Me, Myself and Memories

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  Noreen 3:19 pm on June 5, 2019 Permalink  

  Bountiful Hosta 

  

  This huge heavy cement goose will forever bring my departed friend, Doreen, into my mind when I garden. Her and I found this at a nursery near Rochester. How we managed to get it into her van will forever be a mystery.

  It may have been a late spring by all measures.  It does show up in the farming schedules.  For my acreage it seemed to have turned out just fine.  Yes, we had more rain than we needed.  No, it didn’t seen to hurt the Hosta.  In fact they are huge and looking very good.  I spent two days with the Mantis tiller working up the soil in between the Hosta plants.  Some were too full to take a ram into them and break off stems.  It could use one more day with the tiller, but life does seem to get in the way.  To be honest, it was the bugs.  Within those two days, I was totally chewed up from gnats and small flies.  I made sure to wear a long sleeve shirt but it was the neck, ears and hairline that really got it.

  When I left New Ulm on Tuesday I stopped in to show Kevin my new used car and came home with a wonderful treat.  Kersten had found in Fairfax a product called Bug Soother.  This morning, I needed to clear off the patios and driveway from Maple airplane seeds, and the gnats got behind my glasses and I almost tripped trying to rid them.  I got the Bug Soother and Dennis sprayed my arms and neck and I stayed outside for most of the morning.  It has Lemon grass oil, Castor oil and a few other natural ingredients.  It smells wonderful and it did the trick.  Kevin thought it would have to be reapplied every 4-5 hours, but I had all the time I needed to get done what I needed to before settling in with some things in the house.  Yes, summer is here along with all the less than desirable flying insects.  

  I do need to find a perennial that would vine up the iron works that Calvin has made for me.  Our next door neighbors have put up a new storage building and it was the perfect back-drop to move the iron works to.  The Dr. Seuss birdhouse found a new home after the back garden was tilled up.  When we decided to downsize the flower gardens, it was amazing how everything fell into place.  I have plenty to keep me busy and I need not worry about contending with unwanted weeds and a garden that stood under water more times than I can count. 

   
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  Noreen 3:36 pm on June 4, 2019 Permalink  

  Whew! 

  

  I am very short of words right now. Grammie finally traded cars. I know my 20-year-old Lincoln still has a lot of life in her, but it was time to let her go as the small repairs were beginning and they would only become larger items. As I left Chuck Spaeth Ford in New Ulm, the skies were getting dark. This photo is not of the color that was purchased. The Crystal Champagne vehicle is safely in our garage. Photo op was not an option with storms threatening. As I said, I am speechless in this huge decision.

   
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  Noreen 4:33 pm on June 3, 2019 Permalink  

  A Busy Monday 

  Dennis aced his checkup at the VA clinic here in St. James this morning.  Check that off of the list of items that are on the calendar for June.  Dennis had a bud of his stop in and they were talking paint for the Cub Lo-Boy.  Rich used to have his own body shop for years.  Very good tips were given.

  Dennis got the electric Mantis out for me from the potting shed.  The weight of fallen snow coupled with the snow that Dennis blow off of the patio, the Hosta plants next to the patio needed help to get the soil loosened up.  It was as packed as a township gravel road.  Today was the first of quite a few days of this type of work. 

  Jan and I had visited over the fence.  Jan pulled up the edging that had been adjacent to their driveway for decades.   Jan had scored pavers from her son that would work better than the hard plastic edging.  What was really going on was her flower garden area would have some added width for the entire length.   As luck would have it, she had an extra pile of dirt that Randy has had on hand for quite some time.  Talk about hard clumps.  Jan managed to shovel what she needed and had the clumps lying out where the pavers would lay next to.  I took the Mantis over to her yard and Jan took the helm.  The Mantis made short work of the clumps that now had included some sod.  The Mantis is a mighty worker.

  It was turning very hot this afternoon.  The perfect time to take a trip to Fairmont.  Dennis had the info that Rich had given him for the paint and I willingly rode shotgun.  Crylon spray paint was what we were after.  Rich said it dried fast and he had used it many times.  I think Dennis and his variety of buds will have a good handle as this goes forward.

  It has been a good day with the promise that the two older ones on Stauffer Avenue are not going to be looking for anything to keep them occupied for some time.  It’s a good thing.

   
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  Noreen 1:24 pm on June 2, 2019 Permalink  

  Location, Location, Location 

  Daughter Carrie sells real estate and sales depend on location, location, location.  That is the catch phrase. 

  Stitching could also use the same phrase.  You’ve got a design, you’ve got the fabric . . . where is the stitched design going to be located!  In everyday stitching, I most likely would be thinking placement rather than location, both words either make it happen or not. 

  There may be a project in the future that I will be working on: a garment for Megan.  The importance of a class act job is gong to be the number one objective.  There will be enhancements such as crystals, bangles and beads as it will be her skating competition attire.  Today, I decided to try out placement of a sample stitching using crystals.  My denim shirt seemed as good as any for this.  Trial and error on the glue for the crystals. I did have the glue that was suggested on YouTube.  Time will tell. Having a solid plan before beginning the real deal saves angst.

  Actually, placement in day-to-day life is what keeps me from having angst.  A place for everything, and everything in its place is the only way I have carefree days.  If I pick it up in one location, it has to go back to that very same location . . . each and every time.  If I screw up, it’s effort in futility.  Yes, R.W., aka Dad:  “Don’t have time to do it right, but you always have time to do it over.”  Untold times, Dennis has asked for me for something in the basement, the sewing studio, or for that matter, anywhere in our home and I can hand it right off to him.   It’s catching on.  

  Dennis is working on his Cub Lo-Boy, taking off the old decals.  He came in the house today and said he needed the hair dryer as the heat could possibly be a big help to loosening the old adhesive.  Dennis went right into the cistern closet, picked it up and was on his way.  You may ask, why a hair dryer is in the cistern closet?  Since both of my shoulders have been replaced, I can no longer get my arms up high enough to use it.  It’s still a handy dandy heat source to keep around.

  The tip of the day is definitely . . . keep the goods, whether material goods or in planned stitching goods, spot on in the only location that works.

   
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  Noreen 3:02 pm on June 1, 2019 Permalink  

  Raining Airplanes 

  

  Over the night hours the Maple tree let loose with all of its seed pods. We have called them airplanes since I could talk. At just the right time as the seed pods have dried, they spin from on high to the ground. The base of the seed pod is heavy enough that that stick straight up into the soil. You can believe me, I was out raking them off of the Hosta area. Each one of these seed pods would love to sprout a tree . . . right where it is not welcomed. On a sidebar, the dappled warm sunlight on the backyard is just what we need to continue encouraging all of the newly planted area to take off. It is coming along nicely.

   
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  Noreen 3:20 pm on May 31, 2019 Permalink  

  I Found a Nickel 

  Being outside there is always a chance of finding a treasure.  Today, as I was walking, there was a bright nickel that caught my eye.  I picked it up.  My thought was to give it to Dennis as his piggy bank is always having hunger pains.  The nickel didn’t get into the piggy bank.  I swear the old adage of people taking off on verbalizing as if someone had put a nickel into them . . . happened to Dennis.

  We had just finished with lunch and were not in any hurry to move past having a quiet time.  I am not sure how it started or what the nickel had kicked in, Dennis started sharing with me the times that he was a substitute mail carrier here in St. James.  He would take over from Howard Malmgren and other’s when some were on vacation or needed time off for family.  It was at a time when there were blue mailboxes at various points around town.  The bulk mail for that route was delivered to the blue boxes via an employee of the post office and his motorized cart.  As the walking mail carrier’s bag became empty, their routes were walked in such a way they had keys to open the blue boxes and reload their bags and off they went using their show leather.  Wow!  I did not know this history of Dennis.

  Dennis went right on to visit about when he was part time on the St. James Police Department in the evenings.  I knew from some of the older people about town as they have shared memories of Dennis’s badge time.  This Noon Dennis commented that it was often that when someone that had had too much to drink, the individual would be given a ride home in the squad car rather than a ticket given to them.  It was up to that individual to figure out the next day as to how they would get their car home.  Cops were much friendlier in days of old.  

  I had known that Dennis bar tended in the evening at the VFW here in town.  When Dennis came home from Korea, he worked at Toro in Windom and apparently was always up for picking up extra income whenever the opportunity showed itself.  Later on when Dennis became a full-time recruiter for the Minnesota National Guard, he was always on the go retaining many part-time jobs evenings and weekends. 

  Many businesses missed his after hours parttime career when Dennis and Howard Quick bought semis and began trucking poultry for Downs Foods and Campbell’s Soup in Worthington.  They traveled to the states of Washington, Utah and all points east of there to bring back live poultry for processing.  In the early days they went into Canada before passports were required.  Oh the tales of this “Live Poultry Transportologist.”

  I met Dennis in the very late 1980s over a cup of coffee in Detoy’s Family Restaurant here in St. James.  My life has been anything but boring since.  Yes . . . today the nickel in Dennis brought back memories to him, even those he had forgotten about.  The stories began rolling out of him and I couldn’t help but love the gleam that it brought about in his 82-years-young brown eyes.  Priceless.  The long lunch break was a good thing and then Dennis was off working on his 50-year-old Cub Lo-Boy.  He is taking off the old decals and I think there is a plan for some painting in the future.  I will be on the look-out for more nickels.

   
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  Noreen 5:40 pm on May 30, 2019 Permalink  

  We Got ’er Done 

  The acre has been mowed and manicured.  It is very self-satisfying.  Dennis does the rider and I am the resident “pusher.” It works great that when the bagger is full and I beat feet for the backyard driveway, Dennis gets off the rider to empty the bag for me and re-starts the mower.  It had been just one week since we mowed but the front yard would only take a half of a swath to mow the best.

  Now onto an evaluation on the new weed whip trimmer.  I did trim around everything on the acre where Dennis could not get close to.  The north side of the house even had about three feet out from the foundation that I trimmed.  Last fall we put a slope on the soil adjacent to the foundation and that dirt is still very soft.  It’s also a bit of a stretch to get between window wells and the central air unit.  I was rounding the last bit of trimming on the potting shed when the battery had no more umph.  The objective today was to see how long one charged battery would last.  I would say being 20′ short of a total yard being trimmed was pretty dang impressive.  Grammie ended the day of yard work in good shape.  In regard to how my body responded, it was good.  I am teaching myself to swivel at the waist when using the trimmer rather that working the shoulders and neck as I take a whack from side to side.  Never too old to learn.

  While I blew off the patios and driveway with the electric leaf blower, Dennis cleaned the filters on the Koi pond.  We got ’er done for the week.  It’s a good thing.  For the life of me, I do not know how some people our age tell us they are bored.  

  To round out the day there is nothing better than egg salad sandwiches and tomato soup for supper.

   
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  Noreen 4:55 pm on May 29, 2019 Permalink  

  Quite the Day 

  Last fall I had sworn that weed whips were out of my life . . . forever.  Hmm.  How much shag can a Grammie take around the property.  I’m weak.  I can’t take it.  Today we went to Mankato in a search for a weed whip that I could handle without injuring neck, shoulders, back . . . in other words, one that would operate like a drone.  The final results was one called WORX.  A 20 volt recharable that weighs 4.2 lbs.  The lightest weight one we could find other than the electric ones.  I know myself well enough that I could see myself tripping over 100′ plus of electrical cord as I made my way around the yard.  Dennis is in charge of charging up the battery for tomorrow.  Dennis bought a 2nd battery and several refills of line.  We know all too well what happens when the unit is out of line and we are up a creek without a paddle.  Time will tell.

  The weed whip was on the list for the day.  Also on the list was haircuts at Great Clips, a pedicure at Nails Group, a few groceries and a stop at JoAnns Fabric for some Dritz supplies.  The grocery store items at Sam’s Club included a bottle of Glucosamine with Chondroitin. Lena clued me into this at a time when she was still on the farm.  It is taken for joint and cartilage lubrication. I had since been taking it, for years.  Late winter, I ran out and decided to see if I could spare myself of one less pill.  In the recent weeks I had been rethinking that choice as the movements from the neck on down wasn’t as smooth as I would have liked.  In fact, it was quite noticeable.  Now . . . you say, it could be the damp, wet spring we have had that has made the arthritis buck in the joints . . . I don’t know.  I am going to take them religiously for the amount in the bottle and then rethink the whole situation.  Seriously . . . when was Lena ever off the mark with her advice!

  As we drove today the fields look so wet from our dumping of 2.5 – 3 inches of rain.  Wouldn’t you know it!  It rained all the way to Mankato this morning.  Some sun did peek out but the clouds are hanging on.  Nonetheless, we will mow the acre tomorrow.  It is lush and long.

   
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  Noreen 1:18 pm on May 28, 2019 Permalink  

  An R.W. Day 

  This would have been a day that Raymond Wendlandt would have been sitting on the bench right outside our back door . . . for the entire day.  The neighbor to the direct south had a crew in cutting down a Black Walnut tree that I am sure was close to 100 years old.  This would have been right up Dad’s alley to sit, taking it all in while sipping on Folgers coffee.  

  Often I think of many things that Dad would have enjoyed as they have come upon my life in the recent years.  Dad was too young at 72 years of age to be called home.  I have outlived Dad by three years in this 2019 year.  That fact is not taken for granted by me.  Each day there must be local effort on my part to make the most of all that there is to see, to do, to take in.   Perhaps I do believe in the old adage that idle hands are the work of the devil.  I can tell you all, the devil is not working within me. 

  Striving to continue to learn is how I honor both of my parents.  Raymond and Lena would dip their toes into new endeavors without fail.  Mom had her rug loom, Dad had his sawmill.  Both of my parents had a zest for learning and creating.  I thank my Good Lord for the genes I have.  My quests have not always come naturally.  Try, try, try again.  Good grief.  I refuse to give in.  Sometimes I wear myself out and I know to walk away for a bit, take a deep breath and then hit it again.  Sure enough.  I can do it.  Reading directions and watching YouTube videos is a huge assist!

  Yup, Dad would have enjoyed being here today.  I, as always, love the memories that Dad evokes.

   
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  Noreen 2:40 pm on May 27, 2019 Permalink  

  Making the Best of It 

  We really can’t fault the weathermen for being on target with the rain.  Rain began in the early morning hours and it is now 3:15 in the afternoon and it is not done yet.

  Deciding to make the best of it, I headed for the sewing studio.  I had some naked hand towels on hand.  It is always a good thing to have a few extra items stitched.  Several of our visitors are not bashful in kissing up for a hand out.  While the stitching was at it, I went through a few things in the cistern closets.  Hmm.  A box of various Command Strip items.  Keeping the colors changed out on the sewing machine, I went shelf by shelf in the sewing studio to see what the Command Strips could help with.  Items lying flat soon are covered up by other items that want to lie flat.  Hanging them up seemed to be the answer.  I could not believe that there was a bare spot on the south wall with which to trick out with the Command Strips.  Good job Grammie!

  At noon I did go out to take a peek at the yard.  Our yard has several water ponds showing.  The neighbor to the south has a full blown lake.  I snapped a photo of our rain gauge at noon.  I don’t think I need to check it again.  Dennis will be more than happy to fill me in when he comes in.  I am fortunate to stay busy when there is nothing to do during a rainy day.  Dennis is out in his rocking chair in the patio porch fearing the worst.

  As I was closing down the sewing studio, I spied with my little eyes, a trickle of water showing on the carpet on the basement steps.  The seepage water was coming out of the bunk house closet, making it’s way over the same level step and running down into the tile that we have around the perimeter of the basement.  Oh well.  We have nothing setting on the floors of the cistern closet or the bunk house closet.  It will be a matter of letting as much run into the tile until we get the shop vac flipped over from dry vacuum to the wet option.  Does it make me nervous to hear the sump pump running every 30 seconds?  No, we pretty much have it covered.  The area in the northwest part of the yard has more water than can soak up from the basement sump pump, but Dennis has a second pump standing in that area of the yard and taking water out into the street.

  May has been a soggy month.  On the up-side . . . we have been blessed with no storms.  I will take water, whether it’s in the closets, or out in the yard . . . any day.