The Story That Terrifies Me

I'm not sure when I read The Monkey's Paw by W. W. Jacobs but it terrified me.  A movie is out. I refuse to watch it.

Basically The Monkey's Paw is a tale of three wishes.  What I came away with was never wish because there is a price.  If I wished, say for money, I would say, "I wish for money without any harm coming to anyone I know or love".

I was so terrified by this story it has stayed with me for years!  It is well known in my family if someone says, "I wish..." that I start screaming  "Monkey's Paw! Monkey's Paw!"

The reason I find this extremely unusual is I gravitate toward dark writing.  I am an avid Poe, King, and Koontz fan along with many other authors that make my hair stand on end.  I write darkly.  I love the thrill of a good scare.

Yet The Monkey's Paw takes the cake.  I will not read it nor see the movie.  And that's final!

What story, book, movie scares you like this and why?

Gratefulness and Two Shoes in Texas...

Six Sentences with Two Shoes

During this unusual winter I am grateful for many things I had taken for granted.

I am grateful for indoor plumbing, power, fuel and food and am also grateful that I know how to make do. I am grateful for friends and family.

I mention indoor plumbing twice because I remember the out houses, hauling water, breaking ice and freezing my buns while the wind made the wall paper move.  Nothing colder than an outhouse on a winter's day with your behind bare.

Wishing you warmth and blue skies...and indoor plumbing!

Doing Things Differently

Along with the cold we have had lots of high winds.  Tree limbs falling and old tin roof trying to fly away.  We decided to fasten them down on the old house

and the smokehouse.  

Hubby did it Sunday.  I am usually the one in the bucket.  This day Hubby decided bravely I would control the up and down of the bucket and he would risk his life inside.  Obviously I don't understand the word "smoothly" because nothing about his ups and downs was smooth.  He bravely stood as I jerkily raised and lowered him.  I think he was tired of me screaming from the bucket. I didn't cause him to scream once.  He just said, "Smoothly".  

When I returned him to the ground safely I said thank you.  I was so grateful not to be gripping the bucket for dear life. I did learn a new game...Bouncy Bucket.  Hubby didn't like playing it.

The winds are still strong but I hear no tin roofs flapping.  Such a relief.

Sorry for the butt shots but we had a lot of help and it's difficult to maneuver a bucket while taking pictures.

Sunday Was A Spring Day...

Ice was removed from the water gardens and fresh water added.  So far so good.  All the chickens, dogs and birds enjoy these gardens as much as I do.

Got my boots wet

and muddy

Pruned the fig, removed dead wood, wisteria and rose limbs

Now it's ready for spring with waste to burn.

Trimmed a lot more bushes here and there and decided to quit when I got my last owie.  I keep Walmart in business just with band aides and antibiotics.  

We accomplished a lot more Sunday but I will save some excitement for another post.

The temperatures are dropping but we had one day to play.  We were grateful for that day.

Stay warm.

The Mill

For The Mag.  Thanks, Tess.

The Mill by Andrew Wyeth

The mill was silent.  The stream frozen. The last wood was laid on the fire as the family gathered around the table to pray for spring.

Clouds...

DAYDREAMING

Cotton candy clouds
Marshmallow stepping stones
Entice you to forget reality
And swim in the blue sky.

For Poetry Jam

Counting Cows...

or counting coup

could be about the same...

Depends

on who you try to touch.

A Walk

A WALK

Are you sure you want to follow?

The water's cold and the rocks are hard

Are you sure you want to follow?

We will be leaving the safety of the yard

Are you sure you want to follow?

Lil's eyes said to me

Are you sure you want to follow?

Who knows what waits beneath the trees

I was sure to follow

Over ever hill and rock

I was sure to follow

Even through the gates that lock

I was sure to follow

Down the deep creek bed

I was sure to follow

Trusting I felt no dread.

We saw birds and cattle

We saw deer in a row

We saw our breath in the air

We decided it was time to go.

For dVerse~Poets Pub

I Have Low T!

The television says so...moodiness and low energy means low testosterone.  Yep, that's what I have, alright.

T

Boss Got Boots

Gibbs: Put 'em on. You can't work a field in high heels. [smiles]

I think my new Gibbs haircut might be lucky.  I found boots.The rubber boots I have been waiting for since my old ones died.  Here is the beginning of their demise.

I had two requirements, That they be waterproof and not slick on the bottom.  Today after almost a year of leaky boots and then none at all, I found them...two pair...may they last twenty years like the last pair.

The pink ones are for easy spotting in case I  get lost.  Hubby can find me easier.

I asked Hubby which pair.  He looked at black and camouflage.  I asked if he liked these.  You could tell he was struggling for the right words.  "They're all gonna get muddy," he safely answered.  I pointed out he could find me better with the pink ones if I fell over somewhere.  He gave in and said get both.  I think what he was really thinking was he will only have to see the pink ones half the time.

One pair is taller so I can wade deeper into whatever I decide to wade and my feet will be dry.

Hubby can't say much about footwear.  Look at his red flannel plaid slippers in this photo.

HEY, Y'ALL I GOT BOOTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Now, it's almost flip flop weather.

I Tried...

to take a walk to my favorite spots.  It did not take long for the wind and the temps to discourage me.

Here is our main spring deceptively looking shallow.  The water is "boiling" up from underground where the white sand is.  Yes, this is our drinking water and supplies two households with no strain.  This water is better tasting and cleaner than most treated water in municipalities.

The rocks you see surround where the pump is.  We must clear the extra sand twice a year.  The first spring surround was a barrel.  No one knows who placed the barrel. When cleaning I found remains of old iron rings. Grandpa laid rocks and Dad added a ridge to walk around.

From here the spring flows down a stream into a pond.  From there it joins the creek.  We are the head waters of  Lunenburg Creek.

I continued my walk to a clear spot after collecting Beggar's Lice...the small seeds you see clinging to my pants.  This plant is a favorite for the deer to eat.

Had some trouble with my shoes so I left them and continued bare foot.  Part of this was still frozen and the rest was very liquid.  No arrow heads today but very cold feet.

Washing my shoes and feet in icy water from the outside faucet finished me off for a taste of the outdoors.

I've got to find some rubber boots!

Poetry Jam Refrigerator

For Poetry Jam

My refrigerator can't talk

Or it would scream

Empty me 

Make me clean.

We have two rules

"If in doubt, throw it out"

"Please shut the doors"

I've added signs and more.

My family who does this

Can not see 

The chaos that reigns

Inside this poor beast.

Just in case on the door 

For all to see

Is the Poison Hotline

Placed there by me.

It Was A Walmart Day

and I love them so!  I postpone going until I HAVE to go and usually have two buggies of life's essentials...sea foam, dog food, the latest and greatest from the automotive department just to mention a few... always piled high with food stuffed every where.  Pizzas make good sideboards for the buggy so I can stack higher.

I was having my hair butchered at the local hair salon within Walmart's walls as Hubby walked.  My hair was horrible.  I do a better job cutting my own outside with the wind blowing the hair away.  Ended up going to another stylist to fix this one.  I look like Mark Harmon now...Semper Fi.

Hubby accidentally wandered into the contraceptive department, an aisle we seldom travel. When I'm through with my glasses (replacing lens) and my weed whacked hair do, Hubby catches up with me.  He whispers,  Did you know they have vibrators in Walmart?  He said It's made by some company called Trojan. Uh, no, I didn't know because there is no need for me to shop that aisle.  I said Same company that makes rubbers, remember them?  Hubby is actually embarrassed, God love him!

I really think we need to get out more!

I Don't Drink

but every now and then I like to look at what is available.  I found this:  Jim Beam Jacob's Ghost White Whiskey "Jacob's Ghost celebrates the 'Spirit' of Jim Bean's founding distiller, Jacob Beam--by refining the clear whiskey he first distilled in 1795.  Jacob's Ghost is clear, but it isn't Moonshine or un-aged White Dog. It's a special whiskey, aged at least one year in white oak barrels and crafted by our master distillers with over 200 years of Beam tradition to be uniquely versatile and flavorful."

This description did not convince me but when I read the shelf label I laughed out loud. The label said, "An infinite mixer...Drink it any damn way you please".  I'm not sure how drinkers choose their product but if something makes me laugh, it's coming home with me!

First my husband was shocked because I'm such a non-drinker I've been accused of being the poster child for Prohibition.  It made me laugh.  I wrote the slogan on the very bag I carried it home in.

It's sad when your sick humor makes you buy whiskey.

I smelled it...mild, not a slap in your face whiskey.  I tried two drops in the lid....mild but not overbearing. I mix a drink...a small amount that Hubby claimed wasn't even a jigger.  I  replied, "Drink it any damn way you please!"  I added Dr Pepper since that is one of my drinks of choice, settled on the couch and tried to become a drinker.

It tasted like shit! (Pardon me)  I thought, Okay, maybe if you eat some bread it will taste better.  Nope!

I tried to pawn it off on Hubby.  He said he couldn't drink it because he just took his medicine.

I can't waste anything...I mean anything...it's like setting fire to money.  So I offered it to Bonnie, Hubby's pup.

She liked it and was licking deep into that glass.  I suspect it was the sugar in the Dr Pepper but she could be a drinking dog.  With several laps under her belt Hubby told me not to get his dog drunk.  Much to Bonnie's disappointment I pulled her drink away and against all my better judgement poured it down the drain.

Later I got accused of getting Bonnie drunk.  Hubby said she has redesigned her crate, pulling her bed out, made a door with it and was having a ball dragging her blanket all over hell and creation.  It was hilarious but I think she could still drive.  I asked Bonnie to stand on one leg and touch her nose.  Alas, she couldn't do it.

I may be arrested for contributing to the delinquency of a pup!

The bottle shall stand in my kitchen with it's wonderful label and still make me smile when I go by...or maybe I will try it in sweet tea. When I get a sore throat surely I can choke down a spoonful with honey and that will give it a medicinal purpose.

I can no longer be called a (tea) teetotaler...I got whiskey!

Gone For A While.

After almost six years, 2223 posts At The Farm, 1031 posts on  Familiar Spirits  and who knows how many words and pictures I am speechless for the moment.

If you have withdrawal from my words (I hope!) you can view old posts by either entering a subject in the blogs' search bar or clicking randomly on the Linked Pictures at the bottom of each post.

May all your dreams come true.

Another View Through My Windows

The ice still clings to branches

like a shy child holding onto a mother's dress tail.

Icicles grow. 

Dog food bowls fly like hockey pucks

when I slide the food outside.

The stock is fed.

The fires are warm.

The cupboard is stocked.

We find the magic in the ordinary things.

We are blessed.

Through My Window...

 Old Man Winter is not being gentle this year.

Our snow is gone

but the North gate is still open.

All kinds of winter records are being broken.

The ice grows

And I dream of spring.

I wish you warmth.

Stone-D Conversation

I had a talk with a rock
He had a tale to tell
Said he was millions of years old
Was made from silt and shell.

He said they called him Limestone
His cousin's name was Shale
Both were born underwater
Exactly when they couldn't tell.

Said he was much bigger
Millions of years ago
As soon as water receded
He began to erode.

The rock held some secrets
From years long ago
He held fossils deep within
You could read his life in rows.

When the roads came
He stood in the way
A "powder monkey" drilled, packed
And blew his face away.

For Real Toads

Sounds and Light

The west end of the valley
Stays light when all goes dark
No houses anywhere close
The dogs begin to bark.

Hubby laughs and says,
"You watch too many alien shows!"
But he doesn't hear the mountains talk
Or watch the way the dogs go.

It's not their game bark
They do not "bay" a trail
The dogs face the southwest
Bark and tuck their tails.

If my farm pack could only talk
To tell me what they hear
I could smile at Hubby and say
"It ain't no blooming deer!"

For Poets United

If I Could Build A Fantasy...

Today we are invited by Real Toads to write a mini-fantasy.  They mentioned three brilliant authors I admire and could only dream to be one-tenth as good as they.

"I'm not strange, weird, off, nor crazy, my reality is just different from yours.” 
― Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass

If I could build a fantasy
There would be no wars
Every one would have all they need
And no one would be poor

If I could build a fantasy
All plants and animals would talk
There would always be conversation
No matter where you walked

If I could build a fantasy
Magic would be pure
And the country would have new leaders
Our vote would count for sure.

If I could build a fantasy
The mythical would exist
A unicorn could be sited
In the morning's mist.

If I could build a fantasy...

A Rottweiler could drive.

The Magic Recliner...

Once upon a time 

I bought a magic chair

No matter where I place it

Hubby finds it there

No way to resist

You always fall asleep

Whether it is man

or beast.

He's gonna kill me!!!

The flash woke up Bonnie and made Hubby move

but they fell under the spell of the chair again.

Six Sentences For Two Shoes

The new year brought cold temps and high winds. Oh, the winter we will have.  When the power goes we will last a while but if the snow is deep we may become lost in drifts of the storm and of life.

If we are stranded I do not have a cooking pot large enough for human parts and will not survive like the Donner Party and others who had no choice.

If the worst should happen I hope when the spring is new they will only find our bodies and know we burned books and cooked shoe leather to survive.  We could be found holding each other frozen while trying to warm ourselves never thinking anyone would taste like chicken.

For Josie Two Shoes Creative Challenge Six Sentences.