Teeth

One thing that I inherited from my grandma, Essie, was her straight, healthy teeth. At 67 years old, she still had all of her own teeth, and they were perfect. The nurses who took care of her in the hospital were constantly trying to take her teeth, but she would explain that they were her own – not false. Even then, the nurses did not believe her. My teeth are like that too. I had my first cavity last year.

When I turned 18 and my wisdom teeth started coming in, they began to push the other teeth forward. My dentist said he would take the wisdom teeth out and all would be fine. He was wrong. Within a year my front teeth were lapping over each other. Through the years they just got worse crowding other teeth also. When "Lord of the Rings" came out, I realized my teeth were looking much like orc teeth. It was time for a change. Since then, I have been wearing aligners – hard plastic molds that fit on my teeth and slowly rearrange them. Today, I will have my teeth filed a little, and that should be the end of the aligners. I will have to wear them at night as retainers, but I am finished straightening my teeth. Yeha!

This weekend we only went to church camp for one day. I played about 6 games of volleyball (playing to 21 for some reason), and followed my grandbaby around – two things I love. Lizzie loved her freedom. She played in the sand, she slid down the slide, and she ran free in the large fields following her Tia Jesse. I don’t know about her, but I was worn out at the end of the day. Sunday was a nice quiet day recovering from the volleyball. Lizzie came over, and we played some more. Jesse did not get home until after dark. She was super tired, but had time to dress her father up for the office Halloween party. If you are wondering why we did not work on the house, well, the cement mixer broke down. I guess Jesse and I can put back the missing parts now that we had a great weekend.

Changes

I bought new bathroom scales yesterday. Toby and I each weighed ourselves. It was not a pretty sight. Now we are starting the big diet (again). For Toby, dieting is difficult. Luckily he is a man and loses weight faster than a woman. For me, well, dieting is the story of my life, and I won't bore you with the details. I know I can diet, I know I can lose weight, and I know I can keep it off, but it takes resolve. I need some resolve - some incentive. I can go through all of the thoughts of how healthy I need to be, how I can play with my grandbaby easier, fit into clothes again...etc, but still, there has to be that determination - mindset on losing weight. I need some serious encouragement.

I need some changes in my life. Being on the computer early in the mornings might be one of the changes I need to make. Maybe I will move my computer time to evenings. Since I am a morning person, I need to be busier - get going earlier. Yet, no one calls at 6:30 or needs me - it is a good computer time. I need to get more walking time in - move more. I know what needs to be done, but will I do it? That is the question - not can I do it.

Okay, I have whined enough this morning. The diet is on. Changes are on the way. Maybe making it public like this will give me the incentive I need - hold me more accountable. We will see.

Little things

While visiting my mom and dad yesterday, one of my little brother's old buddies showed up at the house. He is a Texas State Highway Patrolman. When I opened the front door and saw him standing there, I thought, "Now why would a patrolman be here?" Then I saw the little boy in him. It was the little boy that used to hang out at our house along with Pete's other buds. We called him Jay Bird. It was such an odd thing to see this big Trooper, and yet still see him as a little boy, but it was there in his smile and in his eyes. It took me back to the days of wrestling Pete and his friends, pinning them down just to show them not to mess with me. Sometimes I would let them ride in the back of my pick-up and throw rocks at street signs (why not?). There was always a herd of those boys around. Maybe that is why Jesse and I love a houseful of boys. Jay Bird told me how my family, especially my dad, had played a big part in his life. Dad talked him into staying in school when he wanted to drop out. Jay said that running with Pete and his friends kept him out of serious trouble. He thanked us. He hugged me and my dad before he left. Little Jay Bird is all grown up - what a nice thing.

Camp

This weekend is the annual church camp in the Wichita Mountains. Every year our church families pack up and go camping together. The camp has a huge log building that is completely open downstairs and has a large kitchen area for serving food. The upstairs has dorm rooms. There are several surrounding cabins for families or groups. Many people will just set up their tents around the lodge. This main lodge is set in the middle of a several acres where we play soccer, baseball, football, basketball, and volleyball. Kids ride their bikes and families use the hiking trails around the camp. There are even some golf greens set up for a small round of golf. Usually the younger crowd does some more serious hiking and climbing in the nearby mountains. Breakfast will be made and served every morning. There will be a fish fry Friday night, a Mexican dinner pooled together by families on Saturday night, and a roast beef lunch after church on Sunday. It is a great time for the church people to just enjoy each other and their families.

In the past camp has been a time for relaxation and intimate conversations between friends. I love the conversations, but I really love the sports even more. Last year the adults had some serious games of volleyball, but nothing beats a game of baseball in the cool fall weather. One year I made myself sick playing soccer. I just played too hard for too long, and I was worn out by the end of the day. At the end of the day, everyone congregates in the large room to play games – mostly board games or card games. One year I organized a Sequence tournament. Some years, impromptu music has been made. This year there will be some organized music – a time of singing and such on Saturday after the Mexican dinner.

The last few years, Jesse and her friends have made T-shirts for camp. Now everyone wants a shirt. She also makes a sign to hang on the girl’s tent. The first year the sign just said, "no boys". Then through the years it usually has some silly thing that only a few really understand. This year it says, "Snap". It is fun just watching the young people have fun.

I can’t begin to explain the excitement building this week with everyone getting ready for camp. Today Jesse will do lots of baking for goodies to share with other campers. I think the word "share" is a key word here. This is a fellowship that just enjoys sharing and being together. After all, we are instructed to love the brethren and that means spending time with them.

Socialism

Years ago when I was teaching jr. high students in Taos, NM, I attended a departmental meeting at the high school. The head of our department had called the meeting to write up a contract for parents to sign if they did not want their children watching certain movies at school. As it turns out there had been a case in Albuquerque where a teacher wanted to show a movie in the classroom that some parents objected to their children watching. The parents were able to stop the teacher from showing the movie. The head of our English department wanted to make sure this did not happen in Taos. This teacher liked to show lots of movies and have the kids write about the movies (you should start questioning her ability to teach). Some of the movies were rated R, and in the past she had not gotten parental authority to show these movie to underage kids (hmmm). In fact, she did not want parents having any input on what she taught.

Maybe this lady thought that the department would just agree with her and write up a contract to be used when showing questionable movies. They probably would have, but I would not. I questioned the whole thing and said I thought parental involvement was a good thing. She said she did not want "Fundamentalist groups telling her what she could teach." I pointed out that her one-sided view was very like the fundamentalists in itself. She became upset, and we did not write anything that day.

That was close to 15 years ago. Back then I began to see that all teachers have their agendas whether they are Christians or not. All teachers will push their opinions and views on your children. That means that teachers who are pro-gay, pro-abortion, pro-atheists, pro-Christians, evolutionists, creationists, Republicans, or Democrats will all influence your children in a public school situation. Of course, I think parents have a strong part in that, but I am saying that there will be those other influences too.

Recently, I have read several articles on colleges across the USA that are pushing their agendas onto future teachers – even giving low grades, failing, or expelling students who do not agree with their (liberal) ideology. It amazes me that these people cannot see that their lack of tolerance for other’s (more conservative) ideas is a violation to people’s rights. In their zest to have teachers who are tolerant of multicultural and human diversities, they become intolerant to a large part of the population. More and more accreditation organizations and colleges are forcing their views onto teachers. More and more teachers follow and teach these views. Isn’t that socialism?

When we started homeschooling years ago, people would ask, "What about socialization?" I would answer, "You are right; that is a big problem in the public schools and one of the reasons we chose to homeschool."

Manly Man

Saturday was spent working hard on the house although we still did not get to start the stucco. Jesse went to a meeting of the Duncan Little Theater. She wants to help with the making of the set for the next production. After her meeting we made her work on the house. By Sunday we were all sore and tired. Jesse and I each smashed a finger with the hammer – it was rough. We were glad it rained and turned cold on Sunday – since Toby has a cold, we did no work. Lizzie showed up, and we got to play with her.

I just read an article in Fox News about the "new man" that women want. They called him "ubersexual" – whatever that means. It is suppose to be a more manly man, a man who is sensitive towards women, but is very manly and makes his own choices. It is a man who is well groomed, but does not wax or do other feminine stuff. The article talked about men who were confused by what women want in a man – how women’s opinions keep changing (duh). I think women want a man who does not care what women think – someone who can make their own mind. Of course, I like it when Toby asks my opinion on something, but I am never surprised when he does not go with it. At least he listened and mulled it over, but chose what he thought was best. Usually that means we have a discussion and work through things together. Sometimes, I get to say, "I told you so" when he is wrong, but it is nice that he is strong enough to make decisions for himself (and with me).

My man keeps his fingernails short and clean, but does not blow-dry his hair. He knows what he likes in clothes, but lets me shop for him. He will make dinner when necessary or help around the house. He laughs at my jokes – no matter how silly (now that is manly). He follows along in his Bible while the preacher is teaching. He listens and prays.

Years ago while we were building our house in NM, an incident came up with my father. We needed to put the roof on the house, but the kids had a 4H rodeo to attend. My dad gave me a lecture on how much more important the roof was rather than going to a rodeo. He even said, "What do you want – a rodeo or a roof?" (and he is a manly man himself). I was torn and crazed by the time Toby got home, not knowing what we should do. Toby was very cool and calm while listening to me fret. He simply said, "Lou, we are going to the rodeo." This may not seem like much, but it was someone standing up to my dad, not even fretting about it, just making a decision and sticking to it. He had no fear of my dad (like most people). Toby knows his power and authority and uses it wisely. I can’t begin to tell you how important this incident was in my life. It was so good to know that my husband could take care of me just as well as my dad had. My dad ended up coming to the rodeo with us, and the roof was built the next week.

The Cat is away...

Toby heads to Tulsa today for some sort of accounting school. He will be back Friday evening, but it is enough time for Jesse and I to find something fun to do while he is gone. When I was a little girl and my father would be gone, Mom would make us something special for supper that Dad would never have agreed to eat. We kids thought it was a real treat to eat chicken livers thanks to Dad. Beef liver was high on our list too. In fact, Craig and I could not believe the kids at school would not eat liver opting instead for peanutbutter. Craig and I pigged out when the school served liver - we knew it was a real treat.

Jesse has already been discussing going to see a movie. When I mentioned going to see Willie Nelson, who is in concert in Lawton, Toby said, "Hey now, don't get in trouble." Hmm, does he think that there might be a few army guys there too? How could we get into trouble at a concert? Oh well, I assured him we would not do anything stupid. I guess we will settle for a movie or something. Sometimes we rent lots of girl movies and stay up late. Wow, what swingers we are! We could add to the excitement by inviting Lindsay to spend the night - never a dull moment there. All of the art girls will come today; maybe we can make a plan with them. maybe we will just paint until our little hearts are content - not having to stop and make dinner for Toby. I guess we could surprise Toby and work on the house while he is gone. The possibilites are endless. Any good ideas out there?

Catching Up

This morning I have been catching up on some correspondence. When I blog, I tend not to write personal notes thinking that people can always read about my life in the blog. Some people remain ignorant about my blog or they really do not want to read that much about my life. Every once in a while, I have to break down and write several personal notes. I really do not mind as long as I get personal notes back.

Last night was the hospital art show to raise money for some cancer organization. I put in two pieces of art and donated one piece to the silent auction. There was a reception with lots of mingling. It was fairly dull stuff. Most of the art folks that I know love Jesse. When Jes and her friends showed up at the reception, things livened up a little – it was certainly brighter. Everyone likes to visit with Jesse and ask her about her life. One man looked at her ringless finger and said, "There are a lot of stupid men in Duncan." They all ask her about any young men in her life and what her plans are for the future. She has learned to take it all well, but it is difficult to explain that we are waiting on the right young man – her hero.

Yesterday I read blestwithsons blog. She wrote about her difficulty in raising her sons to be manly, but godly men. In today’s world, that combination is not "in". It was an interesting posting. Too bad her sons are very young; we could use some godly young men around here.
I may blog on this subject more later, but I need to get my morning moving.

Baseball

I don’t remember learning to play baseball; I just remember playing. Starting in first grade, the teachers would divide the class into teams and we would play baseball. There were enough kids for three teams – two to play each other and a scrub team. The teachers would let each kid have a turn at being the captain which meant we got to pick the name of the team and make other important decisions. When it was my turn to choose a name, I remember choosing the Dodgers. The other kids were disappointed in my choice, but we won the playground series for that week.

We also played baseball in the back yard. Craig would bring all of the neighborhood kids to our house, and they often played baseball. Sometimes he let me play – sometimes not. After all, I was a girl and his little sister (I’ll save that gripe for another blog). When we moved to Red River, the school did not play baseball, but the RR kids would get together and play whereever they could find grass. Usually they played by the Little Red SchoolHouse (I was horrified when they hauled rock in there because they thought the kids would get muddy at recess). I even remember playing in front of the Community House, but that was a small grassy area for a real game of baseball. In my grown-up years we played baseball in an empty field in the middle of town. There was a river for the boundary of left field and an old sewer/creek down the right field boundary. We always put the "new guy" in right field. Toby was the "new guy" at one time - just ask him about it.

When we moved back to Texas, there was even more baseball. I played on slow-pitch teams as well as fast-pitch. I played on church teams and Girl’s Club teams. My brothers both played on teams. For all of that playing, I do not remember watching major league baseball until I was married (then I watched football, baseball, and whatever sport Toby was watching). Last night while Toby was flipping channels from the MLB to Monday Night Football, I realized that I really like baseball much better than football. My dream is to go to a major league game. I would even like to see a minor league game.

We have been watching the championship games this last week. Jesse has been very entertaining with her show of interest and her questions. I have mentioned before that she does not know much about baseball although she has played on a slow-pitch co-ed team for the past two summers. She has really gotten into the games this week. She asks all sorts of funny questions about the rules and such. Her lack of baseball knowledge always amazes me. I guess I just take for granted that everyone knows how to play baseball. I think she has learned a lot form this series (she tends to pick her favorite team by their looks saying the Angels had better looking players than the Soxs). It has been good family time for us and probably been good wifely training for her. Her future husband will appreciate her knowledge of the game, and she will not have to interrupt him with questions during the middle of a game (someday).

Together Again

It was a beautiful weekend. The weather was perfect for working on the house, and that is what we did. No, we did not work on the kitchen cabinets. We needed to get the stucco on next. We finished putting up the black sheathing, and started the poultry netting (chicken wire). Bo came over on Saturday morning to help. It is always a joy to have my family working together. Of course, it is a treat to have my boy home anytime, but there is just something about the four of us working together – like old times. Jesse put on some music and turned it up so we could hear while we worked outside. We rocked-out to Steve Earl, which is what we use to listen to while working in the café. It always brings back memories.

We have brilliant conversation like; "You have a booger on your nose."

Jesse: "Did you know that Dad nearly fell off the ladder yesterday? You should have heard him holler."
Me: "Did you think that the neighbor’s donkey was out again?" (much laughter)
Bo: (to Toby) "I bet you really appreciate all of this intelligent help you get."

Later, we went into town for lunch and to get a few needed supplies. We also had to stop by and see Lizzie and Sara. Lizzie entertained us for about an hour before we had to go back to work.

At some point, Toby did hurt himself again, but not badly, we all started braying, "Hawww, heeee!" and laughing. In case you do not know the joke from earlier house building posts, the neighbors have a miniature donkey that brays as it chases the big horses across the pasture. Several times while working on the house last spring, Jesse and I thought Toby was hurt and hollering, but it turned out to be the donkey braying. We have to tease him about sounding like the donkey.

Sunday, we got more brick for Jesse’s patio and put up more wire. Fall is such a great time of the year!

Barbara

Barbara Crabtree came to our church fellowship from Louisiana about seven years ago. She came looking for the word of God and a church home. She wanted to raise her children to be godly, but being a single parent, she needed support to do that. She found all of those things and a church family here in OK, and I found a good friend in Barbara. Barbara had one of those great, Deep South accents making her seem even softer that she was. She was a pretty lady, and I had lots of fun with her.

After a few years here, Barbara began having health problems. It turns out she had hepatitis C from a blood transfusion after the birth of one of her children. Her liver slowly began to malfunction. The last several years have been very hard on Barbara. She has been in and out of hospitals. Her daughter, who is Jesse’s age, has done a great job of caring for her. She has laid down her life caring for her mother, but it has been a difficult time. Yesterday evening, Barbara died. It was expected, but still death is never easy on those who love her. Pray for Barbara’s children.

Another Art Show

The Duncan Regional Hospital is having an art show starting next Tuesday with art being shown in a conference room until the end of October. The art is due in tomorrow, and I am not ready. I broke a piece of glass while framing one of my pictures. It was one of those "I can’t believe I did that" type moments when I already felt way behind, and then I added to my workload. Now, I am feeling that "if I can just get through tomorrow, I can get caught up on other things". This is where someone should say, "Yeah, right!" This may be a short posting today.

Yesterday Jesse and I went to a memorial service for a lady from our fellowship, Debra Fuller. She had been fighting cancer for a couple of years, and died earlier this week. Because she had only been coming to our church for a short time, I did not know her well. She was only one year older than I. Jesse and Lindsay got to know her and enjoyed her. They went to her house a few times with goodies and joy. Jesse and Lindsay can bring a smile to just about anyone’s face. Debra’s husband told the girls how much Debra had enjoyed their visits. That was just pretty special. The memorial service was packed with people. That was a special testimony itself.

New Exprience

We have been working on putting sheathing on the house. We were going to put some foam board stuff on the outside walls, but then Toby decided that was not what he needed (trip back to Home Depot to exchange things), and we chose the black asphalt stuff. Monday night I helped Toby put up several sheets of it while Jesse was off with her friends. It goes up pretty easily.
Last night I started helping Toby again. This time Jesse joined us. About that time, I realized that I had been invited to the cheap movies earlier in the day by a neighbor. Several ladies from our fellowship were going to meet at the movies to see "Almost Like Heaven". Hey, I had not been to the movies all summer long – I needed a turn at going out with my friends. It was a last minute decision, but a good one.

The movie turned out to be a cute, romantic comedy. Afterwards, we stood around in the parking lot and visited for a while. That is when I realized that I was the "old lady" of the group. They were all talking about potty training their babies and other "mother" stories. When I told a story about my children, my children were the same age as these mothers. Lila and Cene were both there whom I mentioned in yesterday’s blog about boys. Tammy, who is potty training her oldest daughter, was there. She called me Mama Lou (my grandma name) when she saw me. There was one mother whose oldest child is about 14, but I was by far the oldest mother there. Although I had a great time, it was sort of a funny feeling to be the grandma of the group. The really good part of being the old lady in the group was that while they all had to find sitters for their children, I left my baby building on our house.

Boys

Jesse says that some day when she is married, she wants to have all boys. They just seem more fun to her than girls. I tell her that although I think boys are easier, girls can be fun too. After all, I had her didn’t I? Her friend, Lila, has three boys, and her friend, Cene, has two boys. She enjoys being around them and helping out with them. She likes spending time with her male cousins too. She likes the way boys dress and the way they act. Of course, she likes her niece just pretty well. Lizzie is cool. Jesse has taught her to bump fist rather than high-fives. When Lizzie holds her little fist out to be bumped, it is just pretty great. Jesse enjoys making Lizzie clothes too. This summer she made them matching skirts and has a plan to make some fall clothes. But still, it is boys that Jesse wants. She says she will name them Gustavo, Gaston, Gunner, and some other G name that I can’t recall. She will call them Gus, Gas, Gun, and Goose. I told her that would be great; I could just holler, "GGGGGet over here" and they would all come running.

Last week while shopping at Wal Mart, I found some rubber boots (farm boots) for Lizzie. They look just like Jesse’s mud boots. Because they were ten dollars, I was unsure of spending that much money on shoes for her to wear around the farm. I called Toby at work to get his opinion. I told him that the boots would last through all the grandchildren. He said to buy them, "Gosh, Golly, and Good Grief would all use them someday."

Lizzie wore them all day Sunday under her little dress. She looked really cute – like a little Dutch girl. She played in the dirt and rocks and had a big time wearing her new boots. When they got ready to go home, we took the boots off, and her little feet were stinky. Who needs boys when girls can get just as dirty?

Fall Changes

Fall has finally arrived. We had beautiful cool weather this weekend. My grandbaby came and entertained us. She loves being outside. It was nice to not have to douse her in sunscreen and bug spray just to take her outside. Toby and I put her in the wagon and pulled her around the driveway. She loves the bumps and would laugh and squeal. Toby set a grasshopper on her leg. Giggles and chuckles erupted from her. It was such a precious moment. She picked up the grasshopper and looked him over. Then she began to take him apart.

With the changing of the season comes the changing from the summer clothes to the winter clothes. Here in OK, keeping summer clothes handy is a good idea. You can always use those t-shirts as layers to keep you warm, and then have them to wear by themselves on those days when weather is still quite warm. It is not really time for the heavy sweaters, yet long sleeves may be necessary soon. Sometimes the "big switcheroo" is difficult for me.

With the coming of fall and seeing Uncle Bob last week, I have been thinking about our trips to DC. I will miss that this year. Those have been some good times. Seeing cousins, seeing the sights, and being apart of the Ia Drang reunion is a great experience. Maybe I will devote a whole blog posting to those memories later. But everyone should visit our nation’s capitol when they are old enough to understand and appreciate the history.

I need to get busy with my fall cleaning – it is mourning you know. My computer has been slow, and I have had way too many cups of coffee waiting on it.

Bricks

Do you ever feel like someone gave you a five-pound sack, but told you to put ten pounds of things in it? That is how I am feeling this morning. Being a morning person, I really need to start early, because by the afternoon, I am shot. Lately it feels like I am just not getting my stuff done. Yet with this cooler weather, I feel like it is time to get to work.

Yesterday, Jesse and I went brick hunting. Jesse found a picture in "Southern Living" of a patio paved with an assortment of bricks and stones. It was pretty cool looking and sort of what we had in mind anyway. So, we have been looking for bricks. Some little old lady who was getting her hair done in Mom’s beauty shop said she had some bricks in her back yard. Jesse went by her house and gathered about 20 bricks. Jesse called several places in Wichita Falls looking for old brick, but did not find any. Aunt Daphne, who was visiting at Mom’s, mis-heard Jesse and thought she was looking for old books. She kept asking Jesse if there were any old bookstores in Duncan. Jesse explained the brick thing again, but later Aunt Daphne asked her if there was a public library somewhere near by that would help us. We all managed to keep a straight face and continued to look for bricks.

We found a man in Comanche that said he had some bricks in his pasture that he would sell us – five cents a brick. Jesse and went out to his farm (it may be a junk farm because that is what he had growing in his pasture), and sure enough, he had some great bricks. They were old, red, and solid. Jesse and I dug through the pile putting them neatly in the back of the pick-up. We dug until we uncovered the snake. Then we decided we had enough bricks for one day. We had stacked twelve dollars worth of bricks in the truck.

Now if we can just agree on how to lay them out. Jesse wants to gather all of the bricks and stones first – then lay them out. I am for just laying them as we find them – haphazard. Too much planning could spoil the whole effect. I am the sort of person that just likes to jump in and go for it. Jesse has a dream. Do you think we ever butt heads? Who do you think wins – the donkey or the princess? Maybe I am just a "brick-brain".

Sorry

I am sorry about the obnoxious ads that have showed up on my "comments". I think I have taken care of the problem.

Another B&A Story

Since I told one Bear and Anny story, I thought I would share another. This one took place in Lubbock when Toby and I first got married. We were going to school at Texas Tech. Toby worked construction and I worked at Nelson’s Cleaners. Bear and Anny lived and worked in Lubbock at that time too. None of us had money. We were all scraping by, but having the time of our lives.

Nelson’s Cleaners had a policy that if you found something valuable in a customer’s pocket, you had to return it. If you found money, it was yours to keep. Whenever I would find money, say ten or twenty dollars, I would call Toby and he would call Bear and Anny. We would celebrate by eating out. Santa Fe Station, a Mexican food place, had the best deal for the money – since we did not have much between the four of us. We would order a side plate of beans and cheese (for about $1.75) and an order of tortillas (about 75 cents). We would then roll our own burritos. Since the meal came with all of the chips and salsa you could eat, we ate pretty well. Sometimes we would all have a beer, or if I had found enough money, we would have margaritas. I can’t express what a treat this was.

Years later, when we all lived in NM, we decided to go play tennis early one mourning. The tennis game was okay, but we were all hungry since we had not had breakfast. After tennis, we stopped at a local café to eat. Once we were seated and looking at the menu, it became apparent that none of us had brought money. We all started digging in our pockets and bringing out whatever change we had. We pooled all the money together (like the old days) to see what we had and how much food we could order. We ended up each getting a cup of coffee and then getting one sweet-roll for all of us to share. Here we were married with kids, and we still had to scrape up money and share our food. It was a wonderful mourning that I will never forget. We shared a lot of things with Bear and Anny. Most of it was just fun and laughter.

Good Old Friends

Back in the good old summer days in Red River, NM, it took lots of young people to work the tourist season. High school and collage aged kids came every summer to work and earn money for college. Girls usually worked as waitresses or in gift shops. Boys usually worked as jeep drivers giving mountain tours or as maintenance for lodges. Since my parents spent their summers in RR, I worked the summers from the time I was tall enough to buss a table till I married and then some. Working and playing with all of these kids was great fun. We had a blast together and made memories and friends that would last a lifetime.

I recently heard from Bear and Anny, a couple who both worked in RR through the summers and later lived there – right next door to us for five years. I could go into the details of how we all met and came to be friends or tell you some of the crazy things we did together, but then I would need a book – not a blog. I will try to stay focused on one little silly story.

Our homes in RR were so close to each other that it was easier to shout out the window rather than call on the phone. Our kids played together, my cat ate their mice, and we shared kitchen appliances. If that last one sounded a bit odd, well, there in lies the tale. When their freezer was too full to put anything more in it, they borrowed ours (yum, that elk meat was good). When the electricity was out (very often) our house was all electric, so we had to practically move in with them using their heat and gas stove. But the funniest thing we shared was the propane tanks on our grills.

Red River is fairly isolated. It is not like you can run down the street and fill your little propane tank. It took a trip to Taos or Questa. Propane tanks tend to run out of fuel when you need them most – when there are burgers or a steak waiting to be cooked and guests waiting to eat. When this happened, we would steal each other’s tanks (maybe leave a note, or not). It got to be quite the joke to slip over to the other’s house and snitch the tank.

In Anny’s email the other day she sent a little story that brought a smile to my face. It has to do with grills. I am going to copy and paste it here for you to read:

I was just looking over your blog and I thought of a story that I must share. This last summer a couple of weeks before father's day Brian came back from the local dump with the biggest smile on his face...your see he had brought home a bbq grill that he dug out of the dump. He was sooooo proud of himself only to find that it didn't work. On fathers day I found myself with not much money and being the creative person that I am I decided to repair the grill. I went to Wal-Mart and got a new burner and a new propane tank (we thought of putting our name on it just incase you guys came to borrow it) and a can of easyoff oven cleaner and I gave it to Brian for father's day....we call it the dump grill. It looks just like that one that you and Toby bought that time that had the little shelf where you could cook corn or potatoes...it made us laugh....

This story is funny on several levels. If you knew Bear and the things he has brought home to "fix", you would really laugh. The fact that he rummaged through the dump (landfill if you please) is also ironic, but the fact that they thought about putting their name on it is really funny. I think I will have to share some more Bear and Anny stories in the future. Life with them was never dull.

Good Advice

Years ago when I was involved in our home school association, I attended a leadership conference. The Home School Legal Defense Association was giving advice. The one piece of advice that really stuck with me was, "When someone criticizes you, before you get defensive, stop and see the truth in what they have said." There was more to the advice than just that, but it was enough to make me see some truth. Often when we are criticized, we get defensive, start offering excuses for why we did what we did, or just flat out ignore the criticisms. Often we are so busy offering our "reasonings", we don’t even hear what the person is actually saying. Obviously, if the criticism is "off the mark", you should try to get the good out of it and leave the bad, but hearing is important.

This would come under the Bible verse that says to be slow to anger, slow to speak, and quick to hear. I think when God disciplines us (and He does), He wants us to change our ways – not offer excuses for what we did. As parents when we discipline our children, we want them to stop their bad behavior and do good. If you listen to their excuses for their bad behavior, you will probably get sidetracked. If you stop the discipline due to the excuses, you are not helping your kids at all (and probably have big problems with your kids). Are there really any good excuses for doing wrong?

What we really want when we give advice or critique someone, is for him or her to listen and change. It is the same with our children when we discipline them; we want them to hear and obey. God is probably the same too – He wants us to hear and obey (don’t be fooled by anyone who tells you that you only have to hear and not obey.)

When I spoke with Harv at the art show about his attacking innocent families, he immediately began telling me why he did what he did. He kept saying, "You have to understand where I was coming from." No, I don’t! There was no excuse for being rude to people whom didn’t deserve it. By sticking to my point, the original criticism, I was able to make Harv see that he had been unnecessarily rude and he apologized. If I had bought into his excuses, we would still be standing there arguing. I just wanted him to hear, understand, and change.

I also spoke with a mother about her children’s behavior at last year’s art show. Her children really were the ones who swamped the food and punch bowl. Now, I could have offered excuses for the kids behavior – they are just kids, they were really hungry and thirsty from playing in the park…All of which was true, but the point was, they were not well behaved. They needed oversight by their parents. They needed to learn what society expects of them at functions such as this. Unfortunately, before I could finish telling the mother what had happened, she began telling me that it was not her children (and why she knew this), her children would never do that, and on and on. This time, I did not argue. She was not hearing. My criticism was offered in love – it was meant to be a help. She was not willing to see the good in the advice – not willing to change. It made me very sad – it hurt our friendship. Does God feel this way when we ignore His good Word? I think He probably does.

The Art Show

The art show went about like I expected it would go. My art kids did very well. Sarah won the high school grand prize. Her painting was interesting, maybe, but not really finished and certainly abstract because Sarah does not really draw well. Because she is easily distracted at art, it is difficult to get her to focus on her work. But hey, what do I know! Colten won the jr. high grand prize. This was a surprise, but a very welcome one. He is one of my new students and shows lots of promise. The four-year-old, mentioned in the earlier posting, won the elementary grand prize. I was very pleased with all of my student’s artwork, and pleased with their behavior at the art show.

Unfortunately, my anxiety dreams came true. I had been fretful that Harv, whom I mentioned in the earlier blog, would attack the kids at the show and be rude to them, and he acted just like I thought he would. He over-reacted the minute people with young children walked into the show. He met them at the door and warned them to watch their children – make sure they did not eat or drink too much. These families were not part of last year’s problems, and were therefore, surprised and hurt that someone would speak to them this way (Harv is not very diplomatic). One mother told me that Harv had been rude to her. They looked at the show, and left early. I doubt they participate next year.

When I found out that that Harv had been warning people to keep their kids away from the food, I came unglued. I felt my blood pressure rise and my face turn red. My mom says that I am her most easy-going child, but that I will fight. I wanted to fight! I wanted to hurt Harv. You can do what you want to me, but don’t mess with those I love. I managed to control myself, but I was hot. When I got a chance to talk to Harv, I was very controlled and to the point. He eventually said that he was sorry, but he continued to be his anal self the rest of the evening - ruining things for me. I found myself watching kids and Harv hoping he would not do anything else to annoy anyone.

By the way, my portrait of Josh got an honorable mention, which was a nice surprise. I really did not think I would get any ribbons. I think I deserve a ribbon for not killing Harv.