Just Stocking Up.

 Just Stocking Up.

 

A trip to the Feed and Garden Store over on Jacksboro Hwy saw a bag of hen crumble and a sack of wheat thrown in the back of the truck. The new cart makes them SO much easier to load and unload since it is higher off the ground and otherwise fits the sacks. Was even able to put both sacks in the cart to take back inside the yard. Let the dogs get in the truck—despite mashing Thompson’s tail just a bit—and then had to herd a hen back inside the yard. Rusty (the hen) is sneaky. She watches that gate!

 

{By the way, stocking up around here has nothing to do with world affairs. These hens are spoiled and eat anything that moves plus hundreds of pounds of wheat and chicken crumble!}

 

Woke up this morning and was shocked to feel much better when putting that right foot down on the floor. Have walked without my cane all morning! Not sure which remedy or if it was prayers, but it is wonderful to be able to walk!

 

Patty just took off to drive herself to her doctor’s appointment—the one she calls the “easy” one. She parks in front of the door, walks maybe six steps, checks in, and barely sits down before they call her. Now THAT is a quick check in. Tomorrow the old woman has to take her to the Clinics of North Texas. That place is never fast and just plum unhandy. Oh well. She is just going to see his happy face or maybe the PA’s face so she can renew her prescriptions. Kinda ridiculous. Nothing has changed, but they still want to see her. Typical. Downloaded another series of books to keep me busy while waiting for her.

 

My neighbor got one entire day all to herself this weekend. She had time to put out her fall decorations and just enjoy herself. Think she really needed that time away from all the children and all the hauling kids everywhere. She is not even as old as my oldest child, but she is constantly cleaning, hauling kids, picking up stuff for family, or cooking! Even one of those activities is about too much for an old woman like me!

 

Put on one of my favorite tops this morning and noticed that it had two weird spots on it. Know perfectly well it has not had anything spilled on it, so am wondering if it was the laundry detergent. About ready to try those sheets that contain zero water and just dissolve in the washer. Maybe they won’t cause any irritation while still cleaning. SO sick and tired of these stupid soaps that are supposed to be perfume and color free—'cause they obviously are not as advertised. Sensitive skin is not any fun at all, but trying to use soaps that don’t cause rashes is challenging, to say the least.

 

Sitting here griping about soaps and thinking that those folks in the path of Helene would just like to have their washers and dryers back! As horrible as the tornado of ’79 was, it did not wipe out our entire town or otherwise totally disrupt our lives for more than a year. Some of those folks may never have a home again! May God bless them and protect them.

 

Jennifer messaged me about her host wife’s daughter who lives in Tampa. My grand-aunt is in Cape Canaveral, but not sure if that would be affected. SO many people that we know have family down there! And Melvin or whatever they named it (Milton?) is coming in hard and fast as a probable cat 5. Hard to imagine! No matter how long we live, it is just shocking to see the land and everything on it simply washed away. It’s a good thing our hopes, our home, is built on standing rock. If you have not sung that song, just let it be said that we stand on faith.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.

Just Restin'.

 Just Restin’.

 

Got both coops cleaned out and the manure put in two different lots. The mess from the front coop included about two chickens’ worth of feathers! They are molting, Dear Hearts! Anyway, got that cleaned up and had to use the last of the DE (diatomaceous earth) in the middle coop. Therefore, a trip to TSC was to pick up two 20-pound bags of DE. The young man helped me put them in the back seat of the truck. He offered to get rid of my little spider friend on the back window, but spiders eat skeeters, so the spider remains on the truck.

 

Took a quick trip to Aldi’s to pick up some stuff. Think next time the old woman needs things from that store, will see if it can be ordered online. Sundays must be a good shopping day for that store. But enjoyed the fresh lamb loin after it cooked in the air fryer. Very tasty and very tender! Always enjoyed the lamb we got for Passover every year. Mr. and Mrs. Fish used to have Kouri’s market cook one for us on the years that they ate with us. Talk about tender and delicious!

 

Got out my cane this afternoon after returning from all the gadding about. Danged knee is swollen above and to the right for some reason. Argh! Used some stuff that Jennifer got while she was on vacation in Jamaica. It works, but the price makes me feel very stingy. Only use it when it is absolutely necessary to be walking about.

 

Again, trying to avoid looking at anything called “news.” Yes, we know another hurricane—or HIM a cane—is due to hit Florida again. This one looks just about as bad as the last one in my estimation. Those folks pay a very high price for avoiding winter weather! Meanwhile, we should be praying fervently for them while we pray for those who were nearly wiped off the face of the earth by Helene! May God bless them!

 

Did watch one lady in the western part of NC talk about how she had seen Jesus show up so many times in one day. ALL the neighbors and a whole bunch of folks who did not even live around there came together to try to clean up around a man’s house and take out the wet sheet rock and all the furniture and cabinets that were ruined. And, believe it or not, the ASPCA had flown in beaucoup of crates to take animals out of the flooded animal rescue facilities—before the hurricane hit them! So maybe they are a worthwhile organization.

 

Just thinking about a young woman in Petrolia who runs a rescue called Katy’s Place. She takes strays, old dogs, crippled critters, and feeds and cares for them. Think she was one of the girls of a family that lived up on a hill from Madelaine Morgan’s house. Met the two little girls and their parents when riding my horse up that way. Anyway, she is to be admired for establishing one of those 501 whatever things in order to keep things squared away. If the old woman had an extra dollar or more, that is one of the places that would get my support.

 

Really don’t know much except that getting to be this old is really a blessing. God has some reason for letting us stick around like this. Maybe someone will be helped by knowing that old folks care about others just as much now as they did when they had more energy to help with lifting other folks’ burdens.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.

Positive Thoughts.

 Positive Thoughts.

 

Mom used to say that we should always harbor positive thoughts rather than letting things stay on our minds to bother us. And Daddy would always say, “Well, I am positive this is going to bother me!” Yep, it is difficult sometimes to work on being positive with that kind of attitude. And Dear Hearts, yours truly quite often lets that problem Daddy had sit down and have a discussion with me! But we must work on these things. If nothing else, we can make funnies out of the bad crud that happens. Last night the old woman sang a song to Maggie Sewell that David’s wounds brought to my mind: “Well, I was going down the hill doing ninety miles an hour when the chain on my bicycle broke—I was skinned all over by the rocks and the gravel and punctured to death by the spokes!” See, now that sounds pretty positive the way my dad would sing it! Then he would go get that horrible mercurochrome stuff that stung like fire to put on the scrapes!

 

Finished the second batch of chicken quarters and cleaned up the roaster after bagging a gallon of chicken meat to put in the fridge. The dogs will have chicken breasts one more meal and then the dark meat for the rest of the week. At sixty-nine cents a pound, it is pretty cheap. Just wish it were not so time consuming and messy. Oh well. It’s not like the old woman has to work these days. Although, both coops need to be cleaned now and DE purchased at either Tractor Supply or the Feed and Garden Store. See, that is the reason that commercial dog food—the good stuff—is so expensive. They probably have a much more efficient process than what goes on around here, but machines still put stuff in there sometimes that should not be given to dogs.

 

It seems that memory becomes more of a problem every day. Know that my week is pretty well already planned—feed store or TSC tomorrow as well as Sutherlands to return the unused can of foamy stuff for holes. Then Tuesday a trip to the Clinic to take Patty for her check-up. Have to remember to take extra dog kibble down to her house for Roxy.

 

Just had to get up and go check on my two dogs. One of them got a little rough and made the other say something doggish. They play like kids. Truly love these critters. But watching them play “Big Mouth” and play growl is pretty funny.

 

Took the second arthritis pill for this dumb knee a bit ago. Would really appreciate it if the thing would heal up and stop being a pest when the old woman needs to walk around and get things done. Can understand now how my mother-in-law was hurting when she rubbed her old knee. Her house smelled like Ben Gay or his brother Guy. My house smells like a wet dog, but that may change if we ever get cold weather. Will give the dogs a bath and threaten them if they roll in any dirt! We would actually have to have some rain for them to get muddy enough to matter. Yes, they go out and get in their water trough and then get their feet dirty, but that is not usually the entire dog that is gunked up with mud!

 

Will mention that Monday is October 7, the anniversary of the horrible attack on Israel last year. Not sure if they were celebrating the New Year last year or what, but the days of the year in the Jewish calendar change from year to year because their calendar is set with the moon the way God set it up in the beginning. Anyway, just like 9-11, they may respond in a manner that makes us all wonder. At this point, all the rest of us can do is pray for Jerusalem and have faith in God. Oh, and in a conversation with Patty this evening, we were talking about how the Pope said that there are many paths to God—(other religions). Nope. Jesus said that HE is the way, and without Him there is no way to God. It’s in the Bible if you care to look it up.

 

Looking forward to seeing my brother Sterling and his wife Jacqui after next week. Wish it were not so far away to drive there. And wish that the old woman were much braver. Sigh.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.

Planning an Evening.

 Planning an Evening.

 

Got the steel wool placed in the two places it was needed. Squirted the foaming stuff into the opening under the house near the water lines. Then covered the entire mess with a bale of hay since these crazy hens love to eat strange things. Had one of those foam like covers on the back faucet last winter. They ate it!!! Still have the receipt and one can of foam stuff that could be returned to Sutherlands, but if that takes place, it will be tomorrow! Some days just have plenty done already to take one’s energy.

 

Went down and visited with Patty and let Roxy run around like a wild animal. Bet she sprinkled on everything out there. Then she found a mesquite bean to crunch on. Took a couple of yellowed leaves off of Patty’s car to show her that it was just leaves from the mesquites that had covered her car. She thought something wild had happened to get her car covered like that. Just leaves blown off in the wind.

 

Kevin, the nice mail man, said that the packages today were pretty heavy, so he waited until the dogs were contained in the kitchen before he brought the two packages into my living room. Don’t know what we would do without such a nice man to take care of things like that. We have been blessed.

 

Went up to United and got two small packages of ribeye steaks that were marked down and two ten-pound packages of chicken quarters that were priced at .69 cents per pound. Have one package of chicken cooked already and will need to debone it and do the other package tomorrow. Those things are easy to cook in this roaster, but the weight of the chicken plus the roaster’s awkward size sometimes feels a bit difficult. Oh well. All that chicken meat put into Ziplock bags keeps my dogs healthy. The lady checking me out really was shocked that anyone would want that much chicken. She had to ask, of course, how it was used. “For dogs?!” Yes, maybe that seems pretty strange to some folks. At the same time, it is still cheaper than the Purina One Lamb and Brown Rice kibble. Oh well. {And now it is all deboned, packaged, and cleaned up. Whew!}

 

Talked to Maggie Sewell this afternoon. David has finished the chemo treatments with the only side effect of just making him terribly tired. But yesterday evening he fell going to get the mail and ended up at the ER until four this morning. Have heard that the ER is totally swamped, but that long wait feels like more than a bit ridiculous! Anyway, let’s pray that his arm and hand heal up completely so that he can do whatever he needs to do on a normal day for them.

 

Think the dock strike has been put off until after January. At least the one on the East Coast. Don’t think the West Coast was on strike. Doesn’t seem to matter how much a person makes if the cost of living eats it all up. But then, few of us have probably ever made $39 per hour!

 

The old woman is tired—tuckered out. Didn’t get to sleep until after three, so that might have something to do with it. Still, Sterling was saying that his prayers every morning include me and my neighborhood. Had to tell him that God was getting it in both ears as we seem to be exchanging the same considerations. He and Jacqui and their family are mentioned every morning around here. Plus, all the neighbors and friends. Sterling’s friend George has a broken toe that has turned black, so he is on my list as well.

 

Finally, told Sterling that Barry Levy brought some pickled veggies in a pint jar this afternoon that will be waiting on their visit. We both really enjoy that kind of stuff. All Barry got in return was a thank you and a dozen eggs! If the old woman had enough energy, maybe she would make some of this pickled stuff, but don’t hold your breath until that ever happens!

 

We all know where our prayers need to be focused. Let us have faith that God’s will can be seen soon all over this planet! May His kingdom come soon!

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.

True Values.

 True Values.

 

Today several folks had made comments on various FB posts mentioning how we can see what true values are when purchasing things or when donating to certain causes. It made sense and caused me to realize that God expects us to look for true values in life. First, we have to look at the goods and services that we want. For instance, toilet tissue. Yes, that is maybe just a little strange when we think about values, but certain things are made right here in the USA that support families who work in our country. Had to go look in the closet to be sure that what the old woman had bought was made in America. Most of it was, but one package was a store brand that claimed that it was NOT made by Proctor and Gamble or by Angel Soft. Nope, it came out of California distributed by “Better Living Brands, LLC” which does not tell a person where it was made. Who knows if it came over on a container ship from Vietnam or some such. But someone made the comment that things that are made in America don’t arrive on ships or have to go through the ports where the workers might go on strike.

 

A lady in Tennessee was pretty upset by some agency that had been sending out messages about where the communities were sending their donations for goods and services for helping in the aftermath of Helene. It sounded as if the FEMA agency was making this requirement for folks to send their money ONLY to TEMA to be distributed as that agency saw fit. Can you imagine telling someone to send their money to a post office box rather than giving that money to your local minister to buy diapers, food, water and such for people you consider your neighbors? The lady was truly ticked off. She did not use any bad language, but her eyes were making comments without the use of words!

 

Another person had provided a list of organizations that were truly helping: the Cajun Navy, the Shepherds’ purse, and several that were local organizations. At the same time, a person added to that list of organizations some that would use folks’ money to help out their own top line rather than actually helping people: the Red Cross, the ASPCA, and any organization that was not based in the areas actually affected by the storm. It is common to recognize such names and think that they would probably be helping, but it never hurts to check to see what the top money is for CEOs of such places.

 

Not many of us have a bunch of animal trailers to loan out to the mule haulers to use to access those mountains in North Carolina. We probably don’t even know a local rancher who has extra hay or other feed to send for the critters that survived the floods. Carla Beard told me that the high winds that made it all the way to Indiana had flattened corn fields up that way, so even folks who might not have been flooded have still been affected by this storm. And more storms are expected.

 

Folks from Florida throughout the other states have been helping each other more than any agency can or will. And the prayers exchanged over those communities make me realize that God is listening closely. Those folks KNOW God and depend on Him the same as the rest of us. Let us pray for those affected by this storm and that they may be protected from those storms forming now in the Gulf. While we are praying, let us pray for Israel. We know that Israel is surrounded by those who hate God’s people. But their hatred will not keep God’s people from being helped. May we ask earnestly for His guidance in this nation and for our brothers.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.

Silly Sayings on Shirts.

 Silly Sayings on Shirts.

 

Went over to Sutherland’s earlier to pick up some steel wool and some of that expanding foam stuff to put in holes. The young checkout girl spoke to me as she saw me come in the door. Then when she began to check me out with my handful of stuff, she wanted to know if she was talking to a former English teacher. Now, maybe the old woman really does look old, but it amused me that she thought the woman in front of her was a FORMER teacher as opposed to a current teacher. But we both got a kick out of the saying on my shirt: “Let’s eat kids. Let’s eat, Kids.” “Punctuation saves lives!” Oldest son really enjoys finding things like this for me to wear. It really is fun when people read the shirts and then laugh with me! Youngest Ostand son has one that says, “I pooped today.” Don’t ask! It just makes me giggle to see people point at his shirt, nod their heads, and laugh. Some of us are just easily amused.

 

Have decided that if it is not something funny or truly inspiring, the old woman just needs to not watch the news or read any updates on the world situation. Hello! Texas weather is enough to make anyone’s day right now. Finished reading a couple of books about Sherlock Holme’s cat: “Cat Watson.” Funny and inspiring while reminding a person of the filth of London back during those days. One of the heroes of the books was a little urchin named “Wiggins” who was the head of a gang of little pick pockets and kids who had no parents or anyone to feed or help them. Wiggins had learned to carry a needle and thread in his pants to sew up any of his friends who got stabbed or otherwise cut up. Not that he had ever had a bath, but the kid could be smelled by the time he was within a few feet of a person because of the lack of hygiene. And in these two books, even Dr. Watson had several encounters with gutters full of horse manure! How blessed we are that we only have to inhale oil and gas fumes! And we do have decent sewers and clean running water and are able to take baths as frequently as needed! And, to tell the truth, although too many children and old folks go without decent food today, we seldom see little children running ragged through our streets.

 

Read about the mule trains going up into the mountains of N.C. right now. No decent trails or roads up there since everything washed away. Wishing the old woman were young enough to help in such a way. Know that a few of us older women were pretty good wranglers at one time and could pack a saddle and lead another animal easily. But those days are well in the past. Most of us are doing well to get down on our knees to pray. Just can’t stop wondering if Lake Lure will be filled with many of the souls that were washed away with all that debris floating on top. God bless all those people and families up there. And ours is not the only country to be affected by storms—but we don’t call ours typhoons.

 

Saw the flags over at the hospital this morning at half-mast. Know that they are supposed to be at half-mast on Monday in commemoration of the Oct. 7^th attack on Israel, but can’t find why they are at half-mast today. Hmm. (U.S. Flags have been ordered to be at half-staff in Texas and throughout the U.S. today and the remainder of this week in honor of Senator Dianne Feinstein.)

 

Boiled some eggs (after remembering to turn on the burner!) this morning in order to make some tuna salad. Told Shona that she need not send a plate over this evening for supper since the tuna would do. She laughed and told me that the old woman would be eating chicken noodles with her tuna tonight! Albert may not be fond of soup, but this old girl used to love any kind of chicken noodles! Shona is so very sweet to me to send a plate over when she cooks for her family. It is so nice to not have to cook!

 

Picked up a few strands of rope thread out of my bedroom floor. Max and Leisha gave my dogs some toys that included a rope toy for pulling back and forth between the two dogs. Used to not let them have anything like that when they were young because they would swallow the pieces of rope and then have to get rid of them the hard way! Colored strings of poop! They still like to play with them, but now the ropes just disintegrate all over the floors or on my bed! Silly critters!

 

Was reading from a devotional book by Max Lucado today and thinking about the fact that we do not see—are totally unable to see—things the way that God sees things. But the neatest thing is that God leans down and listens to US. He cares! We ask and He listens. We may not understand why He allows things to happen the way they do, but sooner or later it works out just the way He plans. Now the old woman will go back and re-read the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ to St. John. We know the end of the story. And we know we are loved.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.

Just Don't Look.

 Just Don’t Look.

 

Turning on my computer takes me to various sites: AOL for my mail, Microsoft Edge for quick newscasts, Facebook for news from my friends or family, and maybe other quick sites to check the bank or whatever is on Amazon that should be arriving. But today has simply made me increasingly sad. Yes, my cousin let me know yesterday that his sister and brother-in-law were safe above Lake Lure up on the mountain where they chose to live. They had no phone service or electricity, but we all know that we can live for a bit without those two services. Water, now that is pretty essential. A grill outside can take care of heating up some food, but generally speaking, a disaster hurts one’s spirit as much as a physical injury. In the aftermath of Helene, we all find ourselves feeling semi-helpless.

 

Today the news showed some folks saddling up mules they had brought in for search and rescue in North Carolina where the roads and trails were simply washed away. Those mules were carrying supplies and whatever the folks thought might be needed. It’s not like we have enough helicopters to cover six states worth of devastation.

 

Then this evening, the missiles shot into Israel were on the news. God will give His people sanctuary! But it hurts to watch this hatred thrown into the skies!

 

Maybe this is a good time to do with my computer what has been done with the TV in this house—it’s just turned off. Hasn’t been on in over a year. No, ignorance is not bliss, but it certainly does help to keep your eyes on your Bible or on what you CAN do each day. Prayers are going out each day from this old hill. May we give our help in that manner without saturating our spirit in the pictures of disaster. Let us pray fervently for God’s mercy.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.a