Change

I can't believe summer is already over and soon the natural world will turn orange, brown, grey and white. AND COLD.  It seems as if the days are flying by, like what happens as the roll of paper gets smaller and the end is near. I have been able to keep pretty busy, sometimes doing nothing which is busy on a different scale. I did manage to vacuum the kitchen and living room this week. Major work for me now. The other day I was a social butterfly, chatting with the trash pickup man, the Schwan's delivery fellow, the mail carrier woman, the potter, my brother, and then a neighbor who was walking his dog. He stopped to help me with the filling of distilled water into the golf car batteries with a special system of doing it all at one time. Soon after, another neighbor made a special delivery of a bag of her home-made cookies! Killer Cookies, I might add. Soon things will have to be covered - the porch swing, the golf car, the air conditioner. I plan to have my lawn and yard guy help with this after he cleans out the flowerbeds and gutters and blows leaves. He does the snow removal as well. Perhaps he can use the Mister's great blower. It needs to be taken from the shed and put into the carport for easy access. A gasoline supply will be needed. I still see a couple of hummingbirds at the feeder but sure hope they leave before frost! It is time!

When I watch TV, which is for the morning news and weather and the suppertime updates, I know I have nothing to complain about. My health is fair for my age and as long as I have books to read, my computer for communication, shelter, warmth and food, I know I'm one of the lucky people in a safe environment. I also know this could change in an instant, but for now I'm going with the flow of good vibes, good friends and neighbors. 

The photos below are from last year.

It's Nature's way.

for a closer look and to be prepared, click on an image

Learning Curve Yesterday!

GOT MY GUMPTION UP THIS AM!  Figured out how to clean the AC filter & the dehumidifier filter! Yay! Then got brave and lifted the seat on the golf car and plugged in the one line to a HD extension cord that I had plugged into the socket on the carport pillar. Then I propped up the seat with the board that is stored in the back basket and found the cord with the plug that goes into the panel under the seat bench where driver's legs would be when sitting.  A green light came on near that socket and I knew it was charging. The charger is carried under the seat when it is down - not at all like the set up we had at the beach, but I had watched the Mister do it several times and now I think I can again!  This charger is very different from the beach ones! I haven't been for a ride yet, but plan to soon. I also had to dig out my bottle of CLR mold and mildew stuff to remove all of the mold that was starting to permeate the backrest. There was a lot! I had to use my vegetable brush and almost a whole roll of paper towel. Satisfying morning. Pooped me out! 

Tomorrow I plan to attack the vacuum cleaner. I do not like the new one he bought because he thought it would be lighter and easier to maneuver. I will use the old clunker Oreck. It needs an overhaul. The new one is a PIA to clean the stupid tube. I know how to change the Oreck bags. Some day I'll enlist a friend to take it to the store in Vestal for an overhaul because it IS hard to push now. Probably just stuff stuck around the ends of the brush thingy. Not gonna try it!

Missy came today and did some fishing and swimming. No rain!  I sent her home with some suspenders as she was saying that her husband needs them. Just starting to clean out a few items like that.

Two neighbors with golf cars (gasoline) stopped by when I was out on the porch and we all had a small chat session. Things are starting to normalize if there is such a thing! 

There was a beautiful and very large lonely doe browsing my beachfront last evening. I grabbed the camera, and was about to get a great shot when the low battery light came on and it shut off! She moved on and gobbled up my neighbor's Hosta flowers! Then she sauntered up into the woods.  Lost that opportunity! I'll have to keep my eyes out for her again around dusk.

Almost...

Well today I got the flower garland on James, nipped off the dead daffodil bloom stalks, and put preservative on the "Fish Stories Told Here" sign. This was a gift from Missy in 2011.

The Mister got the air compressor going and put air in one of the golf car tires that was low. He checked the others and then drove by James just as I was finishing tying the garland. I hopped into the vehicle for my first ride of this year. It is a good thing that we both had our canes. We got across the dam and turned around heading back home when it slowed down. R e a l l y slowed down. It was kept charged all winter on the first of the month but should have been again before ever taking a ride. I got off after we got across the bridge and walked home and he plugged along very slowly and got her to the front lawn - off the road! The charger is carried under the seat so it was a matter of wiring it to the socket on the front porch and turning on the juice! 

We were both beat! TOTALLY beat!  All that is now needed to do is to put the distilled water in the batteries. Tomorrow is another day!

Naptime never felt so needed!

Common Home Skills

I am appalled at the younger peoples' ignorance or should I say incompetence with standard home activities. I know they probably didn't have the education that I did in my Home Economics class but gee, didn't their mothers or even their grandmothers teach them anything about cooking, sewing, finances?  Making do?

Yes, this is a negative rant! The generation of today are blissfully oblivious of the common needs to survive with ease and seem to be so unfamiliar with anything but their phones and internet, their " besties" and fashionable shopping.

Give a teenager a potato and tell her/him to boil it and then mash it to be served.  What would she/he do? Give a young adult a challenge to bake a cake without a box mix. Could they even sew an apron or wouldn't they wear one? Can they thread a needle and make a good knot? Do they let food particles go down the kitchen drain or does it now have an automatic garbage disposal?

Do they know how to fix the innards of a toilet tank when the chain breaks? Would they even know it was broken? Does it even have a chain?

If the tab on a can is broken how would it be opened without an automatic can opener? (or even a non automatic one!)

What if they ran out of toothpaste - what would they use?

Well you get my gist and this is all because I had a dream of today's generation trying to do things without a clue and being frustrated.

There ! I feel better. Please teach all and any young people in your life the value of self-sufficiency and life skills. They need to learn by doing; especially in times like these when those common skills are needed.

My guess is that half will know how to do these things but half will not. Can you help?

please click on image to view larger

Sister washing dishes, sister drying dishes, brother putting things away, me at the stove, Mother writing at table. 1954
Yes, I know, that was then and this is now but some things do not need to change.

Boring...boring boring boring!!!

Today

• Put away yesterday's laundry
• Balanced checkbooks
• Refilled and reset mouse traps for outdoors
• Bagged and froze 18 oatmeal/raisin/walnut cookies -6 to a bag
• Replaced plastic strip to cover space between hot water heater and kitchen sink
• Broke down and re-bagged two loaves of bread— one white one rye— into half loaves
• Broke down and re-bagged 8 Kaiser rolls into 4 per bag
• Cleaned bathroom
• Cut off one daffodil bud and put in water filled vase
• Checked e-mail and wrote this 

All before lunch. 

Bored of being bored because being bored is boring.

In Again - Out Again - Home Again!

It's been one busy week after a long 13 1/2 hour trip from South to North. As we age, the trip that we take 3 times a year becomes an endurance test. We've been doing this for over 14 years. It's always good to be here and it's always good to be there, but Oh! the travel is now an exhausting experience. You see, we bring back and forth all foods and seasonal clothes. We continue to leave our places with clean beds made, no laundry in baskets, and rooms fully polished and cleaned. It's a wonderful reward to return to find things just as left and ready for re-occupancy. Just packing is exercise to the extreme. It didn't seem to be difficult way back when…..Now don't get me wrong, we already know we have the best of both worlds - sea and mountains and time and health to enjoy both. 

Monday: We put away all and put up containers in storage areas. Then a trip to town for monthly refilling of prescription drugs for husband, pick up of post office mail that is held, filled artesian water jugs for our coffee and tea. We experience the shock of filling the gasoline tank - I say shock, because it costs more here - much more - It is the day we later catch up on mail and paperwork.

Tuesday in November is husband rearranging and servicing the snowblower, quad and generator in preparation for winter. It is a day of his cutting and removing dead foliage and plants from flowerbeds and raking leaves. It's a good thing for him there is no snow covering it all. I don't do any of these chores, but I keep busy nesting.

Wednesday was a trip to town for a few groceries. Then we took a break and relaxed.

Thursday entailed a 30 mile one way trip to nearby town for more groceries and sundry items at Walmart. This was after Time Warner serviceman came and set me up with WiFi internet on my laptop. It's getting too cold in the bedroom to work in there now.

Friday I made a large pan of Rice Krispy Treats and a delicious pork tenderloin meal for dinner. He rested.

Saturday I baked and cooked meals ahead and froze them. I made pizza from scratch for dinner.

The lake was very calm with beautiful reflections this morning - BUT there has been something going on way over there! We don't know what yet. Yeow!

Today, Sunday We made delicious MacCoun applesauce! I forgot how labor intensive this is, using my treasured old utensils.  I also got a minute to check computers and move more music files from one into the other. 

Tomorrow is a laundry trip to town or we'll be without underwear! and socks! Well….almost.

The next days ahead will be baking cakes (apple), pies and cookies (all varieties.) This is a great time to bake as the oven helps us stay warm.  I might make fudge - maybe. We both share chores indoors and then we go our separate ways - me on computer, he watching big screen TV. Life is good.