New Neighbor

Before 7:00 yesterday morning, I headed to get a can of diesel for my Kubota lawn mower. I had the truck turned down my driveway and there in the corner of the Meadow I spied Kittie Wells with her little baby. I called Logan and Astrid to come and drove on.

They checked and thought the new one was a little lady. That meant we could keep her. Logan said they were thinking of naming her/him Possum after ole George Jones. Johnny Cash is the sire.  I thought the name was perfect. She’s even the color of an opossum.

Kittie was far from the water tank so I carried her two buckets of water. When she left her birthing spot I scooped up the rest of the afterbirth and hauled it away on the mule. Didn’t want it to attract coyotes or buzzards.

Astrid and Logan carried Possum to a spot away from the tree line and closer to the barn and water. They watched as the big horses met their new pasture mate.  Aunt Siggie came to say hello to our new baby late in the evening. I’m excited to watch Possum grow up in Galla Meadow!

 

School Days

Sky Lark Cafe

Last evening Eric took Laura out to supper at my favorite restaurant—Sky Lark Cafe! The food looked superb as usual!  By early August, they’ll both be back to work each day. Eric teaches 7th grade language and Laura is a speech pathologist for a school district.

I think this is a salad. I could eat it.

Eric nearly always orders steak. I think this is ribeye.

This salad looks like it has walnuts and raisins!

It’s really hot here. Nearly 100 degrees daily with humidity. I walk before 7 if I can get around. This week I saw the Indigo Bunting in the fence row. He rewarded me for walking with a song.  He is a small seed-eating bird in the cardinal family. They migrate from southern Canada to northern Florida during the breeding season, and from southern Florida to northern South America during the winter. The Indigo Bunting often migrates by night, using the stars to navigate. Its habitat is farmland, brush areas, and open woodland.

 

Another Off Day

Yesterday I mowed my yard again. I wore my trusty sombrero that Sister Helen brought me from Arizona. Earlier this week I burned my pile of limbs before it was too dangerous. Some of my yard was already brown.  Sombreros don’t just have wide brims for shade, they also are designed with a high crown to provide insulation and constructed of straw to make them breathable.  Sisters often think of the best gifts. I love my sombrero👒 

Ada did this. Erin saw it and Ada said “ I’m making her an Indian”.  They used bleach and cleaned the doll. Ada had marked on the floor at camp too.  Erin talked about defacing things—floors, walls, toys. I wasn’t a great Mom. I did a lot of lecturing. They turned me off I’m sure. 

My Grandson Clayton made cookies this week. I think it’s great for boys to cook and help clean the kitchen.

I had another funeral today. It throws me off schedule. I went to yoga, grocery shopped, got a hair cut, and then a funeral. Just now did Wordle, connections,  and the waffle puzzle.  Finally got my blog entry on here. I thought about just skipping it but it’d break my streak. I still have the paper cyrptogram and crossword to complete. I bought chicken feed today too. Must take it to the storage barrels. Tomorrow I’m be back to my usual sitting most of the day.
 

Stand Up

Laura got a stand up desk at school. Too much sitting is not good for us we know. Maintenance would have assembled it for her, but why wait. She went to her office and did it herself. Looks complicated to me but she got it done. The desk is hydraulic and will move high and lower. She had to have a new chair too if she did need to have a seat. It’s more a stool.

Laura works with children with speech problems. The guidelines have changed. She follows the children and works with”within” the class not in pullouts. It sounds difficult to me. This semester she is finishing a degree in educational leadership. All she lacks is her internship. 

 

Ironweed

Ironweed is blooming. It’s called Ironweed because of its tough stem. Another name it goes by is Veronica. Sister Fleta and I used these long plants for stick horses when we were young. We galloped all over and back again pretending to be cowgirls. We made our own toys!  It’s around 100 degrees here so the blooms don’t last long.

Ride a cock-horse to Banbury Cross,

To see a fine lady upon a white horse;

Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes,

And she shall have music wherever she goes.

Astrid saw this butterfly in her flowers.

Laura shared a vine ripened tomato from her garden with me. I fixed a blt. 

My purslane is blooming still. The porch gives it some shade. The Dr. changed my blood pressure med to one that won’t produce a cough. I hope it works well. The other lowered my numbers but the cough was irritating.  This one is Losartan. The other was enalapril. I don’t have real high blood pressure but having a stroke sure frightens me.

 

Baby Girl Blanket

Finished another baby blanket! It’s for a baby girl. By the time I finish 🤮, I’m sick of looking at them! 

Read two good books of late! Vengeance is Mine is about the Mountain Meadows massacre. It’s really an interesting book documenting southern Utah leaders’ attempts to cover up their crime by silencing witnesses and spreading lies. Investigations by both governmental and church bodies were stymied by stonewalling and political wrangling. While nine men were eventually indicted, five were captured and only one, John D. Lee, was executed.  I was grew up where many of those killed were from.  This book hit home. The cause of the massacre was as old as time—greed!

Everything is TB educated me about a disease I thought I knew a lot about.  John Green is a young adult writer. The book is well written and easy to read. TB is one of the oldest diseases know to mankind.  It’s on the rise once again. Some of those the disease killed are: Thoreau, Chopin, Doc Holliday, Henry VII, Anne Brontë, John Keats, Eleanor Roosevelt, Vivien Leigh, Constantine, President James Monroe….list is so long! The anarondrk chair was invented so TB patients could sleep in the lounge chair and not have to be moved to a bed!  I have friends and relatives who died of this wasting disease! Book was an eye opener!

Going to the Dr. today. I’m hoping for a change in blood pressure med as I have a cough and think that’s why.  Wait and see.
 

Spa Day

Horses and donkeys had spa day Saturday. They got their nails all snipped. Manchi had a shoe mend. The donkeys were not left out. Astrid has a nice hair tonic that keeps the horse flies at bay. She styled Manchi and Whiskey’s hair. A bath rolling in the dust happened after the humans left. 😂 I love that Astrid uses a female farrier. Girls can! 💪💪

 

My Bestie Came

Yesterday my friend came for the afternoon. Last visit I had a broom for her. This time a hoe and rake. It was hot but she went out back to use them. Watching from the back door, I saw  she had her rake tines up. She needed instruction.

First we practiced raking. Rake easy was our key focus. She was raking in good measure soon.

She had no idea how to hoe. Chop, chop, chop was the key word here. I think she’s ready to chop cotton. 

Erin said when they got home, she said “I’m going outside and hoe”.
 

To a Wedding I Go

This is the brown dress I had. Helen said no way I can wear it. Only other dress I have is black. Go figure. I knew black was out. Mostly I attend funerals. 

My Sister Fleta’s son is getting married in September. The three OLD sisters are invited. He has a room rented for us. I have a sleep problem and hated to go and keep my sisters awake. Well, he said I can have a room to myself.  Helen said I can’t wear one of my two dresses. One brown and the other black.  I’m plain. Brown is my favorite color. I have ordered these three dresses. Helen said she thinks the tan will be best. What do you think?

 

Crabgrass

It’d been a week so yesterday I mowed. The rain and heat has brought on the crabgrass. It’s nasty and thick so mowing took longer. 

I went to a late lunch to Kasper’s with my friend Margaret. It was really good. 

Margaret’s mother and Larry’s mother were first cousins. So Larry and Margaret are first cousins once removed.  If you share a grandparent with someone you are first cousins. If you share a great grandparent you’re second cousins. The removed comes into play when one of the two is closer related to the shared ancestor.  More than you wanted to know! Margaret is one generation closer to Larry and her shared ancestor. Their shared ancestor is Howard Standridge.

Deer in the yard of my niece. They are fun to watch. Not as pretty if you have a garden. Four or five deer can eat an entire garden in one night. They feed at night.