Chicken Express.

 Chicken Express.

 

Yep, decided not to go into Walmart because everyone and his kid sister is there today. Just decided that chicken from the express for brunch would work just as well as one of those rotisserie chickens. Every time Sterling and Jacqui come down to visit, we go there. And Tracy and Lance like it quite well, too. The dogs love the little pieces of crust and stuff that they get, so CkEx is an all-around favorite. Tracy’s favorite is the fried okra. A big Chicken Express truck passed us on the highway the other day. Had to point out to Tracy that all the okra in it was frozen! Otherwise, we might have hijacked a truck—NOT!

 

Made some brownies from a box. Grandmother Pollard used to say that was like making them from scratch because you had to scratch them out of the box. This one had some caramel stuff to dribble on and through the rest of the mix after it was in the pan. Kinda messy. Maybe it will harden after it cools. No, not on the diet and don’t even want to think about it. At least it is not a box of those chocolate covered cherries! Neither is the fried chicken. sigh

 

The guy across the street had some of that pavement mender put in the deepest hole in the street. Doubt if it will be enough to help much, but at least it is not as bad as some of the roads in WF. How pot holes develop right in the middle of a street is just puzzling. Of course, they always develop where the ruts are set, but sometimes it amazes me to find one right in the middle of a road. Might be something to do with the sewer risers. No engineering degree here.

 

Sterling finally got a picture of the woodpeckers he is building sent to me. He is talking about opening a booth in one of the craft fairs nearby and selling his airplanes and woodpeckers. He wants to put some tags on them first so they will be good advertising for the folks who are supplying the materials for him to make the planes and birds. He reminds me so very much of our daddy. He was a wizard at making things that were neat. Of course, he also made some black powder rifles and pistols. The pistols that were in my house were stolen in the burglary, but he gave Dr. Schaffner a nice rifle when he helped Mom and Dad out after one of the surgeries Dad had. Maybe they still have it. Just wonder if they know why Dad gave it to him.

 

Bought myself one of the amaryllis like the ones sent to my girls. Have it potted and sitting in the kitchen window. It should be pretty when it blooms. Red always looks good in a kitchen window. Winter is not as easy as spring and fall because a person has to look for things to be pretty in the windows. Some of us spend too much time looking out windows, don’t ya see.

 

Found a calendar that Sharon Dickerson gave me back when Jimmy was getting so many gifts from different folks that included a calendar from nearly everyone out there. And this one is just filled with pretty lilies on each page. Have 2022 horse calendars in two rooms and one from the Hyson Metal Forming Solutions that was sent to me from H&O Tool and Die. Nothing like having a child to keep mom in calendars! Jenn always writes the birthdays on there for me. Yes, she knows me well. Forgot one birthday one year and caught all kinds of flack for it. Most of the birthdays are in May—or they used to be—but now it is January, February, March, May, July, and November! Maybe it is just because we have four birthdays in May that it feels like all the birthdays come at the same time.

 

Need to get my sewing machine out and run a couple of seams up some long pieces of upholstery material. Have it draped over the leather chair right now, but it just slides off when the dogs get up there and make their “nests.” Not sure who is the silliest—me or the dogs. They have nice fluffy beds, but they can’t look out of the windows from the floor without having to stand up. From the chairs, they just raise their eyebrows. Talk about a nosy old woman keeping her eye on things! These dogs not only watch, they warn!

 

Five eggs yesterday and so far, two today. Maybe the hens will start laying again pretty soon. The coop is much warmer with the plastic sheeting on the doors, so they can mess around inside or out now without having to have the doors open in case it snows like it did year before last. As long as they have water, they will do ok. And as long as the electricity is on, they will have water that is warm. How the grandparents took care of their animals is beyond me. Know we had frostbite on some lamb ears one year. But the cows and older stock stayed healthy and safe. Of course, both the grandfathers had to cut ice on stock tanks. Wonder how life was different for the great-grandparents. Or even for those folks up north. They must keep the stock in barns during the deep freezes and snows. Simply can’t imagine.

 

Thinking about freezes and livestock, Clara and Buster Zachry had a picture on their living room wall called “The Last of Ten Thousand.” It showed one ol’ cow hunched over with her head down and her bones sticking out just under her hide. The cattle had all died in one horrible blizzard that year. That has happened once since then, but the ranchers in this area sent cattle back up north to restock those folks. This year, they could have restocked every ranch up north with just the cattle that our ranchers could no longer feed or water! We saw two 18-wheelers on the roads Thursday with those huge bales of alfalfa stacked two high. That would have been a small fortune right there on those trucks. Even Loomis might not carry that much cash.

 

It seemed strange to look at all the changes along U.S. 82 when we were driving past Nocona. New houses, new ranches, more highway building, and lots of extra traffic. Lance was wondering why they would need to put in two extra lanes on 82, but he does not realize that 82 used to keep traffic off of 287. When those two lanes are finished from Gainesville to Wichita Falls, we will see traffic out of Oklahoma and points north coming this direction instead of going to I-35. And then he told me that I-35 between Ft. Worth and Austin was bumper to bumper. It only got better after San Antonio going to Corpus Christi. If they keep building plants in Texas, we will have to annex Oklahoma for a place to live! [Big JOKE!]

 

Looks like Texas is in line for another couple of earthquakes. It could have something to do with all the water they have pumped back into those oil wells, but otherwise, they may just find that Texas is on pretty shaky land anyway. The escarpments have always been a curiosity to me. What makes one piece of land just suddenly rise up thousands of feet higher than the land around it? Of course, that might have happened thousands of years ago. No sense being concerned that it might happen again any time soon. But the museum out near Hereford makes me think that Texas was once a great place for all kinds of strange animals from dinosaurs to huge bird-type creatures. They even have some drawings of what they think the first horses looked like. Nothing like what we have today. More like a rhinoceros body with a smaller head. Oh well. It would be interesting to be able to look back at what was on earth before man got around to hunting the different beasts on the plains. Noah’s Ark in Kentucky has been built to educate us about what the animals might have been like that were taken on the ark. Not your typical critters.

 

Sterling called again this morning to see if his little sister was still tracking and making her moves. Other than some sore muscles, my collision with the ground did not leave any lasting impressions—except maybe on the ground! That chair was definitely the looser in the contest. Wouldn’t want that to happen to anyone! At least slacks kept everything covered! But then, women don’t wear dresses as much any longer. Good thing!

 

Guess a call to see if the niece needs any help tomorrow might be in order. Although, my help might be more of a hindrance with three kids and a dog around. Will check with her and see when they are leaving. Hope they have a safe and good trip home to Chicago. Not sure when Erin will be back up this way, but eventually he will have to get the house on the market. And it is a nice house. Maybe the man across the street might be interested in it. Or not. Have to think about that. Have encouraged him to look into getting the one at the end of the street plus the land in between. That would make a nice little hunk to work on.

 

Really know diddly squat today. Not wanting the weather to get colder, but realize that it is that time of year. But so far it looks like it is going to be decent weather. Hauling water to the chicken coop is not too bad as long as it is not wet and freezing. Gripe, natter, grump. Ah, but love my hens!

 

Remember those who will be lucky to have something to eat this week. Let us remember to our Father in heaven those who are in war zones or in refugee camps and starving. Let us pray that His kingdom will come soon.

 

Pray for peace and know that you are loved.