Me, Myself and Memories

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  Noreen 12:53 pm on August 26, 2018 Permalink  

  Making Choices 

  

  In the hayday when all things would grow and bloom. It was a labor of love each spring. I was a bit younger as well.

  

  Reality sets in after too many seasons of rain flooding the square garden. This was my choice and it is always a good thing to be able to make those decisions before someone else needs to. I had a really good run with the square garden. I will be content working with the plants around the Maple tree and Lilacs. One small plant in the forefront will find a home under the Maple. August of 2018 bids adieu to flowers and we will try our hand in getting grass going.

   
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  Noreen 3:11 pm on August 25, 2018 Permalink  

  A Day’s Work 

  

  Sometimes it isn’t how much I get done but how I get it done. Tidy, tidy.

   
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  Noreen 5:29 pm on August 24, 2018 Permalink  

  Dennis must lead a charmed life. There were tools spread out on the driveway and the Cub Cadet tractor was the center of attention. There were brushes that needed replacing in the generator right along with some wires that were bare that needed attention. The charmed portion of this picture is that he can’t lift a tool without fellows who have nothing to do but come out of the woodwork and gawk. Dennis handles it well. Me . . . not so much. I detest having people watch me work with their hands in their pockets. As a matter of fact, the neighbor right to the south of us knows that first hand as I have told him and his son, ” I would appreciate it if you would come over some other time when I can take the time to visit. Right now I need some alone time.” It took them back a bit but I have never had to repeat this when I am hauling butt on a project.

  Dennis had finished putting tools away when the skies turned black and the thunder rolled. Dennis drove the Cadet into the garage on the east edge of the acre. Did you get that? The work that needed to be done on the tractor was a success. He drove it into the garage. The rain came down in torrents for a bit.

  The day is closing down with full sunshine. It would be great if this thunder storm cut through the streak of high humidity for the weekend.

   
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  Noreen 4:31 pm on August 23, 2018 Permalink  

  Oh my gosh, I knew the perfect fall weather would not bring us one more day of it. It’s five in the afternoon and the humidity is creeping in. We had worked hard outside yesterday; today we had a lazy morning and then headed to Mankato. Dennis’ lil’ red pickup needed an oil change. When we drove in to Jiffy Lube, they checked our license plate and knew in a flash what the pickup needed per the mileage and what we had done in the past. Dennis always lets me visit with the computer fellow. The reason being that Dennis might just blow one of the items off and say “We’ll take care of that next time.” Not this Grammie. If the vehicle should have something checked . . . it gets done right now while we are here and not at sometime when we are stranded on the highway. When the young fellow who looked like he could be in 8th grade said the serpentine belt showed a crack . . . that’s all I needed to hear. Wham, bam, let’s get a new one put in. I remember when Kevin and Kersten got stranded due to one of those all important belts breaking. When I am not able to do repair things myself, I rely on having it done and “tell me what I owe.”

  Of course we went to Culver’s. Dennis likes their fish sandwiches with an order of a chocolate shake. The shakes are made with a frozen custard mix making them like dessert that you can suck up in a straw. I may take a salad but today I had a burger. Neither one of us order fries at this stage of our eating out. Less mobility may mean less to fill us up. Well . . . that’s how it was today. Tomorrow may be a double order. Stick around older people as they can be quite entertaining.

   
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  Noreen 5:28 pm on August 22, 2018 Permalink  

  I want more days such as we have had today. Dennis and I came in for a bite of lunch at noon and headed right back outside. It does pay to stand back and take a look at what has happened over decades in our backyard. What was I thinking of having rocks, some quite huge, amongst the perennials? Out came the aluminum scoop shovel. Get the rock on the shovel and start pulling! My rock pile at the north side of the base of the large Maple still has some class as the arrangement of the rocks was “just right.”

  Autumn Joy plants need full sun to come into their own to bloom and attract butterflies. God willing they will survive the transplant, maybe for not the best of this fall’s showing, but it is all about the roots when it comes to perennials. It’s 6:30 and I am so thankful I have potato salad fixed that can be put with a hamburger patty and call it supper. We may be weary and whipped but a good day on Stauffer makes it all worthwhile.

   
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  Noreen 3:39 pm on August 21, 2018 Permalink  

  When I stitch I do get lost in thoughts. Dennis is always ready to help. After I have whacked shrubs out by the roots, Dennis was right there to load up the debris to head out to the tree dump. A one dollar bill is all it costs to be rid of branches, limbs, etc.

  Today Dennis headed to Sleepy Eye as they had called that the air bags had come in as a direct result of a recall. Before Dennis came home he had stopped at the parts store and picked up spark plugs and a wiring kit for his 1968 Cub Cadet that he is sprucing up. When he came home he checked in with me in the sewing studio. I was his last stop before he was going to check his eyelids out for cracks in his recliner. When I look at Dennis who will be having his 82nd birthday this fall, I couldn’t help but think of Dad.

  Dad was another one that always had an agenda but would take a time out for a nap every day. No matter what he was doing in the machine shed or out in the fields, you could set a watch by him. At twelve noon he was at Mom’s table. If she fixed him a noon meal, it was the least he could do to be on time. After noon lunch, he headed for the living room floor, stretched out and took a 15 minute nap. Again, you could set your clock. At age 73, Dad was taken too early. When I look at Dennis . . . special!

  By the way, when I loose my place in stitching, it means that the seam ripper may be gotten out. A tip: the seam that needs to be ripped out . . . take it to the ironing board and press the seam open. The ripper finds its niche between the stitches and makes short work of it.

   
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  Noreen 4:49 pm on August 20, 2018 Permalink  

  A Fun Project 

  

  When it is soggy from 2 inches of rain, I head for the sewing studio. Friend and neighbor, Jan, is always ready and willing to help with her chainsaw. Jan’s husband, Randy, has a great “green line” that has helped us out when the snowfall on the drive is more than he feels we should tackle. Jan and Randy’s’ granddaughter loves cats. Does she have one? No. Kayleigh never misses a chance to find Snuggles when she is visiting St. James. Jan has even let Snuggles into their home so it can be close and personal with Snuggles and Kayleigh. Pink! Who would have guessed Kayleigh’s favorite color. Jan first thought of having a personalized towel for a gift to Kayleigh. Pink is apparently not a hot selling item in stores. The second choice will be a sofa pillow that Kayleigh can enjoy while watching her videos. It was fun watching this design come to life and it will be coming into it’s own when Jan brings over the pillow form. It was a good day of being inside after the garden work of yesterday.

   
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  Noreen 5:39 pm on August 19, 2018 Permalink  

  I noticed on Friday that there were no biting bugs outside. Knowing that the last rain may bring a new hatching of mosquitoes in a day or two, I headed to the backyard this morning. Dennis was down for the count for a nap while watching some tractor auctions. The nose alone of the auctioneer I find annoying.

  After a good workout I have said goodbye to a Mock Orange shrub, an Anna Bell Hydrangea shrub, a Spurge shrub and last but not least a worn out Clematis shrub. The square garden is in the process of getting wiped out. The greenery is always there but with little to no direct sunlight the blooms are scarce. The Black Walnut trees and the Maple tree make for a lot of shade. This year with all the rain the shade has kept the soil mucky. The patches of moss growing in the garden was one more indication that a change was needed.

  I am off the clock for the rest of the evening. There is a slight chance that I may feel the use of the shovel, the sharp shooter, and the rakes tomorrow. I feel weary but most of all I feel really good in having had a great workout.

   
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  Noreen 9:11 am on August 18, 2018 Permalink  

  Today we are heading north. My sister Elvera’s granddaughter’s baby shower at Stewart. As long as we are on the highways we are also going to stop at my brother Michael’s home. Michael is in between cancer treatments and it will be good to catch up. It would be nice if the humidity were lower. Any day now . . . I am ready for some nice temps in the 70s with lower humidity and dew points. Best be careful for what I wish for.

  P.S. We are home for supper after a great day on the road.  We stopped on Hwy 15 at Winthrop for an early noon lunch.  We had not eaten at a drive-in in decades.  It sure took us back.  Michael is doing well.  He has gained 5 lbs. since we had visited him a month ago.  The 24th he will go in for several tests.  The main test will include drinking dye to see if the stint that had gotten a hole in it and poisoned his system has healed itself.  Since that had been discovered he has not been able to eat or drink anything that involved swallowing.  Michael has been on a feeding tube for the last month.  He looks good.  If all progresses as he hopes he will be able to continue the cancer treatments after the 24th.

  The baby shower was well attended.  After Mackenzie has her little girl, all of Elvera’s children will be grandparents.  It would have made her proud.

  As I mentioned we are home and it feels so good.  There are detours everywhere and you had best be prepared to leave early and follow the course.  It was a day well spent.

   
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  Noreen 6:10 pm on August 17, 2018 Permalink  

  After having 1.5 inches of rain yesterday I have made an administrative decision. Our backyard was just about to the point that I could walk and not get muddy shoes. The large square perennial garden in the backyard has had its last season. It is about 25′ x 25′ and it has given me much joy over the last twenty years. We have had and will always have a low area to content with and the rain of this year drove that point home loud and clear.

  When nephew Brett does get a cement job done here I will have an area right off of the patio that will hold the perennials that I have an emotional attachment to. The ideal time to move them will be in the spring of 2019. The rest . . . will be going by the wayside. This morning I spent a fair amount of time pulling some plants up and getting them ready to be mulched. Between now and the snow flying I have decorative rock to move, some posts that have held garden art will be taken out, etc. Next spring I know of a fellow and his Ford orchard tractor that has a great garden tiller and the area will be tilled with grass seed following. The area around our huge Maple tree and the patio porch will still allow me to get my fingers dirty.

  The passions that amount to “busy work” do wane followed by new “busy work.” The thread and fuzz that I enjoy has remained with me since I was a child. It endures. It is satisfying. It challenges me. With the condensed gardens and the thread and fuzz, I know that I will remain busy as there are a few challenges that Dennis occasionally brings into my life. All in all I have a balanced life. I like it. I like it a lot.