Compartments

If I stay up until 10:00 pm, I can chat with Toby as he comes to work. I can also catch him when I get up early in the AM. It makes a big difference in my outlook on life to be able to chat with him daily.

Compartments

On Becky's blog, I made a comment about men and compartments. Becky said she had talked to a man about buying her old house. When she called him, he was out of town and said he would call back, but he had not called when he said he would. She took this as a sign that he was not interested in her house. I commented that he just may not be in the same compartment as Becky - the buying a house compartment. Maybe he is in the work or family compartments. Buck said it was an interesting comment. But it is true - men live in compartments while women live in one big room with lots of furniture to move around. Men tend to focus on one thing at a time. Although they are capable of multi-tasking, they usually are single-minded. They have a work compartment, watch TV compartment, chores compartment, family compartment, etc. They go into a new compartment and shut the door on the old compartment. Sometimes, Toby goes into his work compartment before he leaves the house. When he does this, it is difficult to talk to him - he is already gone although his body is still with me. I'm not saying that they cannot switch compartments, but they just tend to deal with one thing at a time.

It's a girl!

Last week I signed up for a new soldier with Soldier's Angels. The email said it might take a week to get my new soldier. Later, while I was at Wal-Mart, I thought I might start collecting items for my new soldier, but I ran out of time and did not buy any thing for my soldier, yet. When I got home, I had an email from SA with my new soldier' name and address. It was a girl this time! I have never had a female soldier, but I am really excited. I am very used to buying boy things. Now I need to think of what women want. Pretty cool!

Speaking of girls

Jesse leaves this week for her trip to Buffalo, NY. She and Lindsay and Reagan (Lindsay's little sister) will be flying out on Thursday for a long weekend in NY. They will be staying with friends. I know they have a trip to Niagara planned, but who knows what else they will find for fun, but fun is the name of the game with them. I will post their adventures when they return.

Here is a photo they made to send to a friend for his birthday. I think they said something like "it is raining girls".

To All "We Were Soldiers" Fans

My unlce recently sent an email with the following announcement concerning this print:

Military artwork publisher Valor Studios in conjunction with the 1st Cavalry Division Association, is proud to announce the release of "First Boots on the Ground," a new limited-edition art print by William S. Phillips.
A Vietnam veteran and one of America's most popular artists, Phillips painted "First Boots on the Ground" in tribute to the men who fought in the battle of Ia Drang and in air mobile operations during the Vietnam War.
Each print has been hand-signed by legendary veterans and lead characters in the "We Were Soldiers" movie: Gen. Hal Moore, Command SGM Basil Plumley, MOH recipient Col. Bruce Crandall, and others!
Valor Studios is offering special discounts to veterans/family of the 7th Cavalry Regiment/1st Cavalry Division.
-The limited-edition paper print (28"w x 14"h) signed by Moore, Plumley, Crandall, and others is: $325 plus $15 S&H.You'll save $70 off the $395 "general public" price!
-The limited-edition canvas print (38"w x 19"h) signed by Moore, Plumley, Crandall, and others is: $695 plus $15 S&H.You'll save $100 off the $795 "general public" price!
With only 1,000 prints available worldwide, don't delay in ordering your copy before they sell out!
One can order by visiting: http://www.valorstudios.com/cav.htmOr, order by calling Valor Studios: 570-435-4523 (9-5 EST, Mon-Fri)

Singing and Dancing

Here is Jesse and a few of her good friends in The City going to see "Singing in the Rain". Sorry, yesterday I reported that they were going to see "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". That explains why none of them came home with a "brother" and none are brides. You may recognize these girls form the "girls with guns" photos back in Feb. blogs. Jes and her friends always have a good time. These girls are all homeschooled grads who never learned to "be cool". By the way, all of the girls pictured are also my art students - very talented young ladies. Can you tell who is the real dancer?

Normalcy

After being gone for several days, I am beginning to get things back to normal. Normal is being in bed before 10 pm and getting up around 5:30 am. While in Lubbock I was staying up untill after 11:00 and still waking up at my normal time. Thursday night after returning home, I stayed up till midnight so that I could chat with Toby. I think all of that caught up with me last night. I slept until 7 this morning - yeha! Although Jesse kept the home fires burning, the cleaning fairy did not come and do the big stuff. Jesse had a few problems with the new puppy "Gee, Mom, she just puked all over your bed." I did come home to clean sheets, but I need to do some major cleaning today. I feel more rested and ready.

I have been able to catch up on my blog reading too. Although I was able to read and comment on blogs while at the hospital, I did not have much time, because I felt like I needed to stay with my MIL. It has been great to read and comment lately - gosh I missed you guys! I also caught up on my emails. I can't seem to copy a recent update on my USMC cousin, but he is doing well as are his men. The update is very positive. I will try again later.

Here is Jesse at the races last weekend. We really had a great time. Apparently they wet down the track before the races. Then the race cars come out to "pack the track". They roar around slinging mud and sliding around the curves. Jesse said, "That is nothing. I do that every morning driving out of our driveway!" This went on for a while and Jesse asked, "Have the races started yet?" We both burst out laughing! Of course, we spent a large part of the races checking out the crowd. Jesse said, "See that guy over there? He might be cute, but he only has one tooth in his head!" We both burst out laughing again. Before the real races started, I went down and bought us something cool to drink. I bought margarita wine coolers which they poured into paper cups. When I handed Jesse her drink, she looked at it and said, "Mountain Dew!?" She was pleasantly surprised. The wine and races went well together. We finally got the race thing figured out - all the different heats. Some of the races were exciting and some not, but there was always the crowd watching to keep us entertained. It was a beautiful night with a slight breeze to keep things cool. After the fireworks, Jesse and I went home. It was almost midnight, and we are not used to the late hours. Our bums were sore from sitting in the bleachers and the cricket were out in force dropping down from the stadium lights - yuck!

Jesse has had dinner with me the last two nights. She fixed pasta and veggies for me when I got home on Thursday evening. Last night I grilled steaks while Jesse fried okra. Yep, boys, she can cook, go to the races, jump out of airplanes, play with the nieces, and she is still single. Today she is off to the city to see a production of "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". I won't see her until late - if at all. Back to normal!

Painting of the Week

Hollyhocks done fast!

Happiness Is...

Mac Davis wrote a song called “Texas in My Rear View Mirror” with a line that says, “…I thought happiness was Lubbock, Texas in my rear view mirror…” That is how I felt leaving Lubbock. Lubbock is still the Hub of the Plains and not a bad place, but it is not home. Everything went fairly well in Lubbock. I was able to get Lee out of the hospital and home, but I was ready to get home myself. Toby’s oldest sister was headed to Lubbock as I left. It was like the changing of the guards. I really enjoyed my time with Toby’s mom - she is great. Dealing with hospitals and the lack of a laptop made me a bit crazy. Although the hospital had computers for public use, I could not email or post a blog - security reasons. If I had had a laptop, I could have used their wireless network. One day, my cousin brought me his laptop so that I could email Toby, but it was too late in the day to chat with Toby. It never worked out to get the laptop again. Although Covenant Hospital was very nice with lots of nice people and my step-father-in-law was well taken care of, there were still the communication problems. You just feel like you are at the mercy of nurses and doctors who are busy. A team of “hospitalists” took care of Lee, but we never knew when they were going to make rounds and there did not seem to be anyway to reach them.

When I arrived on Sunday evening, Lee had been moved from ICU to a room. I discovered that no one seemed to know who the doctor-in-charge was. No one had actually spoken to a doctor to even know what all was going on with Lee. Monday morning we got to the hospital at 7 am to try to connect with a doctor. Dr. Palacio came to Lee’s room about noon. He was a young man from Columbia with such a thick accent that we had difficulty understanding him, and he had difficulty understanding us - great. My sweet mother-in-law was good and mad by the time he showed up, and she was ready to attack with questions. The really bad part was that Toby’s aunt was visiting in the room along with her husband. She began telling the doc about her husband’s heart problems referring to her husband as “he” and confusing the heck out of the young doctor. He did not know who he should be talking to or what was going on. I could see trouble brewing and see fear in his eyes. Toby’s sister had stepped out of the room for a minute, so I made a dash to find her and get her to come keep the peace. She came quickly, but was not much help. We managed to get the doctor out of trouble and over to see Lee. Then Lee began telling the doctor about a rash on his ankle - the one he had back in November - and how his grand-daughter had the same rash. If the non-English speaking doctor was not confused before, he was now. Good grief - would the madness never stop? Although it was not funny at the time, it all turned out okay and was actually comical. The young Columbian diagnosed the pneumonia and was a big help. He continued to take good care of Lee, but we were still not sure when he would show up and had no way of getting in touch with him unless the nurses did so. It was just a lot of sitting around the room taking care of Lee.

Lee has been a good grandfather to my children since Toby’s dad died 25 years ago. I love him for that. But he is an odd duck and a bit obnoxious at times. He has an odd relationship with my mother-in-law that I cannot explain. He is not my father - nor is he Toby’s father. His own two sons showed up on Saturday and left Sunday before noon. I will let that speak for itself. I was willing to help Lee as much as possible, but foremost, I was there to take care of my mother-in-law. Nuff said.

While in Lubbock I did get to see my cousin and have lunch with her and her son. I also got to see my old friends Bear and Anny who came by the hospital. It was great to see them - I have blogged many B & A stories in the past because we were such close friends at one time. They are still like family, but we just do not see them very often anymore.

I stayed up late last night to try to chat with Toby, and sure enough, he was in office. Yeha, I got to chat for a while before I was too sleepy to think. The city he is in is called Atyrau. He said that the hotel has an Italian influence due to the Italian oil company, AGIP, in the area. He does get out, although not much - he mentioned going for ice-cream, beer, and a Fanta. Apparently there is a river running through the city which he said looks like lots of fun with kids swimming in it and kayaks on it. He had thought it would be fun to rent a kayak and tour the city from the river. Then he saw a dead cow floating in the river and changed his mind about going for a dip. Toby says being in KZ is about like being under house arrest - I told him being in the hospital was about the same. He said the area reminded him of Las Cruces - desert with poor soil. He said the airport reminded him of the old Hobbs, NM airport. They are discouraged from going out after dark in the city, and he seems to be working long hours to meet deadlines anyway. Same old Halliburton. He hopes to get out and about some this weekend.

Gosh, it is good to be home and be able to communicate. Here is a pic from last weeks birthday party with Jesse being the "good aunt". Makes me happy!

Off Again

I am going to be in Lubbock for the next few days with my mother-in-law. Toby's step-dad has had a stroke. He seems to be doing pretty well. Toby's mom has a bad knee which is suppose to be replaced later this summer. She needs help - mostly just emotional support. Anyway, I do not know if I will be able to blog from Lubbock or not. Hopefully I can find someone with a computer to let you know how things are going.

I leave you with some pics of the party girls over the weekend.

At the Lawton dirt track on Saturday night

Tia Jesse Maria with GBN 1 at the birthday party

Party Girls

Something got my goose! Literally, something got my goose yesterday morning. Zoe, the GD, wanted out about 5:00AM. Then the Rita, the border collie in charge of ranch security, started barking. The Ranger, the rat terrier, wanted out to help with the barking. Zoe wanted in - smart dog. I made Ranger come in also, because he is basically coyote bait. The barking continued for a while (those neighbors are probably wishing they had moved their double-wide a little farther away). It made for an interesting wake-up. Later in the morning, I noticed some goose feathers, but no goose. It made me a little sad. Jesse did the victory dance which makes me a bit suspicious. I am glad we did not have to eat the goose as Jesse suggested, and it was time for the goose to go. When GBN1 asks me about the goose, I can honestly say she died of "natural" causes.

Jes and I played some volleyball last night. Quite a few people in our church have sand courts. I think we need to keep up with the Jones' and get us one too - right after we finish the house and the patio...These friends live way out in the country - about 45 minutes from our house due to the winding road, about 5 cattle guards, and avoidance of cattle and critters. They have a big wonderful home which they built themselves and a volleyball court to die for. Yes, I am envious. Fortunately, they open their home to have fun and fellowship. That is my dream - to have a big roomy house with a great patio and yard with a volleyball court and lots of friends (more grandbabies would be nice too). All in time...

Duncan has a city-wide garage sale this weekend. I am not a big garage saler. I have enough junk without buying someone else's. I stopped at one sale yesterday while I was in town, and thought, "This is crazy!" The humidity was about 100% yesterday with the dew point around 70% and not a breeze around. The temps have not been too bad this summer, but still, prowling around junk in the heat was not my idea of fun. Today, we are attending a birthday party at TFNP's. Then Jesse and I are going to the car races in Lawton. They are suppose to have fireworks tonight. Yep, just one party after another while Toby is away :)

Painting of the Week

This photo was taken by Kris at Reflections by Kris - Journal. If you have not browsed through Kris' Journal and looked at her photography, you should. She has some wonderful photos which gave me some much needed inspiration. She gave me permission to paint one of her photos. "Spittal Pond," a photo from Bermuda, caught my attention with its lights and darks and great colors. There was also the challenge of painting water and rocks, which I am not good at. Here is my attempt at capturing with paint what Kris caught with her camera. I thought by posting both the photo and my painting it would give you a better idea of how I work.

Sumo Tubing

Jesse says this is lots of fun until your face hits the water and your skin is peeled back from your eyeballs.

No Hard Heart

Toby has been in Houston for the last few days. This afternoon he will fly out for Kazakhstan. We have our chat system set up, and I have still been able to talk to him daily on the phone. Last night at church, we had a pot-luck, which was great for visiting and catching up with one another. Several people asked me if I missed Toby. I think they were surprised when I said no. I'm no hard-heart, but he is not gone yet. It has only been a few days. So far, this business trip is no different from any trip. We have been apart many times. Good grief, I'm made of stronger stuff than that. Later on I will miss him, but not yet. I don't really sleep as peaceful as when he is up against my back, but I am okay - I have Ranger, the rat terrier. Although the rat terrier is sleeping pretty close, he is no replacement. But for right now, I am more excited for Toby that he is going somewhere new and different than sad that he is away from me. This time apart has made me think of our soldiers who are apart from their loved ones for long periods of time. They are the ones whom my heart hurts for. If they can do a year or more apart from family, surely, I can do 4 weeks.

This morning Duty in the Desert posted a link to a video of a "perfect reunion". It made me cry. Then I made Jesse watch it, and I cried again.

Becky posted a picture of her growing puppy, so I thought I would post one too. Here is Zoe playing with a small football. Notice how tall she is compared to the table. By the way, that is an extra table set up for my art students. Also, notice my rat terrier and Toby in the background. You may also notice that my house is not finished - no trim work. A broom closet is planned for behind the fridge, but for now, it is just open. I started to crop all of that, but hey, it is the way I live. Anyway, Zoe is huge and growing.

Small World

While doing some blog surfing yesterday, I came across a milblog by a young Marine called Jake's Life. He had some great pictures and stories - seemed to be a well educated young man and rather good-looking too. As I looked through his photos, I noticed something familiar about his smile. I looked back through my old emails for photos from a friend who had sent pics of her son, John Gill, as he was deploying earlier this year. John went to elementary school in Red River with Jesse, and I have known his parents and grand-parents forever. I have been sending him letters and packages this deployment. Sure enough, there is John with Jake Woods. The really ironic part of this story is that John had been on my mind yesterday morning before I found Jake's blog - so I had just written a letter and dropped it in the mail to John. What a small world! Here is one of the photos that John's mother sent me. That is John on the left and Jake on the right at the airport as they were deploying. Handsome Marines!

Jesse went water skiing yesterday afternoon while I mowed the yard. Does that seem right?

Treats

My trip to WF yesterday was without excitement. Mom was great. We had lunch with my sister-in-law and ran some errands. I filled Mom's car up with gas for $2.91. I filled my own car up the day before in Lawton for $3.18. Toby said gas prices around Houston were in the $2.70's (still, not a good reason to move to Houston). It just seemed a bit of a large gap in prices, but Toby said some refineries in Kansas were flooded and caused our prices to go up - the old supply and demand thing.

While in WF I bought some salmon at Sam's. Jesse and I love it, but Toby only tolerates it - so it is a treat for us when he is gone. I cooked the salmon on the grill with butter and lemon and Cajun seasonings. It was wonderful. Lindsay came over and ate with us. Later we watched "Romancing the Stone" which we have seen a dozen times, but still love.

When we were kids and Dad was away on business, Mom would fix us certain foods which we loved, but Dad did not care for. Fish of any kind was one of those things that Dad would rather not eat, but we really did not have it often. Maybe that is why it is still such a treat for me. No, when Dad was gone, we would have chicken livers fried or sometimes beef liver. Craig and I were silly over liver. When the school served liver for lunch, all the other students opted for peanut butter, but Craig and I wolfed down as much liver as we could eat. Sillylivers!

My cousin, Jim the Marine, came home for his two week vacation. Since he is working with the Army, he is tour of duty is for a full year this deployment. He is now back in Iraq doing basically the same thing as before, but he will be advising an Iraqi Army Brigade. He said it was more desk time and less time with soldiers which he was not thrilled with, but such is life in the military. Here are some pics of he and his lovely wife on his trip home:

The Weekend

It was pretty warm here this weekend and the humidity was high. Still, we have not had the temps we normally have this time of year. It hardly seems like mid-July. I can live with it. After church and lunch with the family, I drove Toby to Lawton to pick up a rental car. He then drove to Houston. He will be there for the next few days before flying out to Kazakhstan for the next three weeks. We spent most of the weekend getting him packed up and ready for the trip. Readiness included a lesson on how to use the camera and setting up a hotmail account so that we could chat while he is away. We had a trial run on the chatting - another lesson involved. I made him carry a backpack on the plane although he really did not want anything extra to carry around besides his computer. But he needed someplace to put his snacks, books, extra underwear...all the things a wife/mother deemed important. And he will need the extra luggage space to bring home presents for said wife.

Jesse and her coworkers played volleyball yesterday evening. I mostly watched, but I did get to play some - enough to make me sore today. Jes and her friends were lots of fun. Bo and family showed up and played some too. Gosh, it is going to be great to have Bo living here.

If I have not mentioned it before, Bo and his family are moving to Duncan in August. He is going to work for a CPA firm and is going back to school to pick up more accounting classes. Economists are just not in as much demand as accountants. Bo has a Masters in Ag Econ, but not enough accounting hours to land the big jobs. The CPA firm is owned by a good friend who will work well with Bo. School has always been Bo;s thing - so I know he will fly through the accounting classes easily. They have found a little house that is just pretty cute and just right for his little family. I am just pretty excited about this move.

I think I will head to WF today to check on Mom.

Rain Shoes

It is raining again today. Toby sent this picture in an email that said: OKC rains have changed shoe fashions.

Painting of the Week

Being the procrastinator that I am, I have been putting off painting my Painting of the Week until Thursdays when my art girls are here. Sometimes that is a mistake, because I get busy helping the girls and have very little time for myself. Yesterday was a busy day, but I had a simple picture and was able to get this little painting done. I have been wanting to do a portrait or something larger and more substantial than my little POWs, but I can't seem to find just the right subject to inspire me. My art girls seem to be suffering from the same lack of inspiration in their paintings. We decided that we need a road trip - maybe go to the Cowboy Hall of Fame and view some art work.

Last night Lindsay and Reagan came over to do some painting with me. They both work and cannot come during the day. It is always a wild time to have the two of them and Jesse painting together. Toby disappeared to the barn. I did manage to get a second little painting done while the girls were here, but I still would like to find something inspirational. Any ideas?

Profound, but Odd

After I get Toby and Jesse off to work, I usually sit down with my coffee at the computer and do some serious surfing. I check my own blog for comments (rarely are there any new ones), and I read through my favorite blogs. Sometimes I check my sitemeter which I find fascinating. There are the usual folks who drop by my blog, but sometimes there are strangers from far away places that find my blog. I can't help but wonder how they came by my blog and what they thought as they read it. I wish they would leave some comment to say they were there - like the ones written on bathroom stalls - me and joey wuz here in 07'. Maybe they could just say, "Howdy from the Jones" or "Mighty fine blog" or "Just dropped by from the moon - how the heck are you". Somebody dropped by my blog having googled "Leroy Featherston" and another person found my blog by googling "Lynda Donnithorne". I wanted to say, "Hey, I know them well! Why didn't you ask? Who are you? Can we talk here?" It just seems like such a waste to come by my blog and not say anything. I'm not talking about my "regulars" that come by everyday, although I love hearing from you, too. I'm talking about new and different people that just happen by.

I happened upon an interesting blog yesterday called Stolen Thunder. After reading several of his posts, I left him a comment to say who I was, how I found him, and what I thought of his blog. It just seemed the polite thing to do. Then again, maybe he doesn't care who comes by his blog. Still, I think I will make it a point to drop a comment on new blogs - unless I think their blogs are sorry. Then I will just move on. Hmm, maybe that is what they think of mine. I did have that thought that if someone dropped by my blog they would think, "Hmm, nothing substantial here." After all, I have not written anything profound lately. Sometimes I save all my profound thoughts for my comments on other's blogs. You know, us blonds can't be too profound or we ruin our reputations. Of course, some people think I am an angel.

My mom called the other day to say she was bringing my 12 year old niece up to see the kittens. Toby asked, "Hasn't she outgrown playing with kittens?" I answered, "I haven't outgrown kittens yet." He said, "Yes, but you are unique." or did he say "odd"?

The goose is loose - in more ways than one. She poops all over the patio and carport, she chases my dogs, and now she is swimming in the grandkid's pool. She is a problem, but she goes for walks with me and is a good watch goose and I like her. Jesse wants to eat her.

Angels?

I took my pretty painted toenails to Lawton yesterday. The air conditioner in my Toyota had a problem that needed fixin' - some sort of clog causing water to backup and then hit the fan whenever I turned left and dribble out on the passenger side floorboard. You know when things hit the fan, it is time to get them fixed. The clog was easily and cheaply fixed. After lunch at Atlanta Bread Co, I treated myself to shopping at Hobby Lobby. I found some great sales on art supplies - yeha! I was so excited about my finds that I forgot to use the gift card that I received back in March, although, I did manage to use my 40% off coupon. I was still pretty excited when I pushed my cart (yep I had to use a cart to get all my art stuff to the car) out to the parking lot. Another lady was unloading her cart into her car so I asked if I could return her cart for her since I was headed back with my cart. She seemed very grateful that I would do that for her and said, "Aren't you an angel!" For some reason her comment took me by surprise - maybe because I don't call people "angels". I wanted to throw back my head and laugh wickedly knowing that Toby would not think I was such an angel when he saw all these art supplies. Heeheehaahaaa!

Here is a photo of GBN2 or Baby Blue-eyes.

Dog Days and Bathing Beauties

Toby took this picture of our Great Dane puppy - pretty funny! He also took the picture of GBN1 in her new pool. I took the photo of Jesse clowning around at the lake.

Teeth and Toe Torture

Yesterday I had an appointment at 9:45 with the dentist to have my teeth cleaned and checked. At 11:00, I had an appointment for a pedicure. Going to the dentist is never fun, but I do love the feel of clean teeth. Getting your teeth cleaned is the pits, though. As the dental hygienist went to work on me, I apologized for my teeth being in such bad shape. She assured me that my teeth were not bad at all. Then she spun my chair around(you know those chairs are similar to the mechanical bull they use at Billy Bob's), dropped me in her lap and got me in a head-lock. With a sword in one hand and a grappling hook in the other, she went to work on me. Okay, she really had just a pick and a mirror, but the way she used that mirror made me feel like a side of beef on a hook. I could feel myself tensing up, my fingers curling in the thin air, and I reminded my self to relax. Lamaze lessons came in handy - focus and breathe. When it was all over, I took my new pink toothbrush and left looking forward to a relaxing pedicure at Wal-Mart.

I was glad I had made my pedicure appointment for after the dentist visit. Getting a pedicure is always relaxing and pleasant, and after the dentist, I needed relaxing. I love sitting in the massage chairs getting my back rubbed and soaking my feet and getting pampered and petted. But no, I got the pedicurist from hell. Actually she was from Vietnam and didn’t seem to speak any English, but she grinned a big toothy grin quite often. She began by removing the old polish and got me in such a strong toe-hold that knew things could not be good, but hopefully things would not get worse. I looked to see if she was using vise-grips to hold my toes, but it was just her tiny hands. Then she began to poke and prod my toenails with tools similar to what the dentist used. She was a bit rough, so I tried to relax and let the massage chair work its magic. Focus and breathe. I nearly came out of the chair when she began massaging my feet and legs. Normally, this is my favorite part of the pedicure. Wow, for such a tiny person, she had really strong hands. They would have been great on my back, but not on my legs. Then she went back to the poking and cutting of cuticles. Focus and breathe. I knew she was getting near the finish as she readied my toes for the polish. She poured some sort of liquid across my toes that must have been some sort of antiseptic because it set my toes on fire. Every place she had poked, cut, and scraped could now be felt and seen. I noticed a little trickle of blood in the crevice between my nail and skin, but she started to polish and the stinging was subsiding. Oops, she noticed the blood, too, and poured some different goop on it. I nearly came out of the seat again with the sting. Like a kid I wanted to holler “Blow on it!” She just gave me another toothy grin.

Gee, now I am feeling sorry for her. She probably does not get many recommendations or people asking for her personally. She really seems like a sweet little thing. Maybe I will ask for her name. Later, as I walked around Wal-Mart with my toes aching, I thought better of that last idea unless it was to make sure I did not get the same girl next time - if there is a next time. Ah, the things women endure to be beautiful.

Jesse to the Rescue

There is a line in Oliver North's autobiography where he says something like, "I can get a whole ship full of Marines ready and off on time, but I can't get my family to church on time. I know how he feels. Well, maybe not about the Marines, but Sunday mornings can be tough. A friend of mine once said, "Isn't it funny how Satan comes and lays on around on your couch on Sunday mornings and just laughs at you." Arguments break out over the bathroom, socks go missing, something is spilled on your clothes, etc. Murphy's Law seems to really kick in on Sundays - at least around my house. When you are all dressed up and heading out the door, something will go wrong. It could be that a can of spray paint falls and explodes in your living room, the dog throws up on the carpet, or the cows are in the road. Most of the time, it is just the little things that cause tension and unrest, but by the time you get off to church, everyone is in a rotten mood and really needing a good Bible lesson. Maybe that is why our little church does so much singing before the lesson - to calm everyone and put them in the right spirit.

We had GBN1 Saturday night and Sunday morning. Usually, Jes, Toby, and I have Sunday mornings down pretty well and we stay out of each other's way and get to church on time. But yesterday was not so smooth. GBN1 woke up moving and talking. She was ready to play with the barn cats and maybe take a swim in the new kiddie pool - none of which did we have time for. She was just a busy girl all morning long. One of us had to be watching her every minute or else she was out the door and gone. It probably was not really so bad, but it had been a while since I got myself and a three year old ready for church. Busy Lizzie is a handful sometimes.

As we were loading up the car (amazing what all has to go to church with us when a baby is involved), I mentioned to Toby that the "clip" on the car-seat was missing. It was needed to secure the child seat to the car seat. He went out to look for it, but could not find it. He came back in to quiz me on what it looked liked exactly. I described it again. He said, "Oh, a buckle" as if "clip" was the wrong word. I said, "Whatever." Then we both went to look for it, but did not find it. Keep in mind that it was about 90 degrees with 100% humidity, and we were trying to get GBN1 in her seat, the car loaded, and off to church on time. We did it, but tension in the car was palpable. It is a good thing we had eight miles to "get over it". Then as if he was just stuck on finding the car-seat buckle, Toby said, "So, this buckle is silver?" In my most testy voice I answered, "I don't remember; it could be gold, but it was metal." All was quite for a minute. Then from the back seat Jesse says, "Could it have been brass?" I started laughing right after I said, "Hey, I'm coming over this seat and I'm going to deal with you now!" We were all okay after that. I took this picture in the parking lot to prove that we were alive and smiling at church.

Jesse and Cara went skydiving yesterday. Jes took this picture of Cara. Cara is one of my art students. She is tall and slim and is a darn good country music singer - just a talented young lady. The jump-guide, or whatever they call the guy, took the picture of Jesse. He took another picture, but he fell over backwards in the plane. He barely caught Jesse in that picture. Her eyes are really big and she is laughing. Both girls jumped and did well. Jesse landed on her feet again, but the chute picked her up and dropped her on her backside before she could gather it up. Sounds like a perfect landing to me.

Painting of the Week

Entertainment

Last night I went to “dinner and a movie” with friends. One of my art girls went with me, which made things lots more fun. We met a large group of folks including Jesse and Lindsay at a local Mexican food café before the movie. J and L have been sharing lots of Chuck Norris jokes lately and last night was no exception. They kept the crowd entertained with silly CN lines like these that I found at Dutyinthedesert, “Two-way contact for Chuck Norris is when he hits you with both fists simultaneously” or “Shock and Awe are the names of Chuck Norris’ legs.” I don’t understand what is up with all the Chuck Norris jokes, but it was funny that J & L would be using them as well as Duty in the Desert.

The funniest Chuck Norris line came last week. During Wed. night church service, Jesse leaned over to Lindsay intending to say, “I bet you could kick Chuck Norris’ butt.” Unfortunately, Jesse accidentally switched the N in Norris with the b in butt. I’ll let you try that on your own to understand what she actually said. Lindsay’s eyes got big and she said, “Lordy, I can’t believe you said that in church!” Then they both collapsed into laughter having to hold it in since they were in church only to make their giggles worse.

The Movie
We saw “Transformers” last night. The previews for upcoming movies were so bad, I wondered if we were in the right theater. I kept thinking “Gee some bank actually loaned money to make these movies. What were they thinking?“ I have to say that I liked “Transformers” but it did have some odd things that could have should have been left out. It is a kid’s movie. The dialogue and characters are all done for kids. I saw children in the movie, especially young boys, who were awed by the show. So what was the point of having two girls in the movie who were scantily clothed. Running around in high-heels with your breasts hanging out could not be easy in an action movie. Then there was the scene where one of the parents in the movie launches into a discussion of masturbation. I bet there were lots of irritated parents at the movie that had to go home and explain that one. Then there was the scene where one of the good robots urinates on a person . Great! I bet there were more discussions at home on that one too. There were some other sexual innuendo type things that were not appropriate, but I guess by today’s standards, it was not “that bad”. But why do movie makers do that to a movie that could be really fun? This movie was fun! It was patriotic! Kids will love it. Big kids will love it. Then they go and mess it up with adult material that is just not okay. Do Hollywood folks just not understand what is really funny and what is not?

All in all, it was a fun evening, and I did like the movie. Thanks for being my date, Ashley

Kayakers

There is a scene in Disney's "Jungle Book" where the buzzards are sitting around saying, "What do you want to do? I don't know; what do you want to do?" That could be my family trying to make a decision. Yesterday morning while drinking our coffee, we were playing out that scene. Finally, we decided to load up the kayaks and head to Lake Elmore Thomas Rec Area (LETRA) on Ft. Sill. The 4th of July should be a fun time - I guess all of those years in Red River really spoiled us, because we want to celebrate on the 4th. Jesse made some calls, but the only person who wanted to go with us was Jan. In typical Baggett fashion we threw everything on the trailer and in the truck and took off with the simple, last minute plan to go to the lake for the 4th of July.

Toby chose to ride his motorcycle while I drove the truck pulling the trailer with bicycles and kayaks. Jan chose to ride in the truck with Jesse and me rather than ride his motorcycle. We turned in the usual gate at Ft. Sill and went through the typical ID check before we were sent on down the rode by the gatekeepers. Toby had to park his bike at the gate because they said he did not have on a reflective vest. Actually his jacket does have reflective trim, but oh well. He was disappointed because that part of the road is very twisty. When we got way down the road toward the lake, we went across some low-water crossings. We got stuck in the second crossing. It made for some excitement and work. Having been married to Toby for 30 years this was a normal experience, but it was new for Jan. We were glad to have Jan along to help get us out of that predicament, but I would like to talk to those gatekeepers about sending us down a road that should have been closed.

By the time we got to the lake, we were starving. We found a camp area and set to work cooking the burgers and brats. I remembered to take lots of good food and drinks, but forgot things like a spatula and paper-goods. Some young army guys at the next camp area provided some tongs to flip the burgers - we provided them with half a watermelon and our thanks for all that they do for us. Toby had to remove the back two tires of the truck to get rocks out of the wheels and brakes while I was cooking burgers. One of the brake pads was ruined. Once again, Jan was a big help in removing tires.

Our meal turned out great, but we were hot and sweaty and ready for a dip in the lake. We loaded the truck back up and drove over to the rec area. We raced down the double slide a few times and swam in the swim-area to cool off. The Photo of the beach and slide were taken later in the afternoon when many people had already gone home, although it was never crowded. Then Jesse, Toby, and Jan launched the kayaks and went for a paddle around the lake while I sat and read on the beach - my kind of party. A little people watching, reading and swimming were perfect for me.

When everyone had enough sun and fun, we were hungry again. After changing clothes and loading the truck and trailer again, we drove into Lawton to eat at Chile's. Once again, I was glad to have Jan there to load kayaks and stuff. Besides providing us with lots of good conversation throughout the day, he also bought our dinner. We got home about 9:00 PM. People in Duncan were dragging out their lawn chairs setting them up in parking lots to watch the fireworks at the Country Club. We were too tired to stay for the fireworks and headed on home to the Lazy B.

Everyone went off to work this morning leaving me to clean house and do the laundry. It is back to the grind.

Celebrations

The Fourth of July is a big celebration in Red River. It is a major weekend for tourist. The little town fills up to overflowing as people come from everywhere to see the parade and participate in the activities. The parade has always been the main event with most of the businesses putting in some sort of entry. I have probably been in on building and riding on more than my share of floats. In later years, Toby, the kids and I rode our horses in the parade as part of the RR Riding Club. I have more stories about the 4th of July in Red River than I could tell on this blog, but I will share a few.


1966 was my first year to participate in the RR parade. We owned the Green Mountain Lodge at that time and built a float with our neighbors at the River View Café. The float was suppose to look like a Southern belle’s dress with hundreds of tissue paper flowers covering the float. We made flowers until we could do it in our sleep. Mom had ladies in her beauty shop making flowers as they sat under the dryers. I was suppose to stand up in a trashcan at the top of the float holding a parasol decorated with more flowers. In other words, I was the Southern Belle and the float was my skirt. It was an awesome float by RR’s standards. We built it in the garage at the Rio Colorado Lodge. On the morning of the 4th we were about to pull the float out of the garage and to the parade route when the adults began to fret about how they were going to get me onto the float without crushing the flowers. Not a problem - I scurried up into the rafters of the barn (in my dress and gloves - my hair all curled and wearing makeup), shimmied down the rafter and dropped into my trashcan. Everyone got a big laugh out of my ladylike behavior. We won “Best Float”. I won “Little Miss Red River”. My brother won “Best Cowboy” - he rode a pony from White Horse Stables. My summer sister, Shelia, won “Miss Red River” - she was riding on the car that pulled my float. We swept the awards ceremony - What a parade!


Then there was the year that Craig won the “Watermelon seed spitting contest”. Many of the jeep drivers, employed to take people on tours in the mountains, entered the contest which was all done in fun. The guys were hamming it up and being pretty silly, but only spitting seeds a few feet or so. Some guy in the crowd had been coaching Craig. When he got up to take his turn, he was very dramatic (remember my wedding). Then he hauled off and spit the seed that went flying about 15 feet out into the crowd. Everyone was awed. Then the crowd parted and there was the seed on the ground and cheers went up as if he had done something great. Once again, those of us who knew Craig were doubled over in laughter. We all knew he was full of hot air.


Then there was the year that Mom and I were busy finishing up our clown costumes on the 3rd of July to wear the next day in the parade. We were busy sewing when we heard the sirens go off signaling a fire somewhere in town and for all available men to come help. In a small mountain town where everything is built out of wood, fire is a serious subject. Mom looked up from her sewing and said, “I just hate it when the sirens go off. I always worry that your dad will be in danger.” Later when Dad came home, he was soaking wet and his eyebrows were singed off. Not only had he been in danger, he had started the fire. He and some other guys (Billie Addison and Steve Smith) were putting the finishing touches on the Addison’s café trying to get it open by the 4th of July. Someone smelled gas. So, the three stooges went out to find the gas leak. My Dad lit the match, and Billie held it to the gas meter on the outside of the café wall. Flames shot up over their heads sending them falling over each other backwards. Then they jumped up and started grabbing anything they could find to fill up with water and throw on the fire. Dad was carrying a bucket of water when he tripped and threw it on himself. It was actually pretty serious, but the building only had minor damage and the café opened the next day. But when all was said and done, it was the cause of much laughter. We should have made the clown costumes for them.


Then there were the famous tug-o-war contests across the creek. I was on the Texas Red’s team - none of us were very big and strong, but we all looked good in our TR T-shirts. These pictures were taken in about 1980. My Dad and several of his high school buddies pulled in the contest that year. They were all about 50 years old and they beat a much younger team. You know, 50 years old doesn’t seem so old anymore. That is my Uncle Gene, Dad with the beard, and Poochie Washburn pulling. The next picture is of the TR's team - that is me on the far right holding Bo. The last picture is of the TR's team pulling with me in the front.

PS. In the bottom picture - that is Nancigail on the far right, Kim Hall pulling behind me, Becky Allen bent over on the left - along with many others some of you will recognize.

Stuff and More Memories

Although it rained some during the night, Sunday was sunny and warm - maybe I should say "steamy". With water standing everywhere, it makes things feel much like a sauna when the sun comes out, and then there are the mosquitoes. After church and the usual Sunday nap, we went to the park to play volleyball with Jesse and some of her coworkers. It was fun to be out playing for a change. The sand volleyball court was wet and sticky. It smelled a bit fishy too. We even found a dead crawdad in the grass. Everything smells fishy or like wet dog. I probably should not complain because the temps have not been that high this summer. They are getting up in the 90's occasionally, but not the 100's. Still, the humidity is something else these days.

More Memories
Last week I wrote about my wedding rings and my brother's forgetfulness. Toby shared a wedding ring memory of his own that had us all laughing. During the wedding ceremony, when my preacher asked for the rings, Craig put on his own little melodrama. He patted all of his pockets, looked around like he could not find the ring, and then with a smug look he fished it out of his breast pocket. I am sure this has been done at many weddings, but those of us who knew Craig had already forgotten the rings once, had a good laugh. I'm just glad it was all an act. If he had actually forgotten my ring at the wedding, I might not have been so generous with him twice. In fact, I am pretty sure that the violent side of my nature might have come out.

I also wrote last week about my grandfather and his interesting name change at the end of WWI. I sent my post to both of my uncles and received responses from each. I don't think any of the grandkids (like me) care one way or the other whether our name was Bernecker or Barker, but it may be a sore spot for my uncles as it was for my grandmother. Although they were both very polite in their emails to me, as in the past, I get the feeling they want to be Barkers. Maybe the Bernecker name is just a bit too German for them. According to my mom, my grandmother, having lived through both WW's, did not want to be German. They would all rather believe that our name was Barker, then changed to Bernecker during WWI, and then changed back to Barker after the war. Seems pretty silly to me. Why would my grandfather change his name to a rather German sounding name during a war against Germany? Why is there no history of any Fred Barkers before WWI? My Uncle Eli sent the following email which is interesting:

Dear Bob and Lou,
Thank you, Lou, for the info on Fred W. Barker, my Dad and/or Papu. All that I can add is info from recalled conversations with Nanny Barker, all after Papu went to be with the Lord. Papu rarely said anyting about his family except that after WW1 he went by North Carolina to see how things were and nothing had changed so he left again, never to go back.
Papu, born December 8, 1887, left home at 14 because of family problems and went to Cincinnati to stay with two older brothers who got him a job at the Gibson House (big downtown hotel) in Cincinnati working in the kitchen. Later, for some reason, he moved on to Chicago where he worked in the Palmer House (really big downtown hotel) food preparation. (He had a recipe for 1000 island dressing which was made with whipped cream that he learned at the Palmer House. Papu would cut a quarter head of lettuce and then put this dressing on top to make an absolutely delicious salad. I was in Chicago on business by myself in about 1961 and ate supper one night at the Palmer House and ordered this type salad. It was identical to the one Papu made. Incidentally. Nelson Eddy, who made singing several movies with Jeanette McDonald, was appearing that night in the Empire Room of the Palmer House. I decided not to go on my expense account budget to Nelson Eddy's performance.
Nanny Barker showed me Papu's WW1 discharge papers showing the name Frederick Wilhelm Bernecker. When she applied for a veteran widow's pension, the person who handled her application had no problem with granting her a pension on the basis that "he probably had roomed the Bernecker family in Chicago and entered the army under the name of Bernecker and left them his worldly goods."
Some way, Papu got to Kansas City and went to work for Nafziger Baking Company. They owned the Taystee Bread bakery in Wichita Falls, and Papu was sent to WF to manage the operation. Papu lived in the William and Mary Hotel on 10th and Lamar? He needed a secretary and advertised in the paper to interview interested parties in the lobby of the William and Mary on Sunday afternoon. (People worked 6 nines in those days). Nanny wanted to apply even though she was working in Uncle Eli's and Uncle Walter's feed store. Our uncles did not want their 26 year old sister meet a man in the lobby of the hotel. She got the job, worked several? months, married Papu, and off to Kansas City.
Some way or other, Papu got into selling irrigated farms in the Rio Grand Valley. Entire train loads of possible buyers would get on this train which made up in Chicago with others prospects added at each stop. In about 1929-30 we moved down there and lived on one of these 28 acre farms. We raised tomatoes, green beans, and cotton, had a cow and chickens. Bath every Saturday night in a No. 2 tub in the living room in front of the fire.
Frances came to live with us on May 25, 1930. She was born at home, the usual place in those days. Papu told me I had a new sister (I was 4 at the time). I
asked Papu where she came from. He said you remember the black bag the doctor had when he arrived. I said, Yes. Papu said she was in that bag. I believed him until Joe Fred came to live with us.
Papu had a Lincoln touring sedan with 'jump seats and a telephone for the passenger to speak to the chauffeur. He would take the back seats out and haul bushels of tomatoes and green beans into Harlingen but could not sell them in 1930-31. He would get so mad that he would throw them out on the side of the road on the way home. Not long and Nanny and 4 little kids were in WF with Grandmother Morgan while Papu went to Chicago to get employment at the start of the world-wide Great Depression. Then he came to visit and we were soon on our way to Chicago. (I pulled the Emergency Stop cord in the rail car. The Porter came and told me NEVER to do that again or he would put me off the train.)
In August, 1932, Papu got a job to manage 'Ye Olde Musky Inn' in Elco, Wisconsin. We were there until about April, 1933 and back to Chicago. (No one had money to hunt or fish during the Depression). Part of 'Ye Olde Musky Inn' building was still there when Daphne and I visited Elco in about 1992-3. Didn't look near as big in '92 as it did when I was 6 years old.
We lived in Chicago until August, 1936, when we settled in WF.

No matter what, Papu was an interesting man. It is just my opinion, but I think after WWI when Papu visited his family again and nothing had changed, he chose to change his name to cut family ties and to have a more American sounding name during a time when sentiment towards Germans was low. It just makes more sense.