Neak, just thought you'd like to know that a swarm of bees is apparently trying to bulld a hive in the flowers right next to your garden (which is right outside the front door!). Your plants REALLY needed to be watered before Sabbath, so I've got the Dervish out doing the job. The rest of us are safely in the house with the door closed. Haven't heard any screams yet. It's hard to be a sacrificial lamb when you're only 7...

tl

I just love, love, love INSTANT OATMEAL, too, GP!!

We're back in the T-storm & tornado watches, though as usual it's okish right where we are. We just had some rain and lightning.

Your GP just shaved himself without slitting his throat OR keeling over. Is that progress or what? He wanted to know why he had to shave today when it was for tomorrow and got a little miffed when I told him it was because he's so slow. I don't know what the deal was with that. It's not like his slowness should be news to him. And I don't care what he may or may not smell like. He's not getting another shower until he's had at least 3 days of 3 meals/day. I'll sprinkle some carpet deodorizer on him if I have to, but there will be no naked, wet, unconscious man in the shower again if I can help it.

tl

TNL - I really didn't need that much information!!!!

Now Cinderella--you've had Neak visit your home and make the personal acquaintance of your plumbing. How could what I said possibly be too much information after her?

tl

Well, I don't know what she was doing in there.....and I don't think I want to know but everything worked ok afterwards.

Showering. Only only only only only showering.

Why do I get the feeling I'm overexplaining?

Whatever you were doing is fine.....really. Truly. Glad I could give you a few minutes off the road. And the children a chance to run around and stretch their legs. (The dress up girls were hysterically funny.)

I know you're only teasing, but I can't help myself.

The kids still want to come back, of course.

Bring 'em on.

I'll even let you use the bathroom. Shower. Sink. Whatever.

So we got to the farm at milking time, which honestly could be any time of day or part of the night, but in this case was about 1pm local time. It was kind of fun watching AJ back his 53' trailer into their little narrow driveway.

Then we went out to the barn, and stayed for a number of hours, just talking and talking and talking and talking. As soon as the boys (I can't help but calling them that, even though they are now in the 40-50yo range) found out AJ was raised on a dairy, they carried him off. Every once in a while I would catch a glimpse of them somewhere across the barn, milking and laughing, laughing and milking.

A small family tree explanation is in order. Grandma had one brother, Philip. Philip had 3 children that I can remember offhand, and Dorothy was one of them. Dorothy married Charles, and they had 5 kids. Charlie and Dorothy are getting on in years. His health has deteriorated to the point where he can no longer work in the barn, in fact back in September one of his doctors told him he had two weeks to live, but Dorothy still works out there with the two boys. The 3 girls come around quite a bit, but are not a part of the allday everyday barn crew.

So when Charlie made the pilgrimage to the barn and proceeded to talk my ears off with stories, many of them quite shocking, it was a major event. He is a darling old fella for all that, and thinks I'm adorable, which IMO is a major virtue in anyone.

Eventually, after 3 hours or so, I did have to go to the bathroom, and then it was back out to the barn where I finally caught up with AJ for a little bit.

But when the boys found out I had been out exploring the old homestead and was planning to walk down there, they offered to take me and show me the old garbage heap that contained more old and even vintage glass bottles than I had ever thought of.

Brief digression, the story of the old homestead: It was a tiny little house, and the one Grandma lived in. She would walk across the field to the church and school, and it was the house that, in her later years, she always thought she was going back to. The old house burned down in the early 60's, if I remember correctly, and another darling-but-primitive shack was erected next to the old foundation. One of my ancestors lived there for a while, and during all this time they/he/whoever dumped their tin cans and glass bottles in a heap out in the woods.

2BCont.

A quick drive by its very late here nearly 5.00am and we just got back from my Sisters place after a night of wine and antipasta and pasta and lots of other Italian food .... burp excuse me

maybe I'm just early? mmmmmm?

Love your story neak, lovely to hear about the old folks. Mrs vdK loves to read and research that as well.

Liz and I were talking to this oldish woman at the ANZAC Day ceremony on Friday morning. She lost a son in Vietnam and she and her husband from the day they got the news he was 'missing presumed killed'.... thought that one day he would just walk in the door,,,,, so they leave the front door open all day every day even now so he can come home. I just thought it was very beautiful and a true picture of a parents love.

I had this image of all the people in the crowd with lost loved ones leaving their doors open across the city...... and that image ... well it speaks very deeply to me. I understand fully.

well off to bed for me... Mikey is well and truly out for the count... smart fella went to sleep at 9pm.

My daughter is gone to prom. Can't believe my baby has gone to her junior prom. One more year at home!

Tonight, I'm headed to a soiree at my son's school. Then, I guess, I'll go downtown so I can heard a group of prom-goers to play laser tag.

LASER TAG with MOM was NOT what my boys wanted to do AFTER PROM...

COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS!!....

Hey Mimi!

I HAVE FINISHED ALL 12 LEVELS OF TUMBLEBUGS!!!!!!!!!!

Want to to see the last screen??????

Now what am I going to do while I listen to the monk?

Is this Tumblebugs2 or the original AGAIN????

CC:

My new FAVORITE game to PLAY is the TOURNAMENT in MAHJONG QUEST II. You get ranked in playing against the COMPUTER PLAYERS.

Yes, I'm ADDICTED....

So there...

It is the original one, much harder than TBII.
One if these days I might calculate how long it took me to get through each level, but I'm sure I have been on level 12 for many months. It was quite surprising to make that last screen!!!!! and exciting.

mimi - I know. It started as a misunderstanding. But, they were good sports. I didn't pester them. Didn't hover. I did real well staying sort of distant from them. I finished in the middle of the pack.

At the silent auction at the soiree, I spent about $250. Got a piece of his art that had been framed, a toaster oven, a rice and veggie steamer, an iron, video rentals, 10 free games of bowling, some free movie rentals, private knitting lesson w/ yarn and needles, gardening items in pretty pot, basket of toiletries, oil change, oil change w/ tire balance and rotation, and some more things.