uh oh.......

I feel like a marathon runner


     I have hit that proverbial wall.  Can't think of anything to write about, or comment on, or make fun of.
     I did notice the eighth grade dance in Rochelle was tonight.
     I remember going to my eighth grade dance.  I took a girl named Glenda.  She was in eighth grade, but she was two years older than me!  I remember she used the term cradle robber on our "date", but I had no idea what that meant.
     I also remember going out to eat at a little diner that was a railroad car.  It was on Irving Park Road, and I think it was called, The Diner.
    I don't remember who I was with, and for sure I don't remember getting a good night kiss.
     I ran into her years later.  She was working at a bank around Irving, Lincoln, and Damen.  She didn't remember me.
     That means we never danced, because once you see a Terry dance, you never, I repeat, never forget it.
Peace and Love

mugged

I was mugged today

     Attacked from behind.  Blindsided.  Smacked silly.
     I was standing on a road looking at some flooded ponds when I was viciously and without any warning, smacked on the back of my head.
     I looked around and the assaulter made another swipe at my head, but I put my hood up on my coat (yes, it was warm.  I was wearing a coat in case it rained.  No, it was sunny.  Yes, I understand.) and started waving my arms and the assailant flew into a nearby tree and continued to squawk at me.  It made a third run at my head, so I left.
     Red wing blackbirds are pretty vicious animals.  I have been riding at tines and they have swooped down on me if I was close to their nest or territory.  I must have been real close, cause this bird brain made 3 runs at me. 
     I often see them chasing crows across the sky. 
    They are fearless, and wide spread.  We have a grassy field by us and there are dozens of birds nesting there, based on the numbers I see flying around all day.
     Seriously, it was kind of jolting to be clobbered in the head and not see anyone.  I thought maybe somebody threw something at me, but then the darn thing made a second run at my head.
     Yes, I was run off the street by a blackbird. (Who was not singing in the dead of night!)
     I am just glad I didn't end up with egg on my face.
     Just a little avian humor.
Love and Peace

killer queen

I don't understand our dog 

     She gets plenty of food.  She has a lot of toys but she never plays with them.  The squeaks bother her.
     But she does love being in the yard.  She was out a long time today, in the back, just sniffing and rolling....looked like she was having fun.
     I went out later to try to straighten a tree and found a dead baby ground squirrel.  It had puncture wounds.  Then I found a second.  And a third.  Three dead baby ground squirrels.
     All in the area Corki was sniffing around in, and rolling.  Maybe she was rolling on her victims, I am not sure.
     Ground squirrels are a problem in my yard.  I have too many holes and too many trails.  What I do is live trap them then take them out into the park and let them go.
     Corki does not share my humane instinct.
     I stopped at Lincoln School this morning because I thought my young friend was in a program.  A lot of parents were going in, so I followed.  We sat in the cafeteria, which was strange.
     Then we were welcomed to the pre K graduation party.  I was in the wrong spot.  I left after 15 minutes and headed to the gym, where the kids were doing an all school sing.  Since it was just students, I quietly left.
     One of the staffers saw me and said, "I wondered why you were at the graduation....could not figure out your connection to them."
     Well, I had no connection.  Story of my life...missed connections.
Love and Peace

surprise

Hey look, it's raining

     I guess I did not expect that.  ( I wrote  that in a sarcastic tone.)
     We seem to be out of the woods on bad storms, just a lot of thunderbolts  and lightning....very very frightening, right Scaramouch?
     Anyway....got some nice thank you notes from kindergartners today.  It was the last day of helping out in their room and they made cards for me.  I can even read some of them....they are kindergartners!  They can't write real well yet.
     Also went to the awards night for Sycamore eighth graders.  We went to watch Camryn, who got an award for high grade point average.  She has been on the honor roll all three years at the middle school, and that's a great accomplishment.
     She received multiple awards, but my bias is toward grades and doing well.
     Eighth graders are a funny group.  They are not quite high school, but they are done with elementary school.  They act cool, unflappable, and with either a lot of confidence or no confidence.
     A couple of students tripped going up to get their awards an one young man fell flat on his face in the center of the stage.  But he did not miss a beat.  He hit the ground, did two push ups, and got up as if nothing was amiss. 
     Ah...to be young again.
     I'm going to bed.  Have to get up real early tomorrow.  I am building an ark.
Peace and Love

done

I had a most humorous shopping experience

     I went to get some black dirt and other stuff to put in my garden before I planted the rest of my seeds.  (Note:  thsi is not a sexual reference.)
     I was in line behind a woman and she had a rather pronounced British accent.
     She turned to me and said, "Brian?"
     Not having my hearing aids in, I replied, "Yes, but not until about noon."
     There was a long silence, in which the clerk and  the lady seemed to be staring at me and thinking, "this old guy is off a bit."
     The accent person said, "You look like a friend named Brian."
     I smiled stupidly and replied, "Well, I was just commenting on the weather."
     I was next.  I ordered 6 bags of top soil, one bag each of mushroom compost, manure and peat, and humus and peat.
     The clerk said, "Just pull your car in and we'll load it."
     I pointed  to the car and said, "I already did."
    She looked at it, then at me, then at it and said, very seriously "You are not going to put this dirt in your BMW."
     I said I was.
    She said I could not.  It was a BMW.  Then she offered to let me borrow her truck and haul the 9 bags in it.
     I told her it was fine, I had a tarp, plastic liner, and I wasn't going far.
     She yelled to another co-worker, "He's putting dirt in a Beemer!"  The other clerk replied, "It's his car."
     She did load the dirt in the car, but wanted me to be sure to keep the tarp under and over them.  I told her again that I had done this several times before and it is really ok.
     After we loaded the bags, I drove off.  At that point I wasn't sure whether I was glad she offered her truck or a bit ... what?  angry?  irritated?  She meant well, but it was strange.
     I did get the garden planted, and most of the dirt spread.
     Now I just have to figure out how to dig out a fairly large and mostly dead bridal wreath.  Anyone want to help?
Peace and Love

memories

I went to a graduation today

     My niece's two daughters graduated.  It was a nice ceremony, the weather was beautiful, and it was great to see family members again.
     I  thought back to my high school graduation.  That would have been ....53 ? years ago.
     And, I don't remember much.
     I remember lining up the day before to practice and meeting a fellow graduate that I had never seen before.  She was very good looking and started the conversation by saying something about the huge hickey she had on her neck.
     I think after graduation my parents had a cake.....but I don't  remember many people stopping over at the house.  I may have gone to John's house for cake, but I am  not even sure about that.
     The graduation itself?  Nada.  Nothing.  Mind is blank.
     I know John had to be near me, and Joan would have been between us, but I really don't have memories...or pictures...or programs....or anything of the day.
     I do remember going to school the next day and just standing outside the building, wondering. "What in the hell do I do now?"
     Today's graduates are different.  They will have plenty of pictures.  On Facebook, and all of the other social media sites I don't know anything about.  Their parents, grand parents, friends, and assorted relatives will have dozens of pictures on their cell phones to share.
     I imagine I went through the same emotions and probably voiced the thought that "This will be a day I will never forget."
     But I did.
     Hopefully, these kids hang on to their  happy memory longer than I held on to mine.
Peace and Love

farmer in the dell

I almost got my garden planted today

     Peas are in and I see sprouts.  I put in two tomato plants and  two peppers.  I redid my strawberries and hopefully will get a lot his year. I planted rhubarb.
     As a kid we used to ask, "think the rain will hurt the rhubarb?" and the answer was "Not if it's in a can!"  For some reason, we found this hilarious.  Or maybe it was just me......
     I still have two kinds of beans to plant and cucumbers.  It is getting hard to get it done with the rain and all.  Now I know how farmers feel ... the frustration of not being able to get the seeds in the ground because of the rain.
     Obviously, I am not comparing myself to a farmer.  Just making a point.
For me, not getting my beans in is not a major deal in my life.  But if you are a farmer, not getting the beans or corn in can make the difference between making money and losing the farm.  That's a huge difference.
     I know a couple of farmers.  One of them told me he had 500 acres planted and another 1,800 to go.  That seems like a lot of planting to do.  He told me this two weeks ago and while there were some breaks in the weather, planting has to be slow and spotty.
     So, will the rain hurt the rhubarb?
     I don't know, but I hope it stops so farmers can do their jobs.
Peace and Love