  The fatigue alone would kill me.  Having to be on guard in case some drug addict, coming off his high, was going to take the few dollars I had with me.  

FEMA can help, but it wouldn't help me.  They would loan me some money to restart, but with what little I have, I couldn't re-pay the loan on a new place.

I don't know how any of those people can ever recover.  Especially the farmers!  No food for their live stock.  After the flood waters recede, the pasture will be covered with heavy silt, mold and not fit for cattle to eat.  

I sometimes think, those that died are the lucky ones.
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Friday came along and I HAD to go foraging for food.  I had two prescriptions to pick up at Walmart, so I made a list of what I needed for food, the cats, anything I could think of and walked to my car, parked in back, and traveled on up to Howell.

It was like a Saturday in there.  Why were these people, who usually work on Friday, in the store?  My gosh--every kid in the county was in there--arguing with their parents over school supplies, or just crying in frustration.

Well, I put on my smile and went about my business and when a boy came out from a side aisle and T-boned my cart and his mother screamed at him,  I said, "Hey, that's okay.  No harm done.  I should have been watching more carefully."  He looked at me with tears in his eyes.  Trying to be a big boy and help mother with the cart and the baby sister.  I wanted to just hug him.

Then on the drive home, I wondered how I was going to make 7 trips back and forth to the car--parked 85 steps away from my front porch.  I knew, I couldn't do it.  I was already exhausted and feeling a bit weak.

I pulled onto my street and thought, "To heck with it.  Drove right up on my lawn--as they have tape across the old part of my drive--where I could have carefully parked.  Got another bright idea, trudged out to my shed, got my wheel barrow, put some of the smaller bags into my canvas shopping bags, loaded the two gallons of water in the front, over the wheel, layered my 4 jugs of Pepsi in the bed of the wheel barrow, and put the rest on top.  Pushed it up and under the yellow tape up by my front steps and toted in my groceries.

Came in and rested my back.  My doc would have been happy to see I had a nice heart rate of 67 going on.

Saturday, I was all ready to sit in my recliner and watch the first football games.  To my dismay, when at noon, I clicked on to watch my Michigan State Spartans, I discovered it was on ESPNU--a channel I had last spring, but lost when I had to down grade my Comcast.

So I watched a pretty good movie on TCM, then watched the Michigan University game against Florida and later the Florida State/Alabama game.

This morning, I watched my favorite pastor and bible teacher, Dr. David Jeremiah and then, once again I watched a live-stream, on my computer, of the Baptist Church in Columbia, South Carolina.  The sermon was based on one of my most favorite hymns, "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" and the last hymn they sang was my Mother's favorite hymn, "I Need Thee Every Hour."  I am getting more used to the style of preaching the pastor has.  I felt very blessed from his sermon.  

I am such a lazy church goer.  I have to admit, I kind of like "going" to church while in my jammies, drinking my warm cocoa and eating my Cheerios.
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3/4 done with my counted cross stitch project.  It took me the entire month of August to stitch just that part on the hoop.  Such detail in this.

I started the last two Shepherds today.=
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Rain is expected late tomorrow, so I better move my car.  The lawn is hard enough now, so the tires won't leave any dents, but with rain?..............

It's here! It's here.

Finally--it seems like a long time in waiting.

My cement mixer, putzy-putzy, arrived here.

They did such a fine job of smoothing, and floating, and brooming.

They asked me if I wanted to put my name or handprint in the corner.  I decided that the cement will be here longer than me, so I declined.  Then I thought, I could find a metal Spartan head and put it in the corner, but then...what if when my kids have to sell the place, a U of M fan likes it, but wouldn't buy it because of Sparty.  So, I decided to take one of my heart stones, from my collection, and put that in the corner.  

Right over where the bumble bees had their underground nest.

Tomorrow, the guys are coming back to put the "line" across.  This helps the cement stay stable in our cold winters, when the ground underneath heaves and settles.

By the way--after they left and I walked out to go to my car, I saw three bees buzzing around that spot.  No doubt those little rascals will figure out a way to rebuild their city!!
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Had my yearly check-in at the Cardiologist's this afternoon.  Didn't even have to have an EKG.  He is a bit concerned about my continuing slow heart rate--52--I told him I was happy with that because a year ago it was in the 40's!  He had cut one of my meds--that slows the heart--in half.  I'd like to quit taking it, but if I have another AFib instance, I might have to get a Pacemaker--and I want none of that.  I remember how it creeped me out, feeling and seeing it, just under Fred's skin near his left shoulder.  My heart rate was 65 when I was at my doc's office a couple of weeks ago, so I'm not worried.  I had taken an Ativan at noon--maybe that slowed it down?

Anyway, I love this doctor.  He is the one who saved Fred's life.  Today he said, "I miss Fred."

"Me too, " I replied.

"How long has it been now.  Two years?"

"Five and a half."

"We are aging quickly, aren't we?"

"A year ago, you told me I'd live into my nineties.  I'm going for ninety-two."

"Why ninety-two.  Go for a hundred."

"Nope," I said.  "I don't want to live to be a hundred."

"Why not.  What's the difference between ninety-two and a hundred?"

"Eight long years in a nursing home!"

Anyway--I think it's sweet that he remembers Fred--as did the receptionist today.  When I checked-in, although she hadn't seen me in a year, she mentioned, "I sure miss Fred."  
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It's strange because, every now and then, one of the people at the pharmacist will mention Fred and how he always brightened their day.  Just last Sunday, Yvonne, the girl that took time off to attend Fred's funeral, said to me, "I was just thinking about Fred the other day.  He was always smiling, no matter what.  Here you are, eye all swollen and red, and your smiling.  I can see why you two got along so well."

Well, yes.  Fred and I never took anything too seriously.  Five minutes before he died, he gave me a hug, a kiss and a big smile and said, "I'll see you in a few minutes. Love you."

Yeah--we were made for each other.

I woke up frustrated and cranky this morning.

I had forgotten to put my bite guard in last night, and I bite a hunk out of my cheek during a dream.  When I woke up, Buddy decided to jump off the bed and dug two of his back claws into my calf when he launched himself.  My eye is still very irritated and all the goop and drops I have to put in it, get on my eye lashes and thus my glasses and everything is blurry.  My back hurt, I have a pain running from my right index finger down to my wrist and my right thumb joint was screaming, plus, I had a headache.

A couple of hours later, I sat down and watched the Weather Channel and thought, what a whiny, unappreciative woman I am!  What those people are going through is unimaginable!  This flood is of Biblical proportions and here I am, having a pity party because I don't feel good!  I am so sorry!
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The guys came back to work some more on the driveway.  I sat on the porch, in my rocker and watched.

No--it's not a crime scene.  They aren't searching for Hoffa's body.  They built the frame.
Can you believe, there are still some small bees in the lower, right corner?

This guy is drilling the holes in the cement slab that is already there to put re-bar into, 
so that the 2 slabs will be as one, and one won't

heave up higher than the other and crack.

This guy is leveling and smoothing out the ground.

Trimming up the end of the driveway here.  I hope my neighbor's don't mind all the dust headed toward their open windows.

They think they will put in the mesh and pour the cement tomorrow afternoon, although it is supposed to rain and I don't think they pour cement when it is raining.

Then it has to cure for 7 days before I can use it.  So---maybe by September 6th, I won't have to tote my groceries so far?

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Today is Karen and Mark's 36th anniversary.  I think their daughter said it best. 

"The most hardworking people I know- working for our family, for each other, for God, for 36 years!!! Thank you for showing us how love conquers all, every day. Happy anniversary mum and pops, I love you!"
She's right.  They have the most wonderful marriage and family I have ever known, and the cutest babies and nicest adult children.

One-Eyed Jude

This is making it difficult to type, but I am determined!!

 

My eye started itching on Thursday.  Friday was scratchy,  Saturday I could hardly see out of it and Sunday it was swollen shut.  I thought I probably had conjunctivitis, but it hurt so bad I drove on up to the ER.

They found a small piece of grit in the cornea, toward the lower part.  The consensus was, that since the only place I had been in 5 days was the dentist, some of the tooth polishing grit that they use flew up into my eye.  I remember feeling it, but thinking nothing of it.

I got two prescriptions, one a soothing drop to use 4 times a day and an antibiotic gel to use at night.  Call my ophthalmologist if it doesn't improve.
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The hole that the ground bees went underground was right under where I stand to empty out the trunk of my car.  I love how they made tunnels leading to and from the nests.

Apparently squirrels had shoved some peanuts down the hole 

and the rain had moved them over by the nest.

                                Egg cells that will never hatch. 

They emptied 2 cans of Wasp and Hornet spray on the nest.

Apparently the bees didn't mind because they kept hovering.

The guys came back this morning to remove the rest of the cement.  The first thing the guy in the Bobcat did was load a bunch of dirt on top of the next.

When the kid in the green shirt bent over to lift up a piece of cement, I yelled, "WATCH OUT!"
He jumped and ran.  "Did you see bees?" He asked.  "Nope," I said.  "I just wanted to see if you were ready!"

 ...and they still won't let me drive or even ride in the Bob Cat--something that is on my bucket list!!


They apologized for the delay and said I'm gonna love it when it's done.
I asked, "Might that be before Christmas?"
The kid in the green shirt replied, "We're shooting for Thanksgiving."

The thing of it is, when they finally pour the cement, it has to cure for 7 days before I can park on it.  I have found a new parking spot that is only 50 steps from my house.  The other one out by my shed was 80.  I think when I have to tote in groceries, I will just back up on the part of the driveway that hasn't been destroyed.  

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Darlin' Della is 10 months old.  

"They" all like to say she looks like her Daddy.

I have photos to prove them wrong and Karen and I know,

she is the spitting image of her Grandma Karen.  HAH!!

Interesting Day

My oldest grandson, Marcus, messaged me last night at 11:15--this photo.  He and Morgan just engaged and wanted me to be the first to know.  Made my heart glad--the first to know.

Morgan is the girl I was telling you about that dances ballet and raises and shows hogs at the fairs.
A farm girl, after my own heart and a little tiny thing.

This is the baby quilt I had set aside for them. 

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 This morning at 9:30, the guys arrived to tell me I had to move my car as they were going to start taking up the cement in my driveway in 10-15 minutes.  I was still in my jammies, but I scurried about and moved it out back, near my shed.

 At 3:30 they were back.

Watch video here.


and when they took up that big chunk, I yelled, "WATCH OUT THERE'S A BEES NEST!"

Watch video here:


Look at the amazing tunnels those ground bees have made!!

The guys said they'd come back tomorrow to finish up.  Hope the bees have a new home.

Wondrous

What a nice weekend I had.  For the first time, I got to meet, in person, a blog buddy.  I was kind of nervous.  We have our own perception of what the people are like, from reading their blogs. Meeting them in person might show us that they are entirely different.  I was afraid I might disappoint her.

SHE was exactly like I thought she would be.  Jenny Webber.   http://www.jennyweber.com/

I had seen photos of her and her family and I once commented that if I ever met her handsome husband, I'd probably fall into a faint at his feet.

Well, I managed to stay upright, but YOWZA!!  He is 6'5" tall, trim, strong jaw, tanned, steel gray hair, wonderful smile--he reminded me of Fred.

Jenny is a tiny little thing--a foot shorter than her husband.  Full of energy.  I adored her immediately.

She came in with a bag of goodies for me, snacks and apples and Raspberry preserves, my favorite Cheerio's, French Toast bread, that is delish and...and--a 6-pack of Diet Pepsi.  

It was like talking to an old friend.  We knew of each other's children, her son Andrew serving another deployment and I have been praying for him for over a year.  We chatted about them and our backgrounds.  We agreed on how much we are sadden by and dislike the current issues in our society.

She and her husband are about the age of my kids, I would guess and so, I felt like I had visited with family.

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They had driven up from South Carolina to Toledo, Ohio to visit family.  Then drove on up from Toledo to Lansing, MI to visit another blog buddy.  Well on the way from Toledo to Lansing runs the expressway that is just a mile from my place.

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Before they left, her husband gave me a little booklet that is about their church.  He told me they have a live stream of Sunday morning services.

On Sunday morning, I got up and went on the website at 11:00 and watched live.  It was the coolest thing!!!  He had explained it was a small church with only about 500 members.

Little?  That's a Mega church to me.  My church has about 120 people in attendance on a Sunday Traditional service.

I have never "attended" a Southern Baptist church service, but I knew every hymn they had and sang along.  The preacher was more spirited than our Methodist preachers get, but he reminded me of how my Grandpa preached in the 40's and 50's.  

He'd get to shouting and then his voice would get real low and soft.  I could tell, this man was filled with the spirit.  There would be no "sleepers" in his congregation.  LOL

His message was strong and true.  Cast your cares on God.  Trust in Jesus.  As God was, He will always be.  Standing on the promises of God, the same now as they've always been.

I will watch again next Sunday morning.

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Jennifer, I know you are reading this and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for stopping in.  It was my privilege to have you and Greg visit me, in my wee home.  Next time you are up this way, leave enough time for a visit to The Farm. 

May our God continue to bless you and your family!!

XX OO

Calm Down

I am just fine and thanks for caring Luna.  If you were on FB, you would know I am alive and well and....fighting with new computer issues.

I keep blaming Windows 10, when actually it's PEBCAC. (Problem exists between chair and computer).

I've had to sign-in to every thing I use, including this blog.  New computer, new operating system, thinks that I am brand new too.  Which can get a bit frustrating because, the last time I signed in was 4 years ago and I have since forgotten my password.  HAH!

Then, there were a few files missing--files that didn't get transferred onto the new hard-drive.  Picture files, that I almost panicked when I couldn't find them.  

I took the new baby back in yesterday to have all this corrected and now, I have everything I want and need.  I think.  Thankfully, they keep my old hard drive for 3 months, just in case.

I got the machine back, but didn't start plugging all the peripherals into it until midnight.  When I got up this morning and my printer was off-line and no amount of searching on how to get it back on-line helped.  I called my computer people.

After 20 minutes of them remotely trying to fix the problem, she asked, "It looks like the printer isn't plugged in."

"Oh, sure it is.  I did it last night."

"Can  you look to make sure?"

"Sure."

I checked all the wires, they were plugged in to the right places.

"Everything is plugged in."

"Is your printer plugged into a USB port?"

"Yes."

"Can  you check to make sure it's plugged in all the way?"

I'm thinking, 'well Duh.  Of course it is.'

When I touched it, it fell out of the USB port.  I shoved it into another port and..............I hadn't plugged it in tight enough!

She said, "Oh, I hear the printer starting up.  You solved the problem!"  Soon a test page came printing out.

"I KNOW what the problem was and I don't think I can solve it!  The problem is the computer operator!"
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I was so determined NOT to get Windows 10 until I had too and knowing full well it was going to cause me all sorts of problems, I was already biased against it.  If anything went wrong, I assumed.  You know what assumed gets ya--right?
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So, I have been centered in on this new computer that I have not even given a thought about posting on my blog.  GEEZ LOUISE!

All else has been calm and boring and every day.  I hope to get a hair cut and some groceries tomorrow, plus pay the rest of the month's bills.

Thursday I am cleaning this house--because I have dust all over everything, alone with cat fur and stuff I have laid on the counter, to put away later.  BECAUSE--on Friday, one of my blog buddies is coming from South Carolina near here and she wanted to stop in.  

I am soooooooo looking forward to the visit, but you know, kind of nervous.  She has a beautiful home and family and here I am, just an old country plow-girl living in a trailer.  
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Karen baby-sat Della this past week-end and let her do anything she wanted.  Including unrolling the bathroom tissue roll.  HAH!