Self-portraits

Emily came to art yesterday, and we painted. She painted with oils and I painted watercolor. I love it when I have lots of art girls here and the chatter is flowing. But I like to have one-on-one time, too. Emily is always great. From the time she was a little girl, she has made me smile with her grown-up conversation and easy manner. I probably love her most because she is willing to argue with me, and she laughs – lots. I may have to join the SC just so I can dance with her.
Here is my painting from yesterday.
I was reading and looking through Sour Swinger’s photos and enjoying his videos. He often does that thing where you hold the camera out and take a photo of yourself. Jesse does this all the time. Here she is down on the Red River noodling last weekend or I should say filming the noodling (or possibly just goofing around with the camera.
At Corpus Christi
With Reagan.
I could have stolen more off her computer, but you get the idea. Here she is taking one of those self-portraits - I did try to find the photo that she took while I was taking this photo, but it was not on her computer - foiled again! Although I never think to do these kind of photos, I think they are very fun. Maybe we should all do this and post it. Well, maybe later when I am dressed and have make-up on with my hair combed.

Tonight is the Gabriel House fundraiser dinner and art auction. Toby and I will be attending and sitting at a table with the Painted Ladies and their dates. Jesse is going to be serving at the dinner – she is a good egg. I will take photos and share over the weekend.

Dog Update and Painting Night Scenes

Ranger is doing well. I picked him up at the vet’s office yesterday morning and took him to the Painted Ladies’ day. He lay at my feet on his blanket and was a good dog. The vet said that the ear had been in very bad shape – the cartilage and ear were torn nearly off. He said it took a lot of work to put it back together. I think the vet did a great job.

The Painted Ladies worked on painting a night scene. Several years ago, I had taken a workshop with Naomi Brotherton who was recently in Watercolor Magazine. So, I shared my knowledge of night scene painting. This is a painting that I have done before. Maybe I was not that excited about painting the night scene and was a bit sloppy. Since I paint very fast, I finished my night scene and then did this little quick painting of cactus blossoms.
My blog buddy, Jo Castillo, is in Northern NM and is posting some great photos. She is making me quite homesick or is it the heat of OK that makes me want to head to the hills?

I also spoke with my good friend, Mrs. Bear. Speaking with Anny always makes me happy. She knows me like no other. She knows my heart. She knew me in my prior life, and she loved me anyway. There is nothing hidden with friends like her. Thanks for calling and knowing, Anny.

Better

If you read last night's post, know that I am of sound mind today. All is better. Peace is being restored. And things will be much better when I get Ranger home.

Old Sayings

There are two sayings that I associate with my Uncle Gene. I thought about both of them tonight. First, Uncle Gene used to say, "I know a bunch of horses’ asses, but not all of them are horses." That pretty much describes me tonight. I was horse’s ass. Yep, I acted badly. I hate that. I just couldn’t seem to help myself. The more I opened my mouth the worse it got. I tried to leave, but Jan was concerned about me and wanted to talk. Not smart. I know myself well. I just needed to go – get the heck out of Dodge before I let both barrels fly. I needed time to get myself under control. Poor Jan, he had good intentions.

The other saying was not my Uncle Gene’s, but was said about him. Fred Jaramillo was crusty old gent – he often said, "That Gene A…! He thinks he knows everything, but he don’t know chit!" That would describe how I felt about others tonight. People bossing me around, but they don’t know chit. I don’t do well with those sorts. Things surface in me better left buried.

I do have an occasional problem with authority. I will admit it. First, if you are going to tell me what to do, you better darn well know what you are talking about. Second, you better be willing to follow your own advice. Third, you better treat everyone the same way. If you don’t, you will lose my respect, I will question your authority, and probably not follow your lead or advice next time you offer it.

So I played volleyball tonight. Last week I was irritated when a certain player told me how to play, but did not hold to the same standards. He is a ball hog, which puts him on my short list. He is a nice guy, but. Tonight the Piper joined in the "instruction" on volleyball strategy. You know I love the Piper, so I am a bit more tolerant where he is concerned. But the strategy sucks. Why now? Why not the other games I played in? When did this become the way to play? And why the heck did you not instruct others on the team who were also oblivious to said strategy? My irritation from last week spilled over into this week. Okay, I played with the Ball Hog months ago, and he pissed me off then, too, by giving instruction, which he did not hold to himself. To top it off, tonights "instructions" countered those of last week's. What's up with that?

So tonight my feelings were running hot. I was beyond talking; I was to cussing. I hate that. In my younger days and another life ago, I would not have gotten mad. I would have gotten even. I wanted to take someone out. I needed to go. I needed to die to self. I did not need to "talk it out" with Jan. Poor Jan. He followed me outside saying, "We can talk." I told him "may" and "can" are different words. I know Jan thought I was being an ass, but the truth was, I was still holding back. I have grown up a bit.

"It’s just a game," he said. Oh yeah, if it were just a game, then why weren't we just playing? Why doesn't someone tell John to move back when he plays up? Why doesn’t someone tell Travis to quit hogging the ball and set it up? Why is it so important to tell me how to play?

I play a lot of volleyball, but obviously I cannot play with this league. It takes away my peace.

About two hours before tonight's volleyball game, Ranger the Rat Terrier went through a barbed wire fence and cut his ear nearly off. Blood went every where. I staunched the flow of blood and held him all the way to town. I held him in my arms while the vet gave him a shot to knock him out so he could then sew the ear up. But the vet made me leave Ranger on the table - cold and stiff. I cried all the way home. Can I please just hit someone? I will only use my left hand (as my cousin used to say).

Weekend Report - Not as expected

Saturday’s Dehydrator Bike Ride did not go as well as expected. Around 26 miles into the race, Toby had a flat and then ruined the valve on his new tube while changing the flat – race over. I picked him up south of Comanche. He was disappointed, but 26 miles was a good showing. After he had lunch and rested a bit, we went to WF. I always call Mom as we hit the road to give her our ATA. When I called, she told me that two of my cousins and their families were in town. Although they just live in the Dallas area, it had been a few years since I had seen them. Life is funny that way. We always say we are going to get together more often, but we never seem to make it happen.

Jesse’s noodling did not go as expected either. After spending all day down on the Red River, they caught nothing. I think she was rather bored with the filming. Jesse said it was just hot! She was disappointed that she did not get to see the cousins in WF – due to miscommunications. Saturday was a bit of a disappointment all around.

Sunday evening we went to Piper’s for some great food, good fellowship, and the Prosecutor’s birthday. She turned five. We got to set out on the new deck.
The kids did some swimming, while the parents visited. I spent lots of time visiting with the Diva, since we have not had much time together lately. It was a very nice evening.
GBN1, HRHTDP, The Prosecutor.
Lighting of the cupcakes.
Eating of the cupcakes.
Grown-up Princesses.
A taste of what could be…

Prepared

Toby got up early this morning and headed to the Duncan Dehydrator. I chose not to ride in this bike race – lots of reasons – too hot, too old, too sore, too bad, etc. Jesse was going to ride with Toby, but decided to go noodling instead. You heard me right; she is going noodling with friends. Actually, she is supposed to film some of her friends doing the noodling. No way would Jesse stick her hand in a catfish hole underwater. She likes adventure, but she does have a healthy amount of fear. Me, I’m sitting around the house today. Maybe I will eat some bonbons. The logistics of me going to town to see Toby off on his bike ride were just not feasible, and more of a hassle. I think he really did not want to have to worry about me, and just wanted to do his thang.
Yesterday I had to be in town to set up an art show and take art in – doing my thang. I killed an hour between the set up and the show by getting a pedicure, which was quite relaxing. The art show was in conjunction with the Crape Myrtle dinner and fundraiser. It was set up as a silent auction. One of the Painted Ladies, Barb, helped me with the show. We mingled and schmoozed the room. Then had a nice dinner. We tallied up the winners of the silent auction. As the evening came to a close we were bombarded with people coming to pay for their art. It was at that point that Barb and I realized we were not really prepared to take money. The Goat song in "Hoodwinked" came to mind, "An avalanche is coming and I am not prepared…" But the goat got it together and made it through the avalanche. Barb and I got it together and took money like we knew what we were doing. For a while there, we looked like deer caught in headlights with a mob of people waving credit cards.
I got home last night about 10 PM and told Toby how the evening went. We did manage to sell lots of artwork, which was surprising. I sold my little blue boat painting. When I got to the part about us not being prepared to take money, Toby laughed, shook his head and said, "Art people and money!" as if we are a bunch of ding-dongs. I guess I will have to drag along my accountant next time.

Parallel Story

I was not present when police officer, Sgt. Crowley arrested Professor Gates, but I do know that it is better to cooperate with police rather than not cooperate. I am telling story second hand, but I will try to do my best to repeat it as it was told to me.

A few years ago, my nephew was taking a class on the UT campus. While waiting on his bus to arrive after class, he decided to wonder through the new law building with its interesting architecture. Upon seeing my nephew in the halls, a secretary or worker in the building decided that my nephew was not a law student and called the police. By the time the police arrived, my nephew was outside waiting on his bus. The police approached my nephew and asked him for his ID. My nephew, who had recently taken some sort of civil law class told the officers that he did not have to show his ID since he was not doing anything wrong. Then he began to walk away – the police followed, and it turned into a comical chase around a parked car. My nephew managed to call his dad, my brother the lawyer, on his cell phone while avoiding the police. He told his dad that the police were chasing him. My brother told his son to stop immediately and let the police catch him. He did, and was promptly arrested.

Now there is no law against a student walking through a building on campus even if he is not taking classes in that building, but we don’t know what prior instances might have happened to make the secretary call police. Although I think my nephew is quite handsome, he does have long hair, a tattoo or two, and wears baggy pants. You would think that on the UT campus this look would be quite normal. Did the fact that my nephew is a Hispanic male have anything to do with the police being called? It probably did. Whatever this lady was thinking, the police did show up and did ask for an ID and did arrest my nephew for not cooperating. Was I upset that someone would treat my nephew this way? Yes, I was. But, if he had just shown them his ID and explained his actions, all would have been okay. And that was the lesson learned by my nephew, who was quite young and inexperienced. I don't know what penalties my nephew had to pay for this little incident, but I think he did have to do some community service or something along those lines.

Now Mr. Gates should have known better. If Mr. Gates had just had enough respect for Sgt. Crowley and his position as a police officer trying to do his job, all would have been okay. If someone had really been trying to break into his house, would he have wanted the police to investigate? His actions and the President’s words undermine the authority and respect police officers need to do their job.

On a side note, I want to tell you that I think my nephew is intelligent and good-looking, is quite the charmer, and has a great personality. Although I don't see him nearly enough and have not told him personally, he has a special place in my heart - he is very dear to me. Here is one of my favorite photos of us together twenty years ago. I don't know where I got that hat, but the photo was taken on a hot day at a street dance in Leon Springs, TX.

Update:

Jesse just emailed me an article on the death of WWII hero, Darrell Powers, who was portrayed in the movie "Band of Brothers" and I thought some of you might be interested.

A Pain in the Glass

Buck posted this wonderful video of the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium - very cool.

There are two art events coming up. This weekend there is a silent art auction at the Crape Myrtle Dinner - fundraiser. The Duncan Art Guild is setting up some paintings to be auctioned off, and I am trying to come up with some artwork to put in the auction. One of the Painted Ladies, Barb, and I will be attending the dinner and overseeing the art auction.



Next weekend is another fundraiser type dinner, but this time money is being raised for The Gabriel House in Duncan. The Gabriel House is an after-school program for children of low-income families. Several houses near elementary schools were purchased to provide a place for kids to go after school when their parents work. The House also provides great programs for the kids – not just a place. They provide dance, art, music, etc. lessons. They also provide jobs for young high school/college students as tutors. It is a very neat program, and I want to help raise money for them by donating some paintings to be auctioned off. The big difference in the auctions: the crape myrtle auction will benefit the art guild and the artists. The other auction will benefit only the Gabriel House.
Although I framed six pieces, here are two of mine. These were taken with the glass on - making it difficult to get a great shot.


Rant
This all means that I have been matting and framing my artwork as well as several other artist’s works. Last Tuesday I ordered four pieces of glass cut at Duncan Glass – something that would take about 20 minutes to cut. They said they would call me that same afternoon when the glass was ready. They did not call. I was busy the next day with the Painted Ladies, but I called them Thursday to say that I would be coming in to pick up the glass. The glass was not cut yet, but they assured me that it would be cut and ready that afternoon. I planned on making a trip to town on Friday and would pick up the glass then. Toby went with me Friday afternoon to pick up the glass, but it was still not ready. I told them I would be back on Monday morning and would really appreciate the glass being ready. Jesse went by Monday afternoon, and the glass was not ready, but they PROMISED that it would be ready first thing Tuesday morning. Most of you probably know the outcome of this story. The glass was not ready. The lady said that if I could just come back in an hour, she would make sure the guys cut my glass. I very nicely told her that since my order was not important to them, to cancel it. The lady continued to try and explain that different things had happened that week, but that once the guys were back in the shop, it would only take them 20 minutes to cut the glass. Maybe she did not realize how that sounded to me – that no one in the shop could find 20 minutes to do my order all week long but they could do all sorts of other orders! She told me how she had really gotten on to the shop guys telling them they must get these two (mine and someone else’s) orders done. Apparently they did some other order, but not mine. She had all sorts of excuses, which were just excuses and made no sense. Then she said, "Will you keep the order if we promise to deliver it?" Now why would I believe anything this woman said? The guys in the shop had made a liar out of her – three times. Now an order that should have taken twenty minutes had turned into a project that was still not done over a week later. You would have been proud of me; I just said no thanks and left.

The Workings of My Mind

It is funny how the mind works sometimes or doesn’t work as the case may be. Yesterday I was supposed to cut a friend’s hair (an older man in our fellowship who doesn’t get out much). I called him to cancel and schedule another time. I started to say, "Can I take a rain…" but the word eluded me. I thought, "rain maker, rain gauge, rain cloud, rain down on me…" but no "rain check." I almost LOL trying to think of the right word. It did not come to me until long after the conversation was over. And then when I least expect it, I think of the word.

The other day Toby was telling me of a backhoe company that we might be able to use for digging the footing for our house. He could not think of the name of the company. "It’s over on old Hwy 7 just past Dawn’s house," he said.
Me, "Oh, I’ve seen that place. It’s called…hmm, something about a bird…hmm, bird’s nest…"
Toby, "I think it is called something like Hobbknobbers."
Me, "Yeah! That’s it!"
We looked at each other for a minute. Then I said, "Well, maybe hobbknobber reminds me of a bird or bird’s nest."
Now that I think about it, I think the name of the backhoe company was more like "hob-gobbler’s nook." Who know what the real name of the place is! It still reminds me of a bird for some reason.

Weekend Report for Mid-July

I love it when Toby takes a Friday off, but it sure makes for a long weekend. Friday afternoon, we went sailing with our friend, Scot, who has a catamaran himself. The wind was pretty strong, but kind of gusty. I got a bit seasick and was not enjoying the sailing as much as usual. Jesse joined us after work for a quick trip across the lake. At one point it rained on us, but there was not a cloud nearby – very odd.

Saturday morning we went for a long bike ride, which was fun. I have not been riding my bike like I should and was a bit worn out. Earlier in the week, I rode my bike and had a little crash. It was no big deal, but reminded me of getting bucked off a horse – you get back on and ride, but the next day you hurt in places you did not realize were hurt.

After the bike ride and showers, we headed over to WF and had lunch with my brother and his family. We did some shopping and some more visiting with Pete. When we got home, it was a bit late for supper, but we cooked and ate outside enjoying the evening.

We had so much fun cooking outside that we decided to do it again on Sunday evening and invite the GGs and Piper’s royal family. We started off with swimming in the kiddie pool. Jesse and GBN1 had several "showdowns" with Jesse saying, "This pool ain’t big enough for the two of us."
Later when the Royal’s arrived, the pool really was not big enough.

We boiled potatoes, corn, and shrimp. We grilled steaks and vegetables. We tried some new beers. Here is Bo with his "got beer" commercial. We finished off supper with an ice-cold watermelon and some fireworks. We had an old-fashioned watermelon seed-spitting contest (Jesse took photos, which I will steal if she does not post). The queen was by far the best spitter – causing some pretty funny moments. The fireworks were not much, but the kids loved them. At one point, GBN1 and the Piper's Princesses got very excited. They were cheering the fireworks when GBN1 said, "Lets all spit!" Her mother was aghast, but it seemed very normal to me. Haven’t you ever been so excited that you just wanted to spit?

The evening ended on a bit of a sour note. GBN2 ignored my warning, and I was not quick enough to stop her when she touched the end of her sparkler and burnt her little finger. Did I mention that drama runs high in this family? GBN2 wailed for a long time. Eventually, I put a Band-Aid (not actually on the burn) on the finger and a drop of mustard (on the burn) and all was a bit better.

It was a great time, but a bit like a storm that blows in quickly, stirs everything up, and then blows out as it came in – fast. After the clean up, we were all worn out.

Funny on Sunday:
We sat in the "overflow room" at church, which means we sat in a small, back room with a TV monitor. The Piper’s sat in front of us. The room has a couple of fans to help keep everyone cool since the air conditioner does not do well in the back rooms of the building. Everyone kept complaining of a high whining, obnoxious noise. I thought it was the fan in the front of the room. People behind me agreed. The Piper and Queen insisted that the noise was coming from behind them. We tried turning off the fans, but it was not the fans. We tried turning off the lights, but it was not the lights. I thought it might be the TV monitor, but the Piper said the sound was coming from my purse. I indignantly said that there was no way that noise was coming from my purse. Then I remembered that one of the Painted Ladies had given me a little fan as a joke. I had put the fan in my Bible bag. Reaching down, I pulled the little fan out and sure enough it had someway turned on and was making the obnoxious noise. Everyone in the room LOL at me. I’m just glad that I was not in the main room with the whole church.
The culprit.

Lazy Day at the Lazy B

I took this photo of the new kitten yesterday. He seemed quite at home with the Painted Ladies.

Morning Cleaning

The Painted Ladies are coming to my house today to paint. In preparation for them, I vacuumed the carpet and mopped the tile and did other major cleaning projects. My swifter mop batteries were dead - so I improvised and poured out some other floor cleaner as I mopped. It was a mistake. It left the floor slightly greasy feeling - not to mention everything stuck to it and left tracks. I text (texted?) Jesse to bring me batteries from town, but she did not (kind of an Emma story). This morning I am planning on robbing some batteries from other battery operated appliances and trying the mop again. I will have to vacuum again thanks to my dog who brought his dog food into the living room to eat on the carpet. Why did I bother cleaning yesterday? And why didn't the cleaning fairy come last night? And why the heck do they put batteries in a mop?

Funny:
While driving to town yesterday, I called Toby to discuss where to meet for lunch. Toby said something, but I totally missed it. I explained, "Sorry dear, but I was distracted. You know that tower they are building out here? Well, there was a construction worker without a shirt. And he had a dark tan and was wearing tan pants, which made it look like he was naked. So I had to look again." Toby said, "You were looking at a naked guy?" Me, "Well yeah! Naked guy in a hard hat! Who wouldn’t look? Now what were you saying?" Truly it was not lust, but simple curiosity.

Promised Pictures

I've been to Jesse's computer and stolen some photos and a video. This is the promised "goat in a tutu" from the local goat show.
These photos were taken after church out in the parking lot under a shade tree. Great Grandma bought these dresses for the GGs. The red boots came from a garage sale - what a buy!
Here is GBN2 playing like she is a "baby" in Aunt Jesse's arms.

Echo

Peaceful Weekend

We had a rather quiet weekend here at the Lazy B. We actually stayed home most of the time. Friday we invited my son and his family over for supper. We put out the kiddie pool for the GGs. While I was busy cooking, Jesse got in the pool with the girls and took some pretty funny photos and videos. My DIL was worried that we would never get the GGs out of the pool to eat, but I had a trick up my sleeve. We ate outside. The GGs were loved that. After working up an appetite in the pool, they were ready to take a few steps to the patio to eat supper. It is the thought of going in the house and possibly not swimming in the pool anymore that causes a fight. With the pool and the food just a few feet from each other, all went well. At one point, GBN1 got this gleeful look in her eyes. Then I noticed the kitten walking by the pool. GBN1 got out of the pool with an exaggerated sneaky walk toward the cat. "Don’t even think about it!" I said as she put her wet hands on the cat. GBN1 gave me the "Ahh shucks!" and went back to the pool wondering, "How did Booboo know I was going to give that cat a dunking?"

Jesse took some great video of the GGs reciting scripture verses they learned this week. My DIL has been teaching GBN1 scripture and GBN2 has been picking up on it. I think they are both exceptional.

Saturday we did some work around the house. Toby got carried away with his brush-hog work in the tractor and did not stop for lunch. I fried up some bacon for BLTs, and Jesse and I ate. Since Toby did not come in for lunch, I left his bacon on the table for later. Beauregard, the Basset hound, managed to climb up on the table and eat all of the bacon. Who would have thought that such a discumbuberated animal could get on the table?

It was way to hot to do any more work outside, so Jesse and I decided that we deserved to take a break and headed to a matinee to see "The Proposal." We love silly romance stories – chick flick for sure. It was a fun movie, but as in most PG13 movies, it had some things that would make it uncomfortable to see in mixed company.

Saturday evening, Toby and I headed to a birthday/luau party while Jesse went to The City for a Redhawks game. I carved up a watermelon and cantaloupe to take to the party – yum. Visiting with friends is always fun, but the baseball game would have been more entertaining. Sometimes, it is good to just slow down and take the weekend easy. Toby and I were in bed by ten, while Jesse did not get home till after midnight.

Sunday was uneventful with the usual church attendance. After church, we took the GGs to lunch for "chicken and curly fries," which is a favorite with them. You would think they were getting something really special rather than greasy spoon dining. There are not a lot of places open on Sunday afternoon in Velma, OK. So eating at Speedy G’s brings in all sorts of folk. The GGs love the crowd and all the visiting. After lunch, we all headed home for the Sunday nap. Later, Toby and I made a trip to town and Wal-Mart while Jesse went to play V-ball. It was way to hot (over 105) to be outside. When we got home, I watched a Miss Marple mystery movie on PBS to end my weekend. Okay, it was not a very exciting weekend, but it was very peaceful and relaxing.

Animals and New Do

Jesse brought home another kitten the other night. According to the Junk Diva, she "stole some poor little girl’s kitten," which makes Jesse a "cat burglar." If that is true, then the Diva’s daughter is an accomplice to the crime, since she was with Jes at the time of the theft. I’m not sure we should let those two run together. But the two kittens are another story. The new kitten keeps the bad kitten entertained. For that, I am very glad. Since there are two kittens now, I have been throwing them outside more. The new kitten seems to do quite well outside. The bad kitten wants in all of the time and is quite the whiner.

The Piper has taken his Royal family to a family reunion and asked me to take care of his dog – Beauregard. The dog has been no problem other than slinging slobber now and then - Basset hounds are slobbery creatures. Beau gets along well with my dogs and could care less about the kittens. This morning he needed some love and attention. I guess he misses the Royals.

Yesterday Toby, Jesse and I had lunch at the fairgrounds where they were having a goat show. It sure brought back memories of when the kids were in 4H. I’ve done lots of horse shows and county fairs in past years. We have also shown sheep and pigs. Those were fun times - glad their over. After we ate, we walked around to see the goats. One little girl had her goat dressed in a pink tutu, and the little girl was wearing a matching outfit. Jesse took photos. If she does not post one, I will steal her camera and post one. The pair was pretty cute and funny.

After lunch, I had an appointment to color my hair - the gray was getting too much for me. My hairdresser tried something new with my hair - a summer color. Actually it is the same color that she normally puts on me, but this time she used stronger volume peroxide to make the dark color a bit lighter. She did not put any highlights back into my hair, which makes a big difference. Anyway, I am darker haired today than I was yesterday. After I wash my hair a few times, it will lighten up, because color fades. Plus, being in the sun will lighten it up – that is why I called it a summer color. Every time I look in the mirror, I am a bit shocked. Who is that strange lady with the dark hair? In some ways, coloring my hair so different is sort of freeing. Once you have done something drastic to your hair, it frees you to do it more often – people are not so shocked by the change if you change more often. In truth, this is more my natural color. It is the color I would be without the blonde highlights. I’ve put so many highlights in my hair, that I have become a blonde. The twelve years in OK, I have been very blonde. It will be interesting to see how people react to the darker me. As soon as I got my new hairdo, I went to see Toby. He said he liked it and was very positive (I love that man!). We went to see a friend last night and ran into several other friends – no one mentioned my hair – not a good sign. I figure anyone who does not notice and comment on such a drastic change is either very dull or does not like the change. When I see someone with a new do, I try to comment nicely – every woman likes to be noticed. Speaking of new hairdos, Jesse got a new do too. She cut her hair off quite a bit. With her curly hair, it looks very nice. Maybe she will post a photo and you can all comment.

Mom's Report

My trip to WF went very well. Mom got a great report - no colon problems, and she does not ever have to do the procedure again. Mom did have some problems drinking all that she was suppose to drink the night before the colonoscopy, but the actual procedure was not difficult at all. It was very quick. The nurse took Mom away around 9:30 AM and she was back in her room by 9:45. She was awake and ready to leave by 10:00. She felt good, and was hungry. We picked up my sister-in-law and went for lunch at Parkway Grill. Mom was still doing great, so I came home.

My back is doing better today.

Just a Twinge

The craziest thing happened yesterday at Wal-Mart. I was almost done with my shopping and the cart was rather full. The Graham cracker pie crust that I bought was about to get smushed in all the groceries - so I reached to move it. When I picked it up, the label came off and floated like a leaf on the wind. It sailed back and forth better than most paper airplanes. Then it disappeared. I was standing there thinking, "You are kidding! Where did it go?" I certainly did not want to walk to the back of the store to find another pie crust with a label, but I knew the checker would not be able to get a price as it was. So I slightly bent over to see if the label had slid under the cart. That was the moment I felt the twinge in my back, causing me to not be able to move. The least little movement and pain went through my get-along and up my back. Now what was I to do with all these groceries, and what about my volleyball game I so lamely begged to play in. I called Toby. He said, "Can you lay across the cart? Do you want me to come get you?" "No," I said, "It seems to be easing as I stand here." I was able to gingerly make my way home with the groceries. At home I rested, took some ibuprofen, and was able to test my pain - stretch a little. I found that I was doing much better by the time of the volleyball game. I made Toby go with me in case I needed to be carried out, but it actually went well. We won the game.

This morning I am a little tight. Okay, a lot tight in the get-along, but I am headed to WF. Mom is having a colonoscopy and wants me there. Pray that I am helpful today instead of needy.

Me and Emma

Normally, I do my Wal-Marting on Monday, but yesterday I went quilting. You may remember a few weeks back I posted that Jeramie had proposed to Rebekah. That means our church fellowship will be making a wedding ring quilt. The ladies gathered yesterday to do the first of the cutting and sewing. I am usually a cutter. I can sew, but I don’t want the responsibility and hassle. There are better sewers, and things need to be really good for the quilt. Wedding ring quilts have lots of little pieces that need to be cut for the sewers, and that is where I come in. The ladies also need a designated smart aleck to keep them in line, or they might take life too seriously and think too highly of themselves. I keep those things from happening.

I was busy cutting when ten-year-old Emma sat next to me wanting to help with the quilt. I showed her how to cut the pieces and then separate them in to "right B’s and left B’s." Since it is not difficult, I assumed she could do it easily. But when she took the B’s to her Nana, Nana told her she was doing it wrong. Emma said, "Lou told me to do it that way!" Now you know that I did not tell her wrong and having a ten-year-old blame me for her mistakes was a bit irritating. Some of the other ladies teased me about it, which was funny. I patiently re-showed Emma how to lay out the B’s, but once again, she mixed her right B’s and left B’s. And once again, she blamed her mistakes on my teaching. This time I said, "Look here Emma, if you keep ratting me out, I gonna take you outside and beat you up!" Emma loved that. They were needing more B's, so I switched over and started cutting B’s with Emma. That way I could show her how to do it and keep an eye on her. She did great, although she did get tired and a bit lackadaisical. Cutting is hard, boring work - I didn't blame her for wanting out of the cutting business.

Later in the afternoon, Emma and some of the other little girls were going to the convenience store to get cokes for everyone. Remember that here in OK, you say that you are going to get a "Coke," but you may mean a Dr. Pepper or Sprite. I helped Emma write out a list of what everyone wanted from the store. I wrote out that I wanted a Diet Pepsi in a bottle and explained to Emma that was what I wanted. There were only about five drinks on the list – most of them soft drinks and one V8. When the girls came back from the store, they had decided to buy all fountain drinks and the V8. You know, I’m really not a whiney baby, but I don’t like fountain drinks. In fact, I don’t like ice. I like for a drink to be cold, but I don’t like to hassle with ice. Some people like to chomp on their ice, but not me. Even when I order a margarita, I like it "up" - no ice. I love Diet Pepsi, but I try to drink only one a day, since they are not so good for you. I savor my one DP in a bottle, and Emma had bought me a fountain drink saying it was "easier." All sorts of things went through my mind at this point. If it had been my own kid, I probably would have given her heck about it. I wanted to say, "You mean you could walk back to the cooler and get a bottle of V8, but not a DP?" or "Why did you ask me what I wanted if you were going to get me what you thought I needed?" I probably should have just let it slide and taken the fountain drink, but I didn’t. I told Emma that I didn’t want a fountain drink and that I would not drink it. Then I felt like such a heel, and yet I couldn’t help myself. A little while later Emma brought me a DP in a bottle. Lindz had made her go back to the store. And Lindz drank the fountain drink. Thanks Lindz.

I don’t know what everyone thought about my little fit throwing. Maybe I was being a baby. Maybe Emma needed to not always take the "easier" route. Maybe I need to "get over it."

The whole episode reminded me of another time when something like this happened. Back when I was a waitress at Texas Red’s in RR, at the end of the evening we all had a "shift drink" on the house. It was a good time for us waitresses to kick back and visit with each other relaxing at the end of the night. One of us waitresses would take everyone’s shift drink order. Most of us waitresses liked to have a margarita, but we all had our preferences. Some liked their drinks on the rocks or no ice or frozen. Some liked their drink with no salt or sometimes sugar on the rim. One night I took everyone’s order and then went down to the bar. When I handed the orders to the bartender, he ripped in to me big time. He did not want to have to make all of the different margaritas, and he opened up on me with both barrels. I remember standing there while he chewed me out. I had lots of thoughts running through my mind that time too. Some of my thoughts were similar to my thoughts with Emma, but most were more like, "How would you like a black eye?" Instead, I just handed him the order list and walked off. He made the margaritas to everyone’s liking. He probably knew that some of the waitresses would really give him a black eye if he did not do things right.

Maybe my reaction to Emma’s fountain drink was a flashback from my past.

Great Fourth Fun and Photos

It has been a wild weekend. Jesse and I ran over to WF on Friday to do a bit of shopping. Not only did we buy ourselves some things, we bought food supplies for our 4th of July celebration. We also had lunch with Mom and then brought her home with us to attend the Loco Fire Department 3rd of July lawnmower races and fireworks.

First, a quick story on Mom: Mom did not go shopping with Jes and I, because she was packing her bags and getting ready to come home with us. She also had to feed my brother’s dogs, since he went off for the old traditional 4th of July in Red River (he is a dog himself). When Mom met us for lunch at Chili’s, she was a bit wound up and had had quite the morning. She told us that while she was feeding my brother’s dogs, her little Fox Terrier, Buddy, caught a Mocking Bird. He brought it into the garage to show her and was quite pleased with himself. He wanted to get into her car with the bird, but Mom made a grab for it. She said she came up with a handful of feathers. Then she chased the dog around the garage trying to catch him and force him to give up the bird. Eventually she was successful, but the bird was still alive. It hopped off into some garage junk where Mom could not get to it. Then she had to chase the dog to get him into her car without his bird. Mom couldn’t leave the garage open, but she couldn’t get the bird. She didn’t know what to do – so she left the bird and came to meet us for lunch. She was worried about the bird dying and stinking up Pete’s garage. When she told this story, I could just see her chasing that little dog around with a bird in its mouth. The dog is not much bigger than the bird. The whole thing made me laugh My first words to Mom where, "Have you washed your hands yet?"

We all got back to OK safely Friday afternoon. Jesse had to scurry around and get to Loco, since she had been drafted to work the food booth and the face painting booth. Mom and I waited on Toby to get home from work, and then we loaded up the lawn chairs and cooler to go to Loco. This Loco 4th of July celebration was a big to do with lots of Loco-ites and other Okies turning out for the fun. We found a place to put our chairs in the shade before the GGs dragged me off to see the turtle races. GBN1 was fascinated with the turtles. A few weeks ago Aunt Jes brought GBN1 a turtle from the pond. It eventually escaped the yard and took off for parts unknown (Darn! How did that happen?). She has not stopped asking about that turtle and was really happy to see lots of turtles at Loco. GBN1 spent most of the afternoon playing with turtles from the race – turning them over on their backs, feeding them bugs and grass, seeing if they will really bite, rubbing her hands all over them, rubbing her hands on her own face…
It was the lawnmower races that everyone came to see in Loco. The lawnmower races had several different heats from push mower races (which Lindz won) to the traditional riding mower races, to the souped up lawnmower races. Toby had donated one of our old lawnmowers (just some typical junk that every Okie keeps in their yard) to some young men for the races. They put a motorcycle engine (4 cylinder 600 CC) in the lawnmower, added some other interesting parts that were probably meant to keep it on the ground rather than flying since it would go over 60 mph, and painted racing stripes on it. It was the talk of the town. Robert Starr, another friend of ours, drove the lawnmower in the main event. He was great – winning by a country mile. Jesse has a video up at her blog. Because I was watching GGs and Great Grandmothers, I handed my camera off to others to take pictures for me. Here are some random shots. The EMT vehicle The Pit Crew (I really think I should have had pit crew privileges since I was a part owner in the mower) The new Loco Tank The ever-smilin' Jake
The evening ended with Tucker’s famous fireworks display. I swear for a Loco boy, he does an amazing job on the fireworks. I have been at his house when he has set an acetylene bomb off that rattled the windows. He is much safer with the fireworks. GBN1 was wowed by the fireworks. She sat in Great Gram’s lap and belly laughed and squealed at the fireworks. Last year she could be heard saying "Georges" instead of gorgeous. This year I heard her exclamation of "Amazing!" Here is GBN2 with her painted face. It was a great celebration.

Saturday we met the GGs and Great Gram for breakfast in town before sending Great Gram home.

Then we packed the catamaran, kayaks, coolers, etc. for a trip to LETRA. We had several people join us including Shay’s brother, Nathan who is stationed at Ft. Sill.

We cooked k-bobs (sirloin, shrimp, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and peppers) on the grill. We had a great campsite with lots of shade. About 5:30 PM the big beautiful white clouds turned dark and ugly – so we got the cat out of the water. We got the campsite put up before the storm really hit, but driving home in the sheets of rain and wind was not fun. There were times when it was difficult to see the road. It turned cool for July 4th. It continued to rain all evening and into Sunday. Since it was a much-needed rain, I will not complain that our fun was cut short. Toby and I came home and kicked back with our books and hot tea. The younger folk went to watch a movie.

Now I know that the 4th of July is about much more than a fun holiday with friends and family. I saw some great blogs posting the Declaration of Independence and other patriotic things. But you know, I am thankful for the freedoms that we have and for the men and women who made those freedoms possible. We live in a great country.

Waste of Time

Yesterday, I got a few things done around the house that needed to be done. Being the great procrastinator and time waster, I can do lots of nothing and do it well. Today I am headed to be with the Painted Ladies. Last week I missed painting with the ladies. I was feeling a bit under the weather and trying to get well enough to go on our little anniversary trip to The City. After lying around for a few days and then going on a vacation, I really need to kick myself in the butt and get going. Maybe painting with the ladies will help.

Jesse had a volleyball game last night. She plays on the Piper’s team, which is sort of church league team. I’m still disappointed that I was not asked to be on the team. Jesse said that I was just not quick enough any more, which cut me to the quick (pun intended). Last night Piper’s team played Moondoggie’s team, which is another group from our church. Once again, I was not asked to be on that team either. I can see that we need an old farts team. Anyway, the GGs and Bo showed up at the game and cheered Jesse on. They really did cheer for Jesse – she had her own personal cheering section. Volleyball and GGs just can’t be beat for having fun.

Later that evening, Jesse caught me looking at my Facebook page. She encouraged me to take some of the silly quizzes like "What decade fits your personality best" or "What pin-up legend are you" or some sort of quiz having to do with Hollywood Hunks. We got pretty tickled with the questions and our answers to them. It was a fun lying around laughing with her. Yes, I am teaching my daughter to waste time, too. If you can measure laughter and togetherness, I guess it really was not a waste of time.

Toby's Funny:
Jack, the red heeler, has been limping around. After checking his paws, I found a sore place between his toes. Sometimes grass seed can work its way into the skin and cause serious problems for dogs. I called the vet. We discussed Jack's sore paw and the fact that he needs to be "fixed" and we decided that I would take him to get fixed and the vet would also take a look at his paw. When I told Toby what the plan was, Toby said, "That will learn him to limp."