Oh no

I finished mowing today 

    It was colder today than yesterday!

    I had some technical problems.

    I have a Workmate that muffles sound and allows me to hear music.  It is Bluetooth compatible so I can get phone calls.  

    That is important, because if Jackie needs me I can hear the phone.  

    I got on the mower.  Turned on the headphones.  Clicked on Bluetooth and heard one line of a Jimmy Buffet song and then...nothing.  

    I can get AM and FM stations, but I can't hear music from my phone.

    This is the second Workmate I have had and I will not buy another one.  Next spring I will look for something better.

    But I finished mowing.   I was frozen.

    Last night I had another really weird dream.

    Exit 99 was doing a show in a field.  I was there on time, and no one else was there,  No audience, no other 99ers.

    Suddenly, everyone showed up at one time!

    There were 4 women at a table toward the back of the audience and they kept talking loudly during our opening bit.  TC finally told them to be quiet or leave.  When they did not get quiet, he ushered them out.

    That's not the weird part.

    TC, Beth and Carrie were doing a bit and I entered from back stage.

    I was totally naked!

    Nobody reacted.  The audience just kept quiet.  After a few minutes I went back stage, put on clothes, and went back to join the others.

    Now, fully dressed, the audience screamed and ran for the doors! Except there were no doors because we were outside, so they just ran.

    Adults covered their children's eyes.

    Nuns ran looking heavenward.

    TC just stared and Beth and Carrie rolled their eyes so much their heads almost fell off.

    Then Poof....I was awake.

    Strange.

    I have a tree in the back yard that is not right.  It needs to be staked.

    Julia stopped by today and I asked her if she could help me.  My plan was to take the golf cart to the tree, set a ladder up on the golf cart then climb up the ladder to attach rings that would be on long wires that could be attached to stakes driven into the ground.

    She looked at me as if I were crazy.  She also said no.

    She said to call someone who does that in the spring.

    That's the plan, Stan.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

The frost hung around in the shade lines.

I think it needs staking.

brrrrr

 I mowed today

    It has been almost 2 hours and I am still shivering!

    Damn, it was cold out there!

    We have a freeze warning for tonight.....not frost, freeze.  I guess there will be a little frost on the pumpkins in the morning, eh?

    I have to double check my hoses and hydrants.  I think they are all disconnected, but I am not sure.  I would hate for a pipe to burst because I was forgetful.

    (Taking a supper break.)  

  I encountered 2 people today whose names I know.  I have known them for a while.  I have talked with them several times.  

    But my mind could not flip the Rolodex fast enough.  I called one by the wrong name and immediately corrected it.

    But the other person's name eludes me.  I  guess next time I see them, I will have to confess and ask.

    But I hate doing that.

    Back to mowing.  I mowed the field and started our yard but ran out of time.  Plus, I was cold.

    I came in and took a veery hot shower and was still cold.  In fact, 4 hours later and I am still cold.

    I had on a long sleeved shirt, with a windbreaker over that.  Then I put on a heavy sweatshirt.  And I wore gloves.  I also had a hot beverage when I mowed.

    I was still cold.

    At least the sun was out.

    I also brought up winter wear.  Now all I have to do is put all my shorts into a tub and drag them downstairs. 

    I just hope I fit into them next year.

Peace and Love

    Especially Peace

Cast offs

 There are some TV shows we regularly watch

    Sadly, sometimes I can't emender characters' names!

    I watched Gunsmoke when I was a kid.  Matt Dillon, Chester,  Festus, Miss Kitty, Doc Adams.   I can't remember Burt Reynolds's character's name.  Maybe Beau?

    But that was 70 years ago, so cut me some slack.  I remember Ben, Hoss, Adam and Little Joe,, all the Cartwrights, and Hop Sing their cook.

    But I watch Ghosts.......after 3 seasons I just started paying attention to heir names.  But I can't remember. them all.

    Same with Abbot Elementary.  I think I have finally learned all of their names.

    The mind is a terrible thing to waste.

    In other news, 203 passengers on a year long around the world cruise were dropped off at a port in Cambodia and told their voyage was over.  The ship and crew then left.  The company said the rising cost of fuel was the reason.

    Now, I imagine the cruise was mainly older folks because it was a year long venture.

    And I suspect most of this folks were well off to stat with.

    But having to figure out how to book transportation home might be a bit of a problem especially with the language barrier.

    Hopefully they all followed Karl Malden's advice:  Don't leave home without it.

    A credit card can unlock many doors.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

Better late

 I was running a bit behind today

    Jackie and I finished chopping, blanching, freezing, and bagging the carrots.  Then I went to a doctor's appointment in Sycamore.

    This was a routine hearing check up.  When I hear a beep, I press a button.  Repeat words.  Pretty standard.  The good news is my hearing has not gotten worse in the past year, so it is stable.

    I ran some errands, stopped at Portillo's for supper, and made it home 4 hours after I left.  Time flies.

    It was a pretty darn ugly day!  Rainy windy, cloudy......good day to take a nap.  Too bad I could not.  Funny thing is, I am not tired.  

    I stopped at 4 different stores, and each one had a rewards program that I have joined.  Problem is, I never remember what phone number I used.  

    Come to think of it, almost every store I shop in has some kind of rewards program.  Buy so many coffees, get one free.  Gas price discount.  Pizza rewards.  Dog store rewards.  Grocery store rewards.

    The only reward I would truly like is a winning multi million dollar lottery ticket.

    That's not gonna happen.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

surfin USA

 Watching voting results.....pretty interesting

    Unless Repedocans steal the election, I. think a blue wave is approaching the shore.

    And that is my last political comment.  Usually I don't make any, conserving my space to entertain, and perhaps inform my many readers.

    Or, the 5 or 6 who do read this.

    There is a company in SanFrancisco hiring dog walkers for $20 an hour.  

    The catch?  They are robotic dogs!

    They have to be trained to recognize hazards, like fire hydrants and lamp posts.  

    I have no idea why.  Is someone going to release a pack of robotic dogs with AI that will eventually devour mankind?

    And when I was a kid, we called them fire plugs.  Not hydrants.  

    In any case, the walkers won't have to pick up doggy waste.  And the hydrants won't be constantly wet.

    Speaking of waste, the Bears traded for a defensive lineman, who proved to be a game changer in their Monday night win.

    What was most endearing to me was the report of Jeffrey Simmons  alone in the locker room, picking up plastic bottles team mates had left behind.  

    He helped clean the locker room!

    I have only seen him play one game, but I am a fan for life.

    I burned some Italian sausage for dinner tonight.  No, I. really burned it.  To a crisp. 

    I served it with spaghetti and green peppers and the meal left me totally unfulfilled.

    Such is life.

    Rainy days are terrible.  Jackie and I both fell asleep around 3:30 for an hour or so.  Now I am fully awake.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

carrot blues

I dealt with carrots this afternoon 

    I set up a little work area in the garage and trimmed the ends off the carrots, then peeled them.

    Tomorrow will cut them, blanch them, and freeze them.

    I did get a chill sitting in the garage.  I had one door open a nd the wind must have changed toward the end.

    I took all the trimmings and shavings out to my compost bin.  In the dark.  On foot.

    I did not  fall.

    I also threw $30 away today.  I mean, I bought seed to fill in the bare spots in the yard.  I have done this several times and the bare spots persist.  I don't get why I have areas that just don't grow grass.

    We had a helper this morning, so at 10:30 I settled into my chair to take a 45 minute nap.  Then I was going to get up, fold the sheets, fold my clothes, do the carrots, seed the lawn.

    My alarm went off.......but I did not.  I slept until 12:45. 

    By the time I got dressed, it was already 2 and I was running out of daylight.  

    This time change is tricky for me.

    Going to bed at 11:30 is like going to bed at 12:30. so you'd think I would fall asleep.  Not so.

    I asked Jackie last night if she heard the basement detector chirping.  She said no.

   When I finally woke up, she said I had to change the battery because the chirping kept her awake last night.

Without my hearing aids, I did not hear a thing.

    I fixed it today.  I just did not have the batteries in correctly.  Now I do and the chirping has stopped.

    Mission accomplished.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

chirp....chirp

 I replaced batteries in our smoke detectors

    I try to do that during Fire Prevention Week, but somehow it slipped past.

    I always have trouble with  1 detector. 

    It's never the same one.  But one always gives me fits.

    All but 2 take 9 volt batteries.  The ones that detect carbon monoxide and talk take AA batteries, 2 of them.

    For some reason this year, I can't get the basement one to stop chirping.  

    I can hear it.  Jackie can't.  So either it is stuck in my head and not chirping in real life, or Jackie just can't hear it.

    This is how my mind works.

    I was changing the one in our bedroom.  I have to use a ladder because we have a trey ceiling, or something like that.

    I noticed the tops of the fan blades were really dusty, so in the middle of changing batteries I got a wet cloth and wiped off the fan blades.  My reasoning was I had the ladder, I was there, why not do it?

    Now I am thinking I should have done the 3 other fans in the house.

    Funny, we were so set on having ceiling fans when we built the house.  We hardly ever use them.

    Go figure.

    I read about an Englishman who started walking around the world on Nov. 1, 1998.  He started at the tip of South America and expected the journey to take 12 years.  It took 28. He is weeks away from returning home to see his mom.  He currently plans to live in the basement of her house.

    He pushes a cart with his camping supplies and has been amazed by the kindness of strangers he has met.

    28 years.  

    I really don't know how to react to that.

    But tomorrow I will celebrate by walking to the mailbox.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace