Thursday's Things In A Row

 It's Thursday and time to visit Pat

and show our rows of this and that.

Loofah Sponges are fun to use.

Did you know they grow in rows, too?

All these rows are for Pat.

She has a house.

Now she needs a cat.

Rows of whiskers

piles of hair

but with eyes like this

who would care?

A very special treat for Pat today.

A shed snake skin "shot" where it lay.

Enjoy!

Been Itchin'...

and I've been scratchin'...a lot.  Can't find any varmints biting me, haven't changed any washing products, no changes that I know.  I'm not so blind I can't see a chigger or a tick either...with my glasses of course.  I even asked a friend if I had the shingles and she assured me I would KNOW if I had them.  I'm an expert on recognizing poison oak since it is a long time friend of mine.

Can't go the doctor because there is no relief at work.  When Hubby had his surgery I got two days off by borrowing two different people.  It's like playing chess, gotta know how to move around those helpers.

Anyway back to my itching story...I have tried just scratching...with a hair brush, with my nails, with a back scratcher...nothing stopped it.  Then I would put lotion all over.  Soothing for a short time.  So I started using lavender oil and that seemed to help.  Slather up at bedtime then wash off in the morning.  

I had a better idea.  I had a set of Lavender products so there was a wash.  Okay, I thought it was a wash.  I don't shower with my glasses.  I'm singing and slathering this stuff every where on me in the shower...then it starts to burn...in the tender places...oh, my goodness, did it burn!!!!  I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and was still burning in certain areas that had not even had a direct application.  I was a victim of run-off.  Through the crags and valleys of this ole body, water runs to the lowest spot.

When almost every thing stopped burning I toweled dry(no pictures).  Then I made the report to Hubby.  He laughed.  I laughed and said it felt like what I imagine Ben Gay would feel like in your underwear.

THEN I GOT MY GLASSES.  It said, "Invigorating, refreshing foot massage potion.  Do not use on over-dry or tender feet".  Well, it didn't hurt my feet and I do seem to be itching less today.

96,310 All Time Views...

One thousand six hundred and eighty posts later, I am truly amazed I am still here.  Three hundred seventy-two followers, they come and they go.

I have a loyal few that always visit and many that stop in now and then.  I just wanted to say thank you.

It has certainly been a journey.  I began September 10th 2008.  The Love of Haflingers has been my most viewed post. That was before I knew I couldn't use someone's pictures.  My bad.  I know the rules now and people keep coming. 

Now, I only use Marcy's and my pictures with no photo fixing because even after all this time I am still computer illiterate.  Cropping is the only photo touch up I can do.

I'm not sure I can live without y'all so just saying thanks for hanging around.  I hope you have never been bored.

Happy Memorial Day!

To all those who have served and are serving,

 THANK YOU.  

To those who have passed,

WE WILL NOT FORGET!

Mag 119 Prompted By Tess Kincade...

Tess Kincaid at Magpie Tales

gives a writing prompt each week.

Join the fun.

House At Dusk by Edward Hopper

The House That Jack Built

After building the house he sought the perfect mate to  match.  Next the two perfect children arrived exactly two years apart.

Oh, the secrets those curtains and dark windows covered.  To the community Jack was a fine upstanding businessman, but to his family, only paraded on special occasions as if they were prize acquisitions, he was a different man.

Jack had many secrets.

The perfect family huddled in the deep dark corners of the house that could never be called a home.

Tonight Jack was content viewing his other trophies people never saw. 

SC108...Golden Anywheres

Time once again to meet the weekly challenge. The Rules:  Use the picture below (horizontally or vertically) as inspiration for your story.  Number of words: 100.  Style of writing: Any.

Scientifically created Golden Anywheres
Had this lady walking on air
Crossing the ceiling she frowned
She was up but her dress stayed down.

What can I do?  She looked around
She could clean the ceiling just like before
But now she could sweep the dust to the floor.
Sweeping to her heart's content
The floor was quickly covered with lint.

The ceiling was finished
Her shoes held her tight
Her legs were burning from the heel's height.

Turning to go from ceiling to wall
The shoes came off.
She died from the fall.

Wishing You...

cool shade

bright beauty

helpful companions

and relaxation.

Thursday's Things In A Row

Rows of buoys on a lake

rows of concrete a dam does make

a launch, a fence, and islands fair

make you wish you were there.

Check on Pat and have a look

With all these rows

she should publish a book.

"Yesterday...

all my troubles seemed so far away..."   Today that song really tells where I am right now.  Went to the Barren Fork Creek yesterday during lunch to try and get my head around all the changes that are coming.

It helped to leave the office.  It helped me get a plan and the order of it.

As you know Hubby now has an ICD.  With my limited understanding, it is a combination pace-maker and a shock you back from death thing. After reading the information there will be many things he cannot do.  For one, he can't linger in the Wal Mart theft detector doorway.  I can see us now...I'll push the buggy through while yelling at him to RUN!!  He can no longer play with magnets nor get his cell phone closer than six inches to this new contraption.  It says some appliances may affect it but does not tell which ones.  Do we test each appliance?  Here, Honey, try the toaster...see if it kicks you to the floor.  This almost could be fun if it weren't so sad.  I could really having him hopping chasing him with my electric mixer.

Enough sick humor. 

Now we/I have to work on disability while no money is coming in from him.  I can't see that they won't approve it since Doc says, besides a heart transplant this is the only thing that will keep him alive.  But I worry, about his health, about our ability to survive without his income, about lots of things that I never talk about.  They say it takes at least six months for SS Disability to be approved. 

Also, the general public thinks it is good news that no post offices will close.  It's not good news.  They are cutting  the hours to some offices.  One of which is mine.  I can retire but I feel I am being forced out.  So now instead of 3500 offices closing, 30,000 postmasters will face RIF...reduction in force.  If only Congress has acted...Enough said...I will be retiring the last of July. There goes my working paycheck!

Well, today I have a day off.  Updated my Driver's license to get my new physical address on it.  Went to Batesville and ordered a copy of my social security card.  I lost it somewhere, goodness, knows where.  I have the one with my maiden name, I have the one from when I first married  but could not find my newest one.  The one I requested years ago when I realized my name did not match my employment records.  I have always gone by my middle name.  When I completed the postal application a hundred years ago, there was this spot that said if you lie, fines and imprisonment were promised.  I wrote my full name and thus 21 years after I was born I became Sheila Gail.

I also treated myself to a hair cut with the last of the money in my purse.

I am learning all kinds of new ways to be had.  I am learning many papers must be filled out just to retire.   Books to fill out, I should say.  I have learned my life insurance all these years is term to 70.  Why did I not know these things?  My employers never gave me a copy of the policy.  Just every paycheck, there went my money labeled life insurance.

Now, you understand why I had to go to the beauty of the creek at lunch.  I had to breath clean air and talk to no one.  I had to try and relax and tell myself this will all work out.

And when I came back from lunch break

the hay was moved in the field

and the birds were dining.



Lord, We Need A Rain...

to plump up the peaches

and make the berries fat.

With some blessed rain roses won't look like that.

DNA...

Ki's pup has a longer natural bob tail

but he shows her color under the black.

Also like his mom, Junior is rarely still.

This was after a fishing trip so he was exhausted.

Like Ki, he enjoys high places

so he can view the world.

Junior has inherited his mama's ears.

Nature or nurture?  The age long question.

DNA...Do Not Ask.

Cleaning The Fridge...

 One thing I have learned through the years is the more disgusting something looks, the tastier it is.  I use to make Refrigerator Stew on Fridays.  Now it gets moved to whatever day I get to clean the fridge.

Pictured above is left over pork, cooked with squash, potatoes, onions and seasoned delightfully.  I even threw in a tablespoon of ranch dressing to get the bottle out of the fridge.  It was quite good although the sight is not too appealing.

I had three chicken legs that needed to be cooked since Hubby is outta commission and Grandson is out of school.  Here's dinner, chicken soup, vegetables, pasta and three chicken legs cooked to perfection.

In the slow cooker for tomorrow, I have deer meat cooking in home canned tomatoes.  What it will become remains a mystery until I cook it all night and season it in the morning.

Waste not, want not.  That was the way I was raised and the way I cook.  I use no recipes.  I just cook what I have and every one eats and hopefully enjoys it.  Nobody complains.

This talent will come in handy now Hubby has no income.  I will be stretching that food dollar until it squeals.

Mag 118

The Circus Witch and The Yellow Clown, Chagall

The crowd watched as the strong man romanced the circus witch.

No one noticed the clown shedding invisible tears.

Tess Kincaid, creator of The Mag, challenger of writers every where, has picked a doozie this week!  I was left behind in the dust.  Hop over to visit Magpie Tales.  There are many wonderful contributions from creative people there.

Thanks, Tess, give me an easy one next week!

Saturday Centus107

The prompt this week is the picture below. Number of words: 100  Style of writing: Any Pictures: No additional.

These are words Ms Jenny used for this week's challenge at Saturday Centus, a writing prompt.  Join the fun and visit all the entries.

Blocking the sun filling the air
The smoke rose everywhere.
People gathered to look
On the day the earth shook

What can this be?
Smoke was rolling
No one could see

One lad tiny and fair
Softly said,
I can get there.

He walked long and far
Using the muted sun
As his guiding star.

His dog and the lad
Armed with a stick
Walked from clear air
To where it was thick

Disappearing in smoke
The lad was last seen
Waving out the window
Of a big silver thing.

No trace found
Except for one dog hair
On the ground.

Not Crop Circles...

We have crop rectangles.

Bev has been working on a porch for the shop.  First she lays out all the boards, paints them top and bottom.  It will simply be a matter of transporting the boards and then nailing them together at the shop.

Great job, Bev.

Thursday's Things In A Row

Rows of lights

to see in the dark

Rows of steps

to test your heart

Rows of windows

Rows of bricks

A place to come when you get sick.

Flying proud for all the see

the flag of the brave and the free.

Thank you for all your kind words and prayers.

  Hubby is home but can't work his chair.

He's a lefty so they cut on the right

His recliner's right handed

It's a sad sight.

But he can shoot when he is well

and won't blow his ICD all to hell-o

Say hi to Pat

She's got rows

Imagine that!

Sometimes You're The Bird...

Sometimes the flag pole.

Today was a flag pole day for me but I could feel the well wishes, the prayers, the strength coming from all of blogdom.  Thank you.

If you don't know me, I will say sometimes I use sick humor to deal with stress so bear with me, please.

This was a defibrillator Hubby got today.  He offered to let me watch and I said, this is not childbirth.  I don't think I want to watch.  I can't even pick a sticker out of some one's finger but I can sew up a dog, go figure.

Anyway, Hubby's heart is so badly damaged from his previous heart attacks that this was the only option, short of a heart transplant, that will save him.  I don't think it really hit me until today when the doctor said, "You don't think this is going to cure him, do you?  He will not feel any better, he will not do any better.  It will make no changes in his condition.  It will only save him if his beat is irregular or if his heart stops, it will shock him and restart his heart."  How's that for cutting to the chase???

On the bright side, the surgery went well.  I left him in the room after picking up (his request) chicken McNuggets and french fries (good for the heart, you know)  He ran me off and ordered me to be there early in the morning to take him home.  He can not lift more than five pounds and cannot raise his arms over his head for two weeks or until the stitches are removed.

They had some trouble with the chest numbing medicine.  Hubby said he didn't know how many shots they gave him but he still knew when they tested the shocker.  He yelled and scared the surgery room half to death.  He said, Damn!  You shocked me.  They said, You're not suppose to feel that.  He said, well, I did!!!  They were hoping he wouldn't remember it later and they discussed it while Dennis listened.  He told them, he would remember.  It was the talk on every floor we visited.  At least he made the day lively for all the staff.

He was scared but like me he jokes.  When asked to undress but he could leave his underwear and socks on, he said I don't wear underwear...then he changed it to, I have my g-string on.  He does wear underwear and has never owned a g-string or butt floss underwear.  He is the tractor man.

And tonight, thanks to all your prayers and healing thoughts, he is still my tractor man.

This N That

This corral is now re enforced with big cedar posts.

Head gate installed in concrete.

Tractor Man ready for surgery today.

Gonna get a kick starter for his heart.

Think of us today.

The 'possums have been released into the wild

far from dogs and chickens.

The mole patrol remains on duty

while a rose pretends to be a pinwheel.

What's Blooming?

Glade Moss

Day lilies

Spiderwort

a rose

and a pair.

Mag 117...The Meal

A weekly writing challenge from Tess with no rules.

Flex your imagination muscles and join the fun.

The Meal by Paul Gauguin

Three children sat at their table
No forks nor spoons nor ladles
The knife still lay
Pointed their way
Parents lay dead near the cradle.

Happy Mother's Day...

to all those with a mother's heart.

SC 106 Moon Madness

Jenny's prompt this week is: "Cream together butter and sugar..."

Number of words: 100 PLUS the five words of the prompt for a maximum word count of 105

Style of writing: Any
Pictures: As many as you like

The family curse…moon madness some called it or Wolf Time.  Name it what you want, it didn’t change.

Every generation one of us was affected by the moon.  Badly.  The curse did not leave us.  Each generation we waited to see who would hear the moon’s call.

Years ago the affected person would just be contained until the moon changed.  Our secret was kept.

Great Granny knew the magic of herbs so she discovered a combination that curbed the madness.

We use an old family recipe. Cream together butter and sugar, dried Wolfsbane, flour and eggs and bake.

During the full moon we eat cookies.