Year End Post

Don't misunderstand the title.  I don't normally take stock at year end and don't plan on it now.  It's just the title I came up with due to the time frame.

Son#2 and family got back safe and sound from their trip out to Arizona for Christmas.  However, they are quarantining due to being exposed to COVID.  I won't go into details other than to say they are not at all happy with the situation that they believe should never have happened.  I have to agree with them from the things I have been told.  Unfortunate to say the least and people always disappoint.  Consequently our Christmas with them will be postponed another 10-14 days.  They will get tested on the 2nd.  The doctor told them not to worry about testing the baby.  I admit I don't understand that.  Even if they test negative we won't be able to see them due to not testing the baby.  

I see a threat of snow in our forecast for Friday or was it today?  Doesn't really matter, it rarely ever snows here.  If it does, that would be good.  We enjoy seeing it and we don't have to drive in it.  The cities around here go as nuts with snow as they do COVID shutting every thing down (roads).  Even having been in the highway business I never agreed with shutting down roads.  Roads should come with a warning, Use At Your Own Risk, or Not Responsible for Accidents.  I am NOT at all pointing fingers at anyone.  Please do not take it as such.

'Snickers' continues to sprout his personality and it seems we have gotten very lucky with this little guy.  

Happy New Year and a Year of Happy Trails

We Found Him

We finally found a new family member.  

Not at all what we had been looking for.  We were set on not having a Dachshund, and that is what he is predominantly.  Seems to be part terrier of some sort due to his wire hair.  But we pretty much fell in love with that face.  He has bonded to 'K' big time.  He has started warming up to me.  We got him Christmas Eve late in the afternoon.  In this short time he has decided we are his family.  It's been fun seeing his personality come out each day as he got more comfortable with us and his surroundings.  He is about one year old they tell us.  He is very mellow and is well mannered, not quite my experience with the afore mentioned breeds.  He doesn't respond to his name yet or know any commands, but that will come.  No accidents in the house either, yea.  His name at the shelter was Shaggy but it is now Snickers.  I am still keeping my eye out to rescue an Aussie.

We have once again become annoying dog people.  

We will run a bunch of errands today, inspection sticker, drop off a load of Amazon returns. drop off tax payment etc.  And Snickers will go with us.

Son #2 is headed home from Christmas with the in-laws in Phoenix.  His father-in-law came down with a fever this morning.  So that is distressing for him with a new baby.  It will also delay us having Christmas with them for about 10-14 days if he is positive for Covid.  SMH

Happy Trails

Quiet Times

It's been pretty quiet around here.  Nothing new to report on the search for a dog.  I have been using Petfinder.  It seems most shelters and rescues use it.  I have inquired about several dogs.  However, getting a response, at all, has been problematic.  We did actually call one of the shelters about a dog but again, he was already adopted.  Saturday I sent an inquiry about an Aussie Mix.  We actually heard back but they already had a possible adopter waiting to meet her.  Then Sunday I go an additional email requesting more info about us.  I don't know if the other adopter bailed or what.  I answered the email but have yet to hear back.  I am getting a little fed up after all the failures and told 'K' I may just stop looking for a while.  

'K' and I have been married for a long time.  45 years going on 46.  You would think I would know what she would like when it comes to a new dog.  Aussies are a given, but when it comes to anything else, I am totally off base.  One thing is that she thinks what is very cute is much different than I do.  I also consider breed traits if you can tell that a rescue may have an identifiable breed in their parentage.  So we have not been matching up when we look at dogs together.  She actually doesn't look and lets me show her what I have found.  On lark I showed her a couple dogs and she loved them.  I had passed them over multiple times due to breed issues.  All of this to say, I think giving this dog search a break for now is what will happen.  When she likes one a lot, I try to agree but have had reservations.  We have agreed we both have to be all in.  I know her well enough that she will agree to one I want even though she isn't all in.  That's not what I want.  I don't want my wants to steamroll hers.  You would think getting a new dog would be easier than this.  It's worse than deciding where we want to eat lol.  I think due to our age and lifestyle has made it more difficult trying to find that 'perfect' dog, and they just don't exist.

Son #2 and his family headed to Mesa, Az. to visit the in-laws for Christmas.  We offered to keep the baby while they went so they could enjoy the trip more.  The daughter-in-law didn't like that idea much.  Consequently we will have a very quiet Christmas.  No Christmas eve get together and meal.  We will head to Son#1's to watch the older grands open their gifts and maybe eat a bite.  I still don't have to like it but will muddle along anyway and try to be pleasant.  We will have our family get together once Son #2 gets back home.  No date set yet.

I'm off to get my walk in and if the wind dies down I may try to paint a little.  Nah.

Happy Trails

Packages

We are getting packages.  Every day a package arrives.  None are things I have ordered since over a week ago.  My shopping/ordering is done.  'K' evidently does it piecemeal.  There have been packages arriving from her ordering gifts almost every day since I quit.  Then if she doesn't have something coming in we have something arriving from the boys.  One is hiding his wife's gift at our house.  The other wasn't going to be home when his was scheduled.  (we have a lot of package theft from porches here.)  Since we are home most of the time we are able to get the package off the porch almost immediately.  You can't let those thing sit too long as some jack wagon follow the delivery trucks around and pick up what they left almost immediately in some cases.  

I tried to get the packages for 'K' wrapped while she went to pickup the baby.  I had to stay due to UPS coming to pick up a return for one of the boys.  They couldn't tell us when that would be.  Back to the wrapping, well attempt at wrapping.  Admittedly I do a disastrous job wrapping.  I mean it looks like a three year old did it.  For years I resorted to just using newspaper to wrap her gifts.  I hated to use her wrapping paper and waste so much of it.  My biggest issue is sizing the paper to fit the package.  I always, always, use too much or so little I leave gaps.  I don't understand how someone that is pretty meticulous about the way things are done can turn out something so ugly and visibly revolting.  This year, she walked in on the very last package I was wrapping and asked if I had enough paper.  She could tell from the other room.  I just put it in her hands to wrap that last package.  I knew I had messed it  up and she would have to cut more paper.  Nope, she made it fit perfectly and looked professional.  How?  No idea, I bow to the master.  I hate wrapping packages.  SMH

And we struck out on another dog rescue.  The owners reclaimed it.  That makes 8.

Happy Trails

Monday December 14

The significance of this day does not escape me.  The Electoral College meets (virtually) to cast ballots for President.  I don't expect any surprises.  All other efforts to prove the election was stolen have failed.  Unless there is something we are all missing Joe Biden will become our next President.  I pray for our country.  Personally I don't believe he will finish the term.  That is even more frightening.  Yes I pray for Biden too.  

On to more pleasant things.

We will head over to New Braunfels this morning.  We have some gifts to deliver to a family in need.  It is a single parent household (father) with two young sons.  The younger has diabetes, I am guessing it is type I, and the older has been diagnosed with a stage 4 cancer, I don't remember what type.  The Dad was struggling to come up with enough money just to start treatment that may extend his son's life.  We just want them to have a little better Christmas in the face of this.  Gifts the boys may want and a little help for Dad.  Our efforts are miniscule but I do know it is appreciated.  We try to do this as anonymously as possible.  We want no credit.  It hurts me deeply when I see kids struggle with life threatening diseases.  So I choose to do this willingly.  They have been on my mind and in my prayers a lot lately.  If you could take the time to say a prayer for this family....

Not sure about the rest of the day.  It all depends on how I feel.  Aches and pains and lack of 'want to' will determine what else I try to tackle.  

Happy Trails

Dog Search

The search for a new family member continued this past week.  I search the internet for a possible new pup several times a week.  There are numerous rescues and shelters in this area and most all post on a website available dogs.  That is how we found the ones we struck out on.  For various reasons we have been unsuccessful.  Either being too late or the dog being claimed by their owners.  The number is now 7.  We still search for Aussies but have included almost any that may grab our hearts.  Saturday we had an appointment to get in to see one we were interested in, just a mutt.  By the time we our appointment rolled around the pup had just started the adoption process.  We actually saw her being taken, she was even cuter than her pic.  We were allowed to browse the rest of the dogs.  We came across 3 that we were interested in but couldn't come to a mutual agreement for various reasons.  So we went home to discuss our wants/needs further.  We both want to be on board completely with one we pick.  You would think this is an easy process with all the dogs out there, but apparently not for us.  

Yesterday I decided to look on Craigslist for Aussies.  There have been none in the area at all via the route we had been taking.  I have never used Craigslist due to all the bad things I hear about it and my Brother had a bad experience.  I was wary.  I found someone wanting tp rehome Aussie puppies.  Contacted them via email if any were still available.  I also texted another person about Aussie puppies.  The text got no reply as I was about 2 weeks after the ad came out.  We did get a response from our email.  It sounded too good to be true.  They sent pictures of the one they had left and a video with questions to us trying to make sure this AKC registered pup would go to a good home.  They were asking about 1/3 of what we have seen Blue Merles with blue eyes going for.  The are also the first to go.  'K' was in love and wanted to do this.  She responded to their inquiry and they responded back.  That's when we felt like this was a scam.  They didn't live in the area at all, in fact they lived in North Dakota and their vet advised them to rehome a healthy pup to a better environment, not as cold.  That is why they advertised down in South Texas.  What?!?  Aussies are well suited for cold weather.  There were other things that had the alarm bells ringing.  We declined.

So our search resumes but maybe less aggressively or not as much.  Just let it happen.  I have an application in with an Aussie rescue and we will let that ride and keep an eye out with the ones they take in a rehab.  This seems like the better option as they are very diligent in determining what each dog needs and personality traits which is something you don't get at a rescue.  But we aren't ruling that out either.

Happy 'Tails'  (see what I did there?)

Post Thanksgiving "Chili'

Yes, we still have leftover turkey.  I doubt I will eat anymore.  I usually eat it until it's gone.  Turkey sandwiches are a favorite.  This time for some reason I didn't eat as much and it is not as appealing.  I may make some chili today or tomorrow.  Have to check with 'K' to see what she has in her plans.  Once she hears I want to cook her plans are put aside with no argument lol.  Just checked with her, she is good with chili.  I will try a new recipe mix I got at the store.  While I really like my own mix, I haven't been able to make it taste exactly like I want it, and 'K' thinks it's too hot, even my dumbed down 'yankee' version.  So I bought a mix I had seen advertised.  My recipe is for 6lbs of beef, this one makes it easy for just 2lbs.  I always have to adjust mine to a smaller batch since there is just the two of us.  This should be much easier.  And NO, there are never beans in my chili, or tomatoes for that matter.  I'm a traditionalist.  Once beans are added, it is no longer chili.  It is then chili AND beans.  Pretty simple but it seems hard for those that like beans in their's to understand that and they will argue endlessly that it is chili.  Call it whatever you want, it's NOT chili when you add beans, it just became a casserole.  There are entire books written about chili that attest to this.  *grin*

I started my Christmas shopping Friday.  I finished in about 2 minutes.  I shop entirely online.  If I can't find it online they won't get it.  I don't actually 'shop.'  I always have a list and I just buy items from it.  I never browse items.  That is when you get in trouble spending too much.  Now when I add an item to the list I do compare and research reviews.  Not sure that is shopping.  If it is, I can live with that.  I have shopped like this for the last 15 years or more.  The thought of going to a brick and mortar store and looking for the item I need and 'fighting' the craziness of crowds has never been an attraction for me.  Even when I did that in the past, I always knew what I was going for, get it and get out.  I suppose most men are that way.  

'K' in decorating mode for the holidays.  'We' are in our third day of decorating. Not all day but parts of 3.  Oh she does a great job and I really like what she does.  But there is sooo much stuff for decorating.  We have multiple plastic totes full of Christmas decorations, not to mention the totes for Fall.  (there are only two of those I think).  They take up so much room.  I have a small storage shed that at least a third of it is totes of decorations stacked to the roof.  There are at least 8 totes of Christmas decorations.  She doesn't use them all.  It is stuff collected over the years and inherited.  I put her on notice that we need to get rid of most of it this year.  While it's up, she can see what she uses and look over the rest and discard the unused.  Who do you think will win that battle.  I hold out hope of at least getting rid of some.  Wish me luck.

Happy Trails

Turkey Day Preps

We are prepping for Turkey Day.  I have a 14lb turkey smoking right now.  So I am tied up with that for about the next 6 hours.  I am having to the nurse the fire more since I am low on charcoal and will need to use oak.  This makes it a little harder to regulate the temps.  I will also try to do some touch up painting in between tending the fire.  

Our get together will be a smaller than the usual get together this year.  Son #1 and his family are enjoying a vacation in my happy place in Colorado.  I think it's wrong that he didn't invite me.  So his Christmas is going to stink this year.  My Mom has opted to stay in.  Not sure why other than she looks for reasons not to go anywhere much anymore and the china flu just adds to that.  

Christmas will also be messed up as Son #2 and his family will head to the In-laws in Arizona.  I can't complain about this, as his in-laws have come here many more times than they have been there.  There are Great Grandparents there also that won't ever see them unless they come out there.  They have only been back once since he stole his wife from them.  That was so they could see the new baby.  She is the only Great Grandchild for all of the Great Grands on that side of the family.  Consequently we will delay our main Christmas get together until they return.  We will go over to Son #1's on Christmas day to watch the kids do their thing.  I assume they will feed me at some point.

No progress on any new dog yet.  The one I had my eye on, another Australian Shepherd, isn't going to work out.  He has some major health problems that may not allow him to be adopted out.  We will keep our options open but I have reduced my active searching.  At our age, an Aussie may just be too active for us.  

We have also been talking about looking into a camper RV.  This probably would require us to trade in our newer SUV.  It really isn't made to pull anything.  A truck and trailer seems to be closer in budget too compared to a self contained RV.  Even camper vans are surprisingly expensive.  But we are just talking and realistically it will stay that way.

Y'all have a Happy Thanksgiving a happy trails.

Uplifting

 I find this very encouraging and up lifting.  I hope you do too.

1 Peter 1: 3-9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Happy Trails

Encouraging

 This!

Late Monday Post...Again

Yes, I'm late posting again.  I just crawled down from the roof.  I was painting the chimney finally.  I will have to go back up again tomorrow to finish it off, the trim.  I had planned on doing that earlier in the week.  But things got tangled up with a can of paint that was the wrong color.  When they show you the color they have come up with to match what you brought them, look in the can to see how it compares and not just the little dab they place next to your sample.  It looked great on the small sample.  Got it home and opened it, no way.  Not even close.  We have a dark rustic red trim, what they mixed for me was decidedly purple tint.  Got that straightened out Monday after them trying multiple times.  

Tuesday was my regular 6 month checkup for my diabetes.  My numbers were much better than I expected.  So I immediately went out and bought me some of those flaming hot Cheetos.  I crave those things but they jack up my blood sugars.  It was a smallish bag and I only eat a handful at a time.  It was a one time treat.  It was either those of the flaming hot Fritos.  I love those things.

I get on Twitter and follow a lot of conservative folks.  I get a lot of information there in short bits.  However I am getting a little aggravated with some of those people and their constant tweets about the election fraud and how some new information they have is a bombshell or what one of The Presidents lawyers says, 'they are going to release the Kracken.'  Everything assures the reader that there is enough fraud to overturn the election.  This has been going on ever since the election.  Nothing has come of it yet.  Not even a hint.  They need to PUT UP OR SHUT UP!  They aren't any better than the democrats doing that crap.

Put in a generic application with an Aussie rescue.  Saw one they took in we are interested in.  It may be several months before he is ready to go to his furever home, but I want it in ahead of time so we don't miss out again as we have on 3 others.  

OK, I need lunch.

Happy Trails

Spectacular Weather Again

The weather here is just near perfect if there is such a thing.  It is cool and dry and sunny.  It was supposed to be in the upper 30's this morning.  Fortunately they were wrong again and we had a low of 48* and it is warming up nicely.  I will head out shortly for our morning walk.  If I don't get this posted now I won't get it in at all most likely.  

With the weather so good I am obliged to work on the paint job some more.  I want to get the trim finished on the side where we have been painting.  I am not sure I can get it all done today.  I have to be much more careful with the trim as it is an entirely different color, and any slip ups will show really bad and require touch ups.  I hate having to do touch ups.  One touch up always leads to more touch ups it seems.  Yes, I am pretty sloppy with paint, especially on a ladder.  Even more so now that my body isn't working as well as it used to.  

Good news it that the daughter-in-law that was exposed to the china flu at school tested negative.  But she still has to stay home quarantined before letting her back to work.  That just tells me those tests aren't reliable.  So we are also on a self imposed quarantine due to having the baby last week.  Oh well, nothing really changes for us.  

I am still holding out hope, but real news and updates are few and anything I do see/hear I don't know that I can trust for the most part.  However, I am at peace within myself.  Faith is a powerful thing.

Happy Trails

Paint and Idiot Parents

I have only been able to paint on part of one day this week so far.  But in that time I managed to get the section I started mostly finished.  Still need to caulk some bad spots on the trim and then paint the trim.  Then I will move on to the other sections.  Namely the chimney first.  It looks the worst since it is discolored by something I will try to scrub off.  The rest of this week has been very humid and misty for the first part of the day.  Everything is wet.  Once the weather gets back to drier conditions I will start again.  Plus having the Granddaughter here slowed things anyway.  

As for the Granddaughter being here, it was not on the radar.  Her Mom is a teacher at a charter school.  She found out one of her students was sick, fever etc.  His older brother told his teacher that he was sick and his parents told him to go to school and don't tell anyone.  I know this happens all the time, but right now with this china flu that is just wrong.  We went and got the baby so she could avoid possibly being exposed.  As it turns out the kid tested negative.  I don't know if my daughter-in-law was tested but we took the baby home last night.  She was a great distraction for us with all this craziness going on.  The mother of the child called my daughter-in-law and was very apologetic.  What a d*&%$!  

As I was typing this I found out that my daughter-in-law has been exposed to a coworker with the kung flu and is being sent home.  She is on her way to get tested.  I don't know if we get the baby back yet or not.  Just trying to keep her safe as possible.

Happy Trails

When Do We Start?

I'm new to this so please forgive me.  I have been waiting since last Wednesday on word of when we do what the left does when they don't get their way in elections or most anything these days?  But alas I have not had any contact with those that organize these things or gotten a list of places.  Target seems a natural.  See what I did there?  Walmart?  Best Buy?  The loser of the last election encouraged her followers telling them to 'resist.'  They did just that and it has gotten worse every year since then.  Even now they are still upset that President Trump has not conceded.  There is nothing anywhere that says this is something that must be done.  It has been done out of courtesy.  How can 'those' people not see how evil they are in comparison? 

The media has gotten even worse with their hatred of the President.  Instead of looking into all the many accusations and video evidence all over the www they say that the President's claim of voter irregularities are false and there is no evidence.  In the past, the media would take on the investigation of any claims of wrong doing and bring it to light, with the slightest of evidence.  Not any more if it implicates the left.  

I fear what may be coming.  11 million people will get amnesty.  How do you think they will vote?  The borders will become more porous.  Oh, you say they won't have the right to vote since they aren't citizens, I laugh in your face.  

I have resolved to go on as best I can and only worry about what I can control in my on little world.  I am getting to old to get too worked up at this point in my life and keep my sanity.  I do worry about the world my children and grandchildren will have to live in after I am gone if not before.  

Does it sound like I have given up?  I don't mean it to, I hold out hope.  I am doing what I can to support efforts to make sure the results are right.  

I pray often, Lord come quickly. 

Are You Surprised?

I didn't get much sleep last night.  Went to bed at midnight thinking the President would be reelected only to find the lefties were hard at work.   Got up at 4 and everything had turned.  But, seriously, I never imagined this election would go any other way.  I knew it would be controversial one way or another.  I knew there would be accusations of vote tampering.  What I did not expect was for it to be so obvious and blatant.  I thought the lefties were more sneaky than that.  They obviously have lost all pretense of being above board and have no respect for our election process or the American people.  They don't give damn(sorry but I can't think of a better word) at all what anyone thinks.  They have the media behind them to influence and spin it.  They knew this all along.  Specifically in regard to the states that suspended counting votes when it appeared Trump was running away with the vote in those states.  The media never went with that.  Now that the count has resumed, they suddenly find 200K votes, all for Biden.  How does that work?  It doesn't.  There is no way I will ever believe that is remotely possible.  It's a blatant lie and theft of the election.  We have become a Banana Republic.  

Update on the rescue dog.  We called the Humane society to check if we could come visit him again.  They informed us that his family came forward and claimed him.  That is just great.  We are certainly happy for him and his family.  We could tell he was a special pup.  We are a little bit disappointed, but that disappointment is tempered by the fact he is where he belongs.  

The painting is ongoing.  We only last about 3 hours straight before we call it.  The job is requiring more paint than previous times.  The siding was in much worse shape than I realized.  It is soaking up the paint like crazy.  I obviously put it off too long.  Maybe 3-4 years.  But surgeries etc prevented anything like painting outside.  Consequently we haven't made as much progress as I had expected.  Plus we will need much more paint than we anticipated.  One good thing is that we have hit the worst places and the rest isn't in as bad a shape.  The other is that I still have the most difficult spots to hit to finish the side of the house we started.  Up high near the peak of the roof.  I would guess about 18'.  So I have to use a single tall ladder to reach those spots while holding a bucket of paint.  

I think today will be a day off from painting.  I was anxious to take advantage of the great weather and get as much done as possible.  But my back gets stove up and I have to stop.  And the Granddaughter is coming to stay a day or two.  That is the perfect reason to stay off a ladder.

Tell me your thoughts on the election. 

Happy Trails

Interesting Week Ahead

A very interesting and exciting week coming up.  What happens tomorrow will determine just exactly what type of excitement.  I saw one poll that 85% of Americans expect violence the night of the election.  That is very sad.  Unfortunately that is how far our great country has fallen.  I have to go out today and make sure our vehicles are full of gas in case we need to hunker down.  Prayers are constant for our country.

On the other hand, we hope to start painting today.  'K' will help so that should make it go a lot quicker than just me as all the previous times.  We hope the weather holds.

We also headed over to New Braunfels last week.  We took a look at a dog we may rescue.  Yes, I know.  I am conflicted.  But I look on the internet pretty regular for Aussies that may need rescuing or any other dog that may impress me.  The Humane Society there has taken in a Mini/Toy Aussie.  So we went over to see if we would click.  Due to him being a stray hold we couldn't interact but could visit through the gate.  The moment I saw his reaction to us I was all in and then I looked at 'K.'  The tears in her eyes told me everything I needed to know.  He seemed very glad to see us and his wiggle butt was working overtime and he had  a lot to say.  They take him to the vet Thursday for neutering, microchip and shots.  He will then be taken off the stray hold if no one claims him.  Our application is in, but they tell us there is a lot of interest in him.  So we don't know if we would get him until some faceless person approves our application.  'K' is already picking out names.  I hope she is not disappointed.  

Stay Safe and Vote if you haven't already.

Happy Trails

Midweek Bits

The first real cold front came roaring through earlier this week.  The temps hit a low of 38* here which is very low for this time of year.  Plus the winds have been pretty high.  I don't know exactly other than what the weather guessers tell us, but mid 30-40 mph with no let up.  It was in the low 40's this morning but the winds are still high.  So the morning walks have not resumed.  Neither has the painting started.  It should be near 80 by this weekend.  Maybe I can start painting then.

We still have not gotten a new dog.  Even though we look at and watch videos of Australian Shepherds all the time.  As much as we miss having a dog, I still can't bring myself to commit.  Even with 'K' telling me she is ready to get a dog.  I asked her why now?  She is feeling the effects of this pandemic and our plans to travel being thwarted.  So we might as well get another dog.  I almost caved.  I am seeing some results of not having a dog in the yard.  Even though Buster was mostly inside, his presence and scent made a difference.  I see signs of more wildlife being brave enough to come into the yard.  They did before but now it is more overt.  I saw a coon run across the yard a few weeks ago, then a week ago a skunk was under the bird feeder feeding on the dropped seeds.  Last night there was beautiful fox under the bird feeder doing the same.  I found a pile of poop on two consecutive nights on the patio.  That has to stop and moth balls have been set out.  When I got on the roof a couple months ago I found where the coons have a party behind my chimney.  It is a regular stop to use it as a restroom.  Piles of poop and pee running off the roof.  The have easy access due to the large trees that overhang.  We can even hear them running across the roof at night.  But they did that even when we had a dog.  A dog may reduce the presence of wildlife but it won't stop it.

For the last two days I have been struggling to figure out why my printer and pc can't seem to talk to each other.  'K' said she installed an update from her pc last Sunday and that was the last day we tried to print anything.  Since then, nothing.  I went through every stinking thing they say to do, even to the point of uninstalling and reinstalling etc.  No joy.  Called the oldest son to see if he could think of something I may have missed.  Everything he said was everything I had tried multiple times, in different order even.  Then he said since it was a possible update, was there a way to reset the printer to previous settings?  Why wouldn't uninstalling and reinstalling do that I asked.  Found a reset on the printer menu and we are now up and running.  I don't know.  Sometimes all it takes is a different set of eyes.  

Y'all be safe in all this craziness going on, it's about to get even crazier.

Happy Trails

Topping Off

We are topping off things we have run a little low on.  Made a big trip to the local grocer today as part of that.  Groceries are getting way too expensive.  Especially meats.  We had an extra large bill today.  We don't buy a lot of meat generally.  However the largest expense we had today was just that, meat.  We will make a top off trip to Costco for a few things also.  Most likely that will be Friday when the new sales start.  

In case you haven't been a regular visitor here to this blog, we are planning to be able to stay home without going out during and after the election.  I don't want to expose my family to any of the craziness I have seen some claim will happen.  Historically, this left wing city I live near and grew up in has never been the type that riots at the drop of hat.  That would include championship wins, or any other thing you see go on in other cities.  The local press has always trumpeted our restraint.  However that did change and I saw the first riots ever in my well over 60 years of living here.  It was disappointing to say the least.  Those were due to the so called Floyd protests.  

In defense, I would venture to say these were not locally raised dissidents that rioted 'peacefully.'  These folks were shipped in or have moved here in some of the mass exodus of other states.  It's amazing how many folks I have come across that have come here from that west coast hell hole.  The corridor from here to Austin is getting way to big and most of it is out of staters coming in.  Those are some of the fastest growing locales in the nation.  I saw one stat claiming they were receiving 120/day from california alone, for one county.  That just blows my mind.  It is getting to where I can hardly recognize my Texas any more.  

I had a little fender bender last Thursday.  My fault.  I was in a crowded parking lot and backed into someone in my blind spot.  No, damage, just a little paint scraped on mine and the other.  I guess those plastic bumpers are good for something.  No one was hurt.  I gave her my insurance and I am waiting to see of they make a claim for something like that.  My bad, I had a complete brain fart when it happened.  I didn't get all the information I needed from the other driver.  I didn't even remember to take a photo of our cars to protect myself from a false claim.  What a goof I am.  I am at their mercy for honesty.  My insurance company was very understanding and reassuring.  

The projects here have slowed to a dead stop.  I had hoped to be done with painting the exterior by now.  However, the exceptional weather we had been having has ended.  As I finish this up, the first real cold front is arriving.  The wind is starting to whip around out there.  It will be cold, windy and wet the next few days.  Hopefully after that I can get that painting done.

Please stay safe and VOTE!  We voted last Friday.  Long lines.  We got in line around 11:15 am.  Got to the desk where they verify you at 12:00.  Line moved pretty well.  The lady there told us they had had 7100 come through ahead of us.  WOW.  Record turnout I am sure.  I am seeing a lot of things this election I have never seen in 50 years of voting.  I think folks are realizing what is going on and understand how critical this election is.  It literally (I hate using that word but I did) will determine what the future of our country it to be, Constitution vs Anti-constitution.  I'll let you figure out what side is what.

Happy Trails

   

Plans Change

A slight pause in the projects this week.  Weather has stalled the start of painting.  It is much too humid with occasional sprinkles of rain and this will continue for the foreseeable future.  Since things are on hold we got the wild idea to just go.  And by go I mean a road trip.  We first looked at Ruidosa, then Cloudcroft and thenPagosa Springs.  Couldn't find anything that would work for us as far as lodging.  The two best options advised using a 4 wheel drive or chains to access in inclement weather.  Neither of which we have.  Wehter changes qucikly in the mountains and the roads were dirt.  After that search, I suggested let's just head to the coast for the day and maybe stay overnight and head back the next day.  I checked the weather (I recommend this be done anytime you head to Padre Island), coastal flooding of the beach all the way to the dunes.  Well the beach is where we want to go so that died a quick death too.  Maybe next week we can do that.  The other longer trips would have been the last week of October or first week in November, then I realized I want to vote that week.  Just like the rest of the year our plans have been smashed.  Since all the places we have on our list are northish from us, weather in the winter and early spring is a major issue.  We don't drive snow and ice plus not having a vehicle for that....

I have been following the Hunter Biden scandal as best I can.  No major news media has picked it up.  Surprise surprise.  Plus I am still on a bit of a news blackout and I don't have cable.  I follow mostly on Twitter but that is getting heavily censored by the lefties that run it.  I can't imagine this going away quietly, unless the left wins the whitehouse.  I believe they are not above pardoning those shenanigans.  Then it will go away.  The media is complicit in this treason, but no one seems to be coming to the table to say 'this has to stop' much less 'Go to jail, go directly to jail, do not pass go'.  I am not even so sure the RINO's will do anything either if they win.  This is a travesty that may actually destroy our Republic.  I pray continuously that our country will turn back to God.  I have turned it over to Him.

Happy Trails

Tuesday, A Day Late

I try to post on Monday without fail.  Obviously I failed.  In my defense I have been preoccupied with some things.  I went to the chiropractor due to some issues I am experiencing.  He was a bit concerned.  Not real sure how to proceed so we are trying a few treatments to see if that helps.  Otherwise he thinks I may need to see a neurologist.  I have almost no confidence in anything neurologists do.  That is from experience.  We will see how these treatments affect me before we do anything else.  I have some tingling and numbness in feet and hands, not real bad but can be distracting.  I thought it might be related to those bulging discs in my neck.  It could also be diabetic neuropathy.  It could be something more serious in my brain.  I have a visit coming up with my PCP in November, maybe he will have other ideas.  

Today I finally get my new tooth implant.  This will be the final visit and I will be done with that thankfully.  I really like this dentist.  I guess I have to as much money as he has taken from me.  I am finding out that my last dentist wasn't as good as I thought.  But that's another story.

The Granddaughter (the toddler) is here for a couple days.  She is in a great mood and is pretty animated.  That makes it even more fun to have her here.  

Still proceeding with all the projects around the house.  Slowly but surely.  This fantastic weather is cooperating.  We had quite a bit of dust yesterday.  It looked like a return of the African dust we got in June.  I was told that the farmers in Kansas or someplace north of us are pretty busy plowing and the little cool front that came in yesterday brought that dust.  I don't know, but the dry air and the dust is playing havoc with the sinuses.  We are supposed to get a real cold front Thursday.  May have temps in the 40's.  As long as it's not to windy that will be good too.  Have I said I love this weather?  I may need to go on a road trip, despite COVID.  But I really need to finish up the projects around here first.

Happy Trails

Disappointed-A BBQ Almost Disaster Story

Around mid August I bought a Prime Brisket to have on hand for a special occasion.  Since no special occasion was on the horizon and we just wanted something other than our usual fare, we decided to throw it on the pit.  It would provide us with several meals and also some to freeze for later.  I picked this one up at Costco.  I had not been able to find Prime briskets anywhere for some time.  So when I spotted this one I grabbed it.  The price per pound left me puzzled.  At 3.49/lb it was much cheaper than any Prime I had found before.  Generally 3.49/lb is what I pay for a non prime brisket.  It was labeled on both the cryovac pack and the price sticker.  However, the brisket was the worst one I have ever BBQ'd.  

Over the years I have cooked a lot of briskets.  I have a foolproof technique.  It always has turned out tender enough to not even need a knife.  It always is very flavorful.  I have been asked many times, 'when are you gonna cook another brisket and have me over?'  Yes, I have been told it is the best they have ever eaten.  (This is the first time I have ever repeated that.  I don't like to say it and appear arrogant.) I am just trying to show my bonifides when it comes to brisket.  For those not in this part of Texas, you're not supposed to need sauce if it's cooked right.  We don't want the smoked goodness to be covered up with sauce.  I do offer sauce to guests if that is what they like.  Usually if you have to have sauce it's due to it being too dry.  Mine never is.  It's the final technique that ensures moisture and tenderness.  Yes, I can remember having 2 briskets that didn't turn out all that well.  Neither were prime briskets.  One had so much fat running through the meat, not just the fat cap, but in the actual grain of the meat, that it just wasn't good to eat.  The other was from Costco also and was unusually tough and not very flavorful.  I had not bought another brisket from Costco until this latest.  A span of several years.

As soon as I cut into this one, things weren't going good.  It was tough.  Where was my smoke ring?  I had never seen that before.  I had to look really close for the smoke ring and the meat just was not colored right.  Too light not the darker rich looking I am used to.  Taste?  There was none.  No seasoning (rub) could be detected and no smoky goodness.  I was done eating quickly.  

I cooked that thing another 2 hours and let it cool and placed in the fridge.  The next day I got it out and started slicing the whole thing.  It slices better when cold.  This one was even harder to slice.  As I got into it I could see that it was full of gristle and way more fat than it looked like from the outside.  I threw away a couple pounds of gristle and fat.  It still was tasteless.  I used sauce. I added salt.  (the rub I use is salt based-and it needed salt.  ????

I can just guess it was so gristly and tough it failed to absorb smoke or seasoning.  That thing cost me right at 50$ and we won't really enjoy it at all.  I probably won't eat any more of it.  The wife will drown it in sauce and continue on for a bit.  

The takeaways? I am really glad we didn't have anyone over to eat this disaster.  I would have been appalled that something like that would have been served to anyone.  I am done buying Costco briskets.  That's two bad ones from there and one just OK.  I guess my foolproof technique can't over come a really bad piece of meat.

Happy Trails

Monday and It's a Beautiful Day

As far as weather goes it doesn't get much better than it is.  In fact the last couple weeks have been outstanding.  Cool and dry, almost crisp.  That has allowed me to get and out finish up the tree trimming.  Next, I will power wash the back side of the house in preparation for painting.  The weather is supposed to continue like this through the week.  We could use some rain but I hope it holds off a bit or is short enough and I can get back at is soon.

The photo above is your's truly and I believe that was taken in Landa Park in New Braunfels Texas.  Time frame is around 1955/56 I think, as it isn't labeled and I appear to be around 2-3.  

The vileness of the left never ceases to amaze me.  Actually I have come to expect it.  All sorts of evil is revealing itself since the President has come down with the China Flu.  The media seems to be panicking.  They have become so irrelevant due to their skewed view of the world but especially America, that they are losing all credibility and those with any grey matter are no longer watching.  Their livelihood is danger due to the lies they spread.  It can't come soon enough.  There are plenty of alternatives of you look for them.  Their last gasp will be to corrupt the election.  They know there is no way their candidate can win without their lies and fomenting false rage among their believers.  It's gonna be very Ugly.  Prepare.

Happy Trails

I Tried

Did you watch the"Presidential" debate last night.  I tried.  The wife was skeptical about watching it but she watched as long as I did.  I totaled maybe 5 minutes.  They were both talking over each other so much I couldn't tell what was being said.  So I don't have any feel for how it went.  In that short time, I did hear the so called moderator call out the President several times without doing the same to Biden.  Biden's insults were his only tactic that I could tell.  I have never seen those type insults in a debate before.  It was beyond childish and showed no respect for the office.  The President was boorish with his constant interruptions but Biden was nearly as bad in that short time.  We turned it off quickly.  I don't really know why they have these debates.  I don't believe they change anyone's mind.  They only hope the other guy will step on his tongue so the media can rip him apart later hoping to score with those undecided voters.  I don't understand how anyone can be undecided in this election at any point.  You are either for the constitution or against it.  Pretty simple.

I'm in and out of the house today.  Trying to trim some more trees while it's still cool.  The plan was to weed eat for maybe the last time this year/season.  Evidently my fuel has gone bad again.  Stabil is not working for me.  So I switched to trimming trees.  I will get some fuel in the next few days to finish the other chore.  Unfortunately that fuel will also go bad before I need it again in the Spring.  I will then have to find a way to dispose of it and start over.  Most likely I will forgo getting new fuel until next Spring and let the weed eating wait.  That's how I roll LOL.  Hey, I'm retired.  (But those tall grasses will be mocking me all that time.)

'K' is in full decorating mode.  She is switching over to Fall decor.  This goes on for several days.  She is very crafty and can do this sort of thing spectacularly.  At least it looks great to me, but I'm a guy so what do I know.  I found out that my compliments seems to mean that I want her to do this.  I like it, but I don't think it would hurt my feelings if she didn't do it.  It's a lot of work, or she makes it a lot of work.  We have Fall colored leaves all over 'inside' the house, even on picture frames and orange colored accent lights.  I just enjoy it and say the appropriate words.  

What's your take on the debate?  Will there be another after this fiasco?

Happy Trails

Monday Thoughts

I don't know anything about the President's SCOTUS nominee other than what I see on the www.  She seems like a good pick.  But so did Roberts at the time.  I still wonder what they have on that guy.  I don't know when the hearings for her confirmation will begin.  I haven't seen a timeline as of this morning.  I know that if McConnell rushes the process, the libs will go even more crazy.  To spare them that anxiety, maybe he should forgo that process and go straight to a floor vote.  I can see lib heads exploding just at the thought of that.  I just hope that if she gets confirmed she upholds the constitution and not any political ideology as so many of our judges do these days, especially on the SCOTUS.   

The wind has really picked up this morning with a cold front that is blowing through.  No real temp changes yet as it is 66* at this time.  However they say it may get into the 40's tomorrow morning.  I'm ready for some cooler weather, but 40's?  LOL.  With the cooler weather I will start some put off chores.  I have a long list, and I suspect that I will defer some to another time as usual.  I really need to do some painting along with the prep work prior.  Since it's outside, weather is the determiner of when that will start.  I need to get that done either way.  I have put that off too many times already.  The worst part is getting on the roof and cleaning off the siding of my fake chimney.  It will require some scrubbing.  Not looking forward to that at all.

Happy Trails

Saturday

In case you're wondering, the new photo at the top was taken by my Grandfather while he was in the Army Air Service.  It is a Handley-Paige bomber and I believe the photo was taken 1919-1921 at Kelly Field.  I plan on changing out that photo every so often with old photos I have of mine and those I have collected from family.  I will try to remember to explain what each photo is.  If I don't please ask if you are interested at all.

Son#1 and his 2 kids will be coming to the house today.  His wife has gone with her parents to Arizona.  We will be watching the Longhorns and then eating supper together.  We both have been lifelong 'Horns' fans.  (I took him to several games when he was young and now he is a season ticket holder.)  This is a rare event that he can find the time to come over for no real reason.  I look forward to it.

Since the weather yesterday started out cool I took advantage of that and did a little tree work.  Yes, I paid big bucks last October to have them worked over.  However, if you know live oaks, they tend to get these sprouts or suckers that makes them look like they need a shave.  They have been looking more and more ragged due to so many sprouts.  With all the clearing that was done last year, more sunshine is getting through so the sprouts have gone crazy.  I still have several days worth of work until I am satisfied.  It's fairly easy work.  I take them off with a saw blade on my pole trimmer.  The issue is some are too high for the pole trimmer or to flexible and just bend and not get cut off.  I then stand on a ladder and pull them off by hand.  No, I don't climb trees anymore.  When I say 'several days,'  It's just a couple hours each day.  My neck and arms can only work overhead like that for a very short time.  So I stop every so often to rest those aching muscles and then start again for shorter and shorter periods.  But it gets done.

I can guess the wack jobs will go even more nuts today when the President announces his nomination for the Supreme Court vacancy.  I hope and pray that there is no violence and cooler heads will prevail.  

Happy Trails

2nd Try For This Post

The Granddaughter (the baby) is here for a few days.  Her Mom went back to in person school Monday.  Although there are no students yet.  She won't have any students until mid October.  Not sure the need for her to be there that far in advance but what do I know?  Her Dad is starting a new campaign for his latest book offering and needs to focus on that without a toddler interfering with her needs for the first few days of the kickoff.  We are very glad to do this as I have mentioned before.  It is a blessing in these dark times for sure.

We continue our preps.  'K' is really on board this time.  I think our few preps we had prior to the start of the pandemic has her more inclined to do more.  And she understands what may happen around the election.  

She wants water barrels (we have no room for barrels-there are other options I am exploring).  She has become aware of generators.  I have no practical experience with generators.  Our power rarely goes out, especially for any extended period.  I have never used one either.  I have been doing a little research.  There are tons of generators.  It seems the one that may fit our possible needs is one of the most spendy.  I have a hard time justifying in my mind the need for such an expense for something that may never be used.  Yes, I know, to have and not need than to need and not have.  But at that price I struggle.  I have seen other options I may consider.  They are noisier and use more fuel.  Fuel is an issue too.  Storing the needed amount is a real issue.  No room and the safety of storing, and then rotating it out before it gets bad.  It seems daunting with our limited space.  Especially for any long term needs.  Our specific need would be for keeping our refrigerators running.  If power goes out for more than three days or a week, a generator may be useless after that due to our lack of fuel storage.  It's a quandary for my lack of experience.  If you have tips, please chime in.  The best generator for our needs that I mentioned above is a Honda.  But at 1+K I balk.

I don't want to say bad things about anyone that has passed.  Ruth Ginsburg's family deserves that much.  I hope that some one takes her place that supports the constitution and not political ideals like she did.  Someone that will not champion the odious abortion rights and protect the lives of the unborn.

Happy Trails  

Sorry

I had a post about ready to go and 'Boom,' I hit that mystery key again and everything vanished.  Not in the mood to do it again.  Maybe tomorrow.

Happy Trails

Quiet Day

Things have returned to 'normal' here since the baby was returned to her parents.  She came Monday evening and left Friday afternoon.  We also had their dog, and he is not a small dog.  (The repairs having been completed at their townhouse.)  They were both well behaved.  So no real trouble but she is 'Nani's' (Nah-nee) girl and stays with her almost 100%.  So Nani gets pretty tired after so many days.  

We also have no plans as usual.  I just managed to cut the yard this morning before it got too hot and I will try to weed eat the rest over a couple days.  I need to spread it our more now than before.  We also resumed our morning walks.  We haven't done that for about two weeks and were very sporadic prior.  The weather had been the main obstacle.  It's not quite as uncomfortable in the mornings this week so far.  'K' is at the grocer's at this moment.  I usually go with her, I don't like her to go by herself but this time I relented in my 'protective' mode.

As far as protective mode is concerned, I have been giving a lot of thought to that lately.  Increased awareness is a must.  I have gotten lax in my situational awareness.  I have become to comfortable in public and not scanning my surroundings like I had in past years.  Maybe it's age related too, I don't know.  Being at home 24/7 days on end tends to make me lax too.  In these unusual times I am more aware of what the possibilities of harm/danger etc. may come about.  I have been thinking about home protection in the event the wack jobs invade our neighborhood like we have seen happen all over the country.  We have several advantages and disadvantages where we live.  

These are things in my thoughts and I won't go into detail here.  I could go too far and give out things no one needs to know.  I have sent emails to the 'Sons' trying to make them aware and to make preps in advance as they had been somewhat unprepared for the pandemic.  

I hope you are prepared for more turbulent times in the near future.  I hope and pray I am wrong.

Happy Trails

Upcoming Presidential Election

I'm pretty sure that anyone that pays any attention to the politics we are all having to endure are aware that the coming election will be the most contentious we have ever witnessed in this country.  Or at least equal to the 1860 election that resulted in the War Between the States.  I am not talking about the run up to the election with candidates taking nasty swipes at each other, that has become the norm.  I am talking about the actual election and the results.  Both sides are already preparing for that with various scenarios.  Then there are also the agent provocateurs that are setting the stage.  The one that comes to mind especially to me is Hildabeast.  She has already come out and said Joe Biden should never concede.  She is adding her voice from the experience she had in her loss and still can't believe it was legit.  She will go to her grave never believing the American public rejected her for a realty TV star.

I keep thinking about what may come about with this election.  Both sides learned some things during the Gore/Bush election.  The devastating defeat of Hildabeast taught them even more things.  They were so confident of victory they will never let something like that happen again.  Then there is this article I read the other day.  I may have blown it off a few months ago but things have progressed so much toward undermining the President's term in office I tend to believe this is at least plausible if not possible.  

Democrats are laying the groundwork for revolution right in front of our eyes.

As if 2020 were not insane enough already, we now have Democrats and their ruling class masters openly talking about staging a coup. You might have missed it, what with the riots, lockdowns and other daily mayhem we’re forced to endure in this, the most wretched year of my lifetime. But it’s happening.

More Here

I hope you take the time to read it.  Let me know your thoughts.

Happy Trails

RAIN!!! Thankfully

It rained here Friday and part of Saturday.  The majority of the rain fell over a few hours on Friday.  I recorded 3 inches.  That was very much needed and the temps didn't even reach 80.  That was even more needed.  This should give my new tomato plants a kick start.  It seems there is an actual cold front on the way too.  Some time Wednesday or late Tuesday night we should get one here and it will get done into the low 60's.  I'm sure where Old NFO lives will be much cooler in the part of Texas he is in.  Fall is on it's way and is much much earlier than any before it seems.  That is bad news for the tomatoes.  

Son#2 has been battling with a restoration company that was sent out by his insurance to make repairs due to a water leak.  Not sure what leaked but he has holes in his ceiling and one wall where they removed the sheet rock.  That was over a month ago.  It seems that company and his insurance company can't communicate very well and have not been able to come to an agreement on how to proceed, until now.  So he has sat there with these giant holes in his ceiling that pumps hot attic air into the living area.  His AC almost can't keep up.  Anyway, they finally start with repairs this Tuesday.  No idea how long that will take, but we will help them out by taking the baby and the dog for the duration.  The dog would have to be cooped up in the hot garage for the time the workers are there.  He would try to eat them otherwise.  So the coming week has been planned for me.  Entertain the baby and tolerate the dog.  

We decided we would attend church assembly Sunday morning.  We did not go to class in order to spend less time with possible exposure and did not attend evening assembly either.  The funk I was in last week is not here as I write this.  It does my soul good.  Even though we have to cut very short any visiting we do.  We are usually one of the last to leave.  It's mostly me waiting on the Lady that lives with me doing her visiting.  Looking forward to things becoming more normal.

Happy Trails

And It's Still HOT

It was 102 here yesterday and will probably be close to that again today.  I'm in a bit of a funk too.  I don't know that the weather has anything to do with it but I woke up after a restless night with a few aches and pains, a little more than usual.  It has me really not feeling like doing much of anything.  It seems to have affected the brain some.  

Part of the funk I am in is not being able to attend worship services like we have always done.  I am feeling a little disconnected from my brethren.  We have chosen to stay away since there is no mandatory mask requirement.  That is our choice due to my high risk health conditions.  I don't have issues with their not requiring a mask.  That is the way it should be.  I would not want my presence to require others to do something they don't want to do, even though I would wear a mask if that is what it took to enable someone else to attend.  So we have been streaming services but may consider attending where the kids attend since they have the mask requirement.  It would also allow us to see them.  But it is a very long drive to get there.  

Happy Trails

It's Been Hot

It's been hot here.  Yes, it is always hot this time of year here in Texas.  However this has been an unusually hot summer.  We set some heat records in July and now again in August.  We have had several days of 105+ and even a few 107's.  This is hot for this part of Texas as we generally stay a little cooler due to our proximity to the Gulf of Mexico.  And this isn't just a few days, it's been like this for the entire month so far.  However, we saw some relief earlier this week with a couple very quick showers and some early morning coolness that made our morning walks very nice.  We have also had some pretty low humidity during this heat which is very unusual.  This morning we woke to thunder storms and have been getting some very good and much needed rain.  Hopefully this is the start of the transition into Fall that we get here in August.

I'm hoping this rain this morning will kick start the few plants (tomato and bell peppers) I bought last week hoping to score some fresh veggies before the cold hits.  Unfortunately the only tomatoes they had take a long time to mature.  It may be too long at 65-75 days.  Wanted 55 but they are not to be had.  This was a spur of the moment purchase as I had thought I wouldn't plant anything until next Spring.  My garden is over grown with Bermuda grass and it is nearly impossible to eradicate.  I have given up trying to.  Although once my veggies quit I will cover the rest of the garden with black plastic and let the sun kill it off.  I will then get out there and clean it out as best I can and bring in some more badly needed compost.  

I have a few project waiting on cooler weather.  Painting some siding, cleaning out the large flower bed of random weeds, clover and hackberry etc.  Last October I had my trees trimmed in the front of the house costing me a ton of $$.  If you know Live Oak trees, you know that when you do that they start sprouting a lot of shoots on the trunks etc.  We need to get out there and do our best to get as much cleaned up as we can.  If not, it will look as bad as it did before our major trim and it will all have been for naught.  We can reach the worst of it with our pole saws and maybe a ladder.  The other we will just have to live with.  Can't afford to have them come back out again.

Went to see a neurologist last week.  Nothing serious.  Been experiencing some hand tremors over the last few years and it has gotten a little worse.  Something called essential tremor.  They control it with beta blockers, blood pressure meds.  I am already on some for blood pressure.  Adding more could make me even more sluggish.  They said if they bothered me enough that is the route to go but left the ball in my court.  I opted to do without for now as it is mostly random and not 24/7.  I was relieved it wasn't something more serious. 

I have been baking bread as a china virus hobby.  I have tried several different things and have settled on one version.  I bake two loaves about every two weeks.  No more store bought bread for us for the foreseeable future.  It ain't purty but it eats good.  I also have been trying out new recipes, mostly from Kent Rollins, with a few twists on his recipes.  I'm sure he won't mind me changing a few things for my own personal tastes.  Look him up on You Tube if you don't know about him.  

Today is my Mother's 88th birthday.  We will go and visit her Sunday and take her some lunch and a small gift.  Not much else planned for the coming week.

Happy Trails

Not So Quick Project

The cedar chest is finished, or as finished as it's going to get at this point.  I had planned to just do the top lid to see how that turned out before I thought about doing the rest of the chest.  I ran into an issue I wasn't sure how to deal with.  I have a few pictures to show what I am talking about.  

The first two photos are the underside of the lid.

With that little information I found out this chest is about 70 years old.  They were made in the 40's and 50's.  I have some cedar oil I used on the inside trying to restore the 'smell' since sanding did very little.  After two coats there still is not much smell.

This is the lid and what I was starting with.  I had hoped not to have to sand, but I determined quickly that wasn't going to work.  The finish and wood was in too bad of condition.  

As you can see it had a very dull finish and was pretty marred up.  I had already hit it with the orbital sander lightly one time.  It just made it worse.  And the sander was getting some sort of buildup on the sand paper.  I was using a 220 grit.  Steel wool prior to this did nothing.

So out comes the belt sander.  I figured that it would handle the job a little faster along with taking care of that build up.  I used a 120 grit.  That buildup?

This is what happened then:

Apparently that black looking substance is something in the wood.  It just smeared it all over the lid and gummed up my brand new sanding belt.  I determined that is coming from all the dark knots in the wood.  Is it still seeping cedar sap after all these years?  No idea really.  So sanding stopped.  I was just making a mess.  I tried several things to get the residue off the wood and nothing at all worked, not even something the wifely unit had called Goo Gone.  Then I tried Goof Off, what did I have to lose at this point?  It worked, with some very vigorous rubbing.  

However, I just could not sand it anymore like this.  So the top is a lot rougher to the touch so it won't have that glass like surface I wanted.  Even with 10 coats of polyurethane with the last coast being poured on the wood so it would build up a nice surface.  Still not enough.  But it does have a great color now.  The rest of the chest will remain as it is for now.  I don't want to tackle that until I figure out what is going on with that wood 'leaking?'

Happy Trails

Quick Project

I have an old cedar chest that belonged to my Grandmother.  I got it when my Grandparents passed away.  They passed within a month of each other.  They hold a special place in my heart, probably like most of you.  I spent almost every day with them from birth until I entered school at age 6.  She pretty much raised me.  My Grandfather was a Firefighter (Fireman in those days) and was not there as much as she was.  She was my caretaker while my parents worked.  This was 1953-1959.  These were my Father's parents.  With so much time spent with her in those early formative years I became very attached to her.  I think it was a natural thing that happens when you spend so much time with someone at those ages.  My Mother recognized this attachment.  

I digress.  Anyway, that cedar chest was something I remembered along with several other objects that are strong connections to that time and to them.  The cedar chest to me was a treasure chest of sorts.  I remember her opening it and showing me things she had saved and were obviously important to her.  No I don't remember any specific items.  All these things just added to my memories and a desired to have them eventually.  I am way to sentimental for my own good.  More so than anyone in our family.  It was easy to have everyone agree that I could have them and I treasure them for what they mean to mean and not at all for their value. 

Over the years those things got little care and were more or less forgotten.  The finish on this piece is pretty bad.  It had been varnished and most of that is gone except for a few spots that are dried and crusty.  Not to mention when dust and dirt settles on something for years and years it almost becomes a finish of it's own.

So today I started trying to refinish the lid.  It is the most visible part of the chest and shows the most wear.  I hope not to have to sand it as I like the color that it is.  I am starting with cleaning and maybe some buffing with steel wool to remove and build up.  We will see how that goes before I go any further.  It shouldn't take too long to see results.  

Happy Trails

Weekend News

Well not really news more of an update.  The real news, to us, is at the end of this post.

'K's self imposed quarantine is over and she has survived not coming down with the Bat Flu.  We are thankful for that.  She actually lifted her isolation Thursday evening and we had Son#2 and his in laws out for supper.  His in laws were in town for a week to visit the baby.  We wanted to see them before they left and also we hadn't seen the baby in more than 2 weeks.  I had an extra large chicken that was given to us from a friend whose daughter raised a bunch of them for FFA at school.  Once they were judged they had to dispose of them and were asking everyone they knew to please take one.  They had 40.  When I say extra large I would guess this one weighed in around 10 lbs.  They are normally 3-4 lbs.  So we are still eating on that thing.

I have become a big fan of a man I found on You Tube.  He is a genuine cowboy and a chuck wagon cook.  He doesn't call himself a chef.  I have used several of his recipes and he also makes me smile every time I watch.  He has fun with his cooking and doesn't take himself real serious, but I can vouch for some of his recipes. There are a bunch more I am planning on trying.   There's nothing fancy at all, just good ole solid cooking.  He is a hoot.  I have even bought a few things off his website and I will get one of his cookbooks eventually.  If you're interested in learning some good cooking recipes (most are done outside with actual fire) look him up on the You Tube.  Kent Rollins-cowboy cooking.  

We will return to our worship services this Sunday after an absence since the end of February.  We are truly looking forward to that.  It is not without some trepidation.  I will only say, the reason we feel comfortable enough to return, has upset some others.  Disappointing to say the least.  We will try our best to keep our Christian attitude in the forefront and and only have a kind heart toward them all.  

Happy Trails

Trying To Keep Busy

Admittedly I have more time on my hands these days with being quarantined and along with the hot weather.  We are half way through 'K's' self imposed 2 week quarantine due to her helping out at a memorial service.  The hot weather also keeps me inside more anyway so any outside chores just don't get done.  Well I did cut the grass a week or so ago.  It was at a critical stage.  It was high enough that it was tickling the thighs of our Granddaughter.  

With so much time I try to come up with some projects to keep me busy.  The cabinets in our kitchen were looking a little tired.  We had refinished them about 7-8 years ago and the 'shine' (polyurethane) had seen better days.  So I had a small can of and decided I would add a little to perk them up.  Then 'K' got involved.  I'm sure y'all can guess how that went.  She was cleaning them in preparation of me working on them and discovered the cabinet doors in front of the sink and nearest the dishwasher were in worse shape than I wanted to hear.  She said they needed more stain.  I didn't want to hear that and just wanted a quick touch up.  If she wanted more stain she could do it.  Well it turns out she was right.  The look a lot better and it really didn't take all that long since we didn't need to sand them down.  It wasn't that big of job but I felt like we accomplished something worthwhile.  Now all I have to do if figure out a project for this month....and not tell 'K' until I'm finished.

The hurricane (Hanna) we were hoping for some good rain was a bust for us.  Two quick showers with barely any measurable rain.  Was really hoping for some serious rain but it is not to be.  Generally July brings next to '0' rain, although we have had some serious storms in the past.  Sometimes August will be kinder and dump some on us toward the end of the month.  But it also generally brings even hotter temps.  Not complaining, it's just a fact of life here in this part of Texas.

Happy Trails

A Couple Photos I Promised

I had forgotten to post photos of the cover I made for my new tablet and also what is going on in the photo above.  

The new Fire HD, the tablet I got, is a little bit larger than my old one so a new cover was in order.  

back side, a facsimile of the Seal of the Republic of Texas

                      

                                       

Front side, the shape of the Republic of Texas, before we became a state.

If you're not familiar with Texas history you may not recognize this as Texas.

As you can see it included a large portion of new Mexico, a bit of Colorado and a small slice of Wyoming.  Those parts were given up with annexation.

As for the cover photo for the blog.  That is yours truly and my lovely 'K'.  We had gone downtown for some rare reason and came across this shop where you could dress up and they would take your picture.  This was 1977 and 'K' was 3 months along with our first child.  We have another we made with both boys but we are in politically incorrect attire for that one.  I'm sure you can guess what that was.  

We are currently re staining some kitchen cabinet doors and then a coat of polyurethane.  For some reason the finish had dulled considerably and there was no remaining polyurethane.  Hopefully they will get dry before that tropical weather hits here Saturday.

Happy Trails