Any ideas??

I should have been an entomologist. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I LIKE bugs, it's just that I can easily get so fascinated by watching them. And whenever I come across one I've never seen before, I get super curious and want to know all about it.
So as I was leaving work Monday afternoon, this big red fuzzy critter was scurrying across the parking lot. It's bright red color caught my eye right away and I stopped to watch it. I pulled my camera out of my bag and snapped a couple of quick shots...






Looks like some kind of ant, doesn't it? But I couldn't find anything that looked even vaguely similar on-line, so I finally emailed my question & photos to "What's That Bug?" in hopes they'd identify it.
It was just a single ant, no others in sight. I've never seen any like that around the workplace before, and haven't seen any since. It was without a doubt the largest ant I'd ever seen, and it moved fast.
So does anybody out there have any ideas what it might be??

I fear I've fallen off the wagon

I've had many addictions over the years, food, jewelry making, cross-stitching, scrapbooking, aerobics (especially Richard Simmons work-out videos), genealogy, the volunteer fire department... some have come and gone completely, in other words, I've managed to kick my addiction completely and I'm proud to say I'm still on the wagon. Others have lingered and I dabble in them from time to time, occasionally I'll jump off the wagon and run along side 'til I'm out of breath (usually doesn't take too long) and then I'm right back up on the wagon, hitching a ride.
But I fear one has returned and has me perilously dangling from the wagon, in danger of being pulled under the wheels and left lying in the dust of old attics, basements where old courthouse records are stored and libraries. Genealogy is as intoxicating and addictive as any drug, cigarette or booze, only a much healthier habit to have... but if you're not careful, it can be just as expensive.
If you've never dabbled in genealogy, then you have absolutely no idea how addicting it can be. Seriously!! Just ask anybody that's ever done it. It's almost like a narcotic that leaves you euphoric when you find some tidbit of info or completely bummed and worn out if you've spent hours (if not days) chasing dead ends and bad info. You can easily get hypnotized reading the names, dates of birth/marriage/death, towns and cemeteries.
Working on a family tree is like taking a step back in time through a portal into the past. And if you work with your info on a regular basis, you'll get to the point that you have your relatives (both dead and living) stats memorized.
About 6 or 7 years ago I got involved and jumped in with both feet. I spent a fortune on subscriptions to ancestry websites and sending out letters with requests for information to anyone and everyone I thought was a relative, not to mention all the return-envelopes I pre-stamped that I never got back. The cemeteries I trekked to, the headstones I took photos of and had developed (my pre-digital days). Yes, genealogy can get expensive. Granted, I never traveled further than Kentucky or Indiana, but some people travel all over the world gathering this information.
As mentioned in an earlier blog, I acquired over the weekend, a folder with much of my paternal grandfather's mother's side of the family. (did that make any sense?) I've hardly been able to put it down. First I made two copies of the folder, one as a back-up as the pages are old and curling, and a second one I could make notes on.
As I also mentioned, two people from my past are related to me. One is an 11th cousin, David, and the other is Terry, a 10th cousin. Anyway, mine and David's gr-gr-gr-gpas were brothers with Terry's gr-gr-gpa. I've never understood the whole "once removed" type of labeling some people put on their relatives. People have tried and tried to explain it to me but it goes completely over my head, so please don't try to correct me on my relationship with these guys.
The thing that really has me fascinated is that the three brothers (and 4 of their 5 other siblings), all born in Germany, came to the USA at different times and settled in different areas of the country. Some in Indiana, one in Pennsylvania, one in New York, and yet eventually, all seven of the siblings were buried in Harrison Co., Indiana, with the exception of one brother buried at sea and one sister that is unknown.
I feel the ancestry bug biting me. I have been known in the past to spend entire vacations going from cemetery to cemetery. If I'm not careful, that's what I'll end up doing on next weeks vacation!

Shelby Co. F.D. walk

I finally got copies of the photos from the walk we participated in a couple of weekends ago at Long Run Park. It was for the Shelby Co. Fire Dept. ... as if the big fire truck in the background wasn't a dead giveaway?
Livvie was being less than cooperative for the photo-shoot, instead, preferring to face the crowd. That's me, kneeling on the very end of the front row.








This coming weekend we have the Light The Night walk for Leukemia & Lymphoma. There is also a walk earlier in the day, The Buddy Walk, which benefits Downs Syndrome, but I've not made up my mind yet if I want to do two in one day.

We are family

My parents, aunts & uncle have been cleaning out my grandmother's home the past several weeks as she's now at an assisted living/nursing home facility. Her dementia had gotten to the point it wasn't safe for her to live alone, and the children that lived locally were doing their best to shuffle her between homes and take turns caring for her. But as everyone works and in this economy can't afford to quit work to care for her, the asst. living was the best thing for her.
While going through her house, deciding what to keep, what to throw out, and what to try and sell at auction, my mother found a folder that had some family tree info in it. 'Though I've not done much with the genealogy in quite some time, I have worked on it in the past, 'though mostly on my mother's mother's side of the family. But I always love looking at old time photos and learning about the other branches of the family. This particular folder contained info on my dad's dad's mother's side of the family, the Gerdons.
Some distant cousin of mine, I've yet to figure out how distant, put this info together and sent it out to several of his cousins. From what I've been able to gather thus far, he must've done this some time back in the 60's. He sent it to his relatives in hopes they'd look over it, correct any errors they saw, and send him any additional information. I don't know if my grandparents ever responded to this cousin, and I've yet to figure out which cousin gathered this info. I didn't see a return address in the folder. I'd love to figure it out and contact him or his descendants.
As I read through it this past weekend, I was somewhat freaked out a couple of times from things I learned. People that I've crossed paths with and interacted with through out the years, it turns out, are my cousins. And I never knew it!!
As it turns out, my high school freshman English teacher, Mr. McCartin, is a distant cousin of mine. EEEEKKK!! Figures, I never did like his class, and wasn't too crazy about him either. I liked his brother though, he was one of my bus drivers. A quiet guy, but nice.
Then I discovered that the grounds superintendent at my last job was also a distant cousin. I had always liked the guy, right up 'til my last day on the job. My boss had him sit in as witness when she fired me. Um, I mean, "eliminated my position". I took an instant dislike to him and her that day. I wonder if he would've sat and been her witness had he known we were related?
I guess reading this family tree stuff proves one thing, we're all related in one way or another, and you just never know when that homeless person we pass on the sidewalk or that disabled child we turn away from with pity in our eyes is in fact, one of our relatives.

Well, I'll leave you with my song of the day by Sister Sledge, "We Are Family"

The least of our problems...

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...
This past weekend was one of varying degrees of happiness, sadness and anger.
First let me fill you in on the highlights, the good moments, the things that made me happy, made me smile, or at the very least, didn't upset me.

Saturday morning, Olivia and I got up early and made the trek over to New Albany, Indiana. The small town across the Ohio River where I was born. We arrived at 7:15 in the pre-dawn, and after signing in, we walked about, exploring the park and amphitheater. I was born in New Albany, and lived there until we moved away at the age of 7. Much of my father's side of the family still lives in this town, so I still visit from time to time, although, I'd never been to this particular park before. What a treat!

The view coming across the river from Kentucky, welcomes you, literally, with "WELCOME" spelled out in rocks on the hillside.

I had feared we'd get soaked on this walk, as originally it was supposed to rain, but the worst of the weather had moved out of our area, and what remaining rain there was stayed north of us, making for good walking weather.

We walked down the boat ramp and had this view of the Sherman Minton, double-decker bridge.

It's hard to see in the low-light, but just beyond this railroad bridge, is the McAlpine Locks where river traffic passes through. One of these days I'd love to go and watch the barge traffic pass through the locks.

Livvie sat pretty for her picture... it was dark out there when we first arrived.

I finally got her to climb up on a giant piece of a limestone block and sit for her photo session.

The walk went well. It was a 2-miler and we saw some familiar faces from other walks, and also ran into an old friend I hadn't seen in about 7 years. After the walk was over, I drove to my parents house and visited with them for a bit. Their little dog , who's normally rather vocal, was terrified of Olivia, and never uttered a squeak the whole time we were there. I think she was afraid she might draw attention to herself and become a snack.

All the nasty, rainy weather we've been having of late finally was gone and Sunday morning was bright and sunny. I made sure to take my camera so I could get pix of the new baby at the farm. For those of you that missed the announcement in last weeks blog, there was a baby alpaca born during the torrential rain storms the previous weekend.

When I saw the little fella yesterday, I was truly wanting to kick myself for not getting his picture the week before. I couldn't believe how much he had grown in 1 weeks time, he'd nearly doubled in size (height that is).

Meet Moa (sp?). Named after an extinct bird, and some dark beer in Australia.

Moa and his proud mother, Chocolate Drop. What an absolute Q-T!!!!!!

Okay, now to the not-so-nice things that happened. The low-points, the sadness of it all, the angry moments...

Saturday evening, we drove to our friend's house where our camper has been parked these past couple of years. We had originally planned on going to New Orleans while on vacation, but plans change, and we decided instead to go camping. It's been a while, and we were looking forward to going. We arrived to find a mess in the grass in front of the camper. He had had a carport or some portable building that had been tossed around in one of the wind-storms our area has had in the past year. The poles for the building were lying in the tall grass and we had to pull them out of the grass and toss them aside.

This was the mess we had to move out of the way.

The grass was a wee bit grown up around everything and we had to trample as much of it down as possible to get to the hitch. We encountered spiders galore and needless to say, I was glad I had my anti-itch spray in my purse as my legs quickly became covered in bug bites that itched like crazy.

Once we finally had it pulled free and on to the driveway, John had to take a few minutes to attach the current license plate and the sway-bar. I took these few minute to look around at the property our friend lived on. I noticed a pasture behind his house with three horses. Being a sucker for horses, I walked over to have a closer look and possibly pet them. As soon as they saw me approach, the quickly walked towards me, but as they had an electric fence around their pasture, they stopped just short of me being able to reach them, even though I was leaning towards them and they had their muzzles out-stretched towards me. Two of the horses appeared to be in fine condition, but one of them... well, I just wanted to cry. But I'm not sure if they'd have been tears of sorrow or anger.

This poor, malnourished, fly-covered horse just looked miserable. Our friend wasn't at home, so I couldn't ask him what the situation was with the horse. My first thought was to call animal control, but I forced myself to calm down. I don't know the whole story (or any of the story for that matter), and there is always the chance that the owners had recently rescued the horse from a horrible situation and were in the process of nursing it back to health. I'm trying to think positive that this is the case, but it still makes me very sad/mad. GRRRR!

We were able to tow the camper without any problems (yea!!) and took it to the fire house, where we were going to park it for a few days 'til we went on our trip. We can't park rv's in our neighborhood, so John got permission from the chief to park it there. This way, we'd have plenty of room to open it up so we could air it out and clean it up before our trip. Woo-hoo, I'm getting excited... but not for long. :(

The green stuff on the outside is to be expected and washes off easily. As we could now walked around the camper and give it a thorough inspection, we were dismayed to discover a big crack in the body. Also, I noticed an awful lot of wasps flying around the camper, mostly around the a/c unit, but other areas as well.

This is located on the front of the camper and easily allowed rain/snow and pretty much anything else to get in. While we don't know for sure what happened, we speculate that when that car port blew down, some part of it probably hit the camper, causing the damage. Now I was afraid to open it up, fearing we'd find things rotting and or moldy from the water damage. We started with the front storage compartment...

Before opening the compartment, John unzipped the cover to the propane tank and peeked inside. He saw some kind of nesting, and poked at it, causing a mouse to scamper out. He sprayed it with wasp spray and it took off running. But a mouse was to be the least of our problems...

This is only a very small part of the large nest that was hanging from the compartment door. A large section broke off when we broke the seal and fell to the ground. I stomped on it long and hard, but wasps were the least of our problems...

There were cobwebs galore inside, looking like something you'd see in a haunted house, with a wide variety of spiders hanging from them. But spiders were the least of our problems...

Of course upon lifting the lid to the compartment, John and I both shrieked, but for different reasons. Me, because of the wasps that came flying out, him because of the black stuff he saw. Now my attention was drawn to all the black stuff on the walls, tools, floor and the items we'd left stored in there. At first, we both thought it was a black mold/mildew, but upon closer inspection, we discovered the black stuff was moving.

It was ants. Millions and millions of ants. The photos really don't do justice to the situation, it's something you have to see for yourself to believe. I've never in my life seen such an infestation. They were all over everything!

John dropped the lid and we stepped back, horrified expressions on our faces, in absolute disbelief at what we had seen. Somebody please pinch us and wake us from this nightmare!!

I wanted to cry, yet somehow couldn't muster the tears. We discussed what we should do, and all I could do was shake my head. I felt numb. We finally decided to go and get some heavy-duty bug spray, or a bug-bomb, and I told him I'd call the insurance company on Monday. We went and purchased a 3-pack of bug bombs and a bottle of spray. I walked around the outside, spraying here and there. We finally got up the nerve to lift the lid once again, and it was even worse than we remembered. John grabbed a stick and poked the small doors leading from the storage compartment into the main body of the camper, and things just kept getting worse.

All that black stuff you see is ants. They covered the floor, the cushions, the walls...

He set the bomb off, we closed the lid and left it for 24 hours. When we went back on Sunday evening, we found that while it had killed a large number of the ants, most of the spiders had just laughed at our efforts. I'm not sure why their webs didn't show up in these photos, they were so thick, they made the open space look foggy. We wondered what the main body of the camper held in store for us, so we decided to raise the top up, if only a few inches so we could open the door and peak in. Ugh, how I wish we hadn't!!

When we broke the seal, this really pissed the ants off and millions more started running everywhere.

As I said, the little bastards are everywhere!! We set another bomb off, this time in the main body of the camper and left it. We still weren't able to open it far enough to see what kind of water damage may have taken place. This morning, I filed a claim with our insurance company. We'll see what happens.

Last but not least...

With all the rain we've had the past week, our back yard is a muddy mess, so we've had to take all three dogs out to potty on a leash. Saturday evening, I took Bootsy & Eliott out together for a walk. We were walking up the left side of the far cul-de-sac in our neighborhood, when a large yellow lab came running out of a garage on the right side.

You've heard me gripe repeatedly about their being leash-laws in our county and how some a-holes don't obey them. Well, this is one of those situations. The dog's owners had just put their house up for sale and had a POD in their driveway that they were loading up with some of their belongings. I don't know where the owners were at the moment, but they certainly weren't outside or anywhere that they could control their dog.
This dog came charging, barking and snarling the whole way. Needless to say, my two dogs went into defense mode and things got ugly. The lab knocked Eliott off his feet and bit him. I was so stunned, horrified, angered and distressed, I didn't know what to do. I wanted to get a good swift kick in at the lab, but that would've meant stepping closer and I was doing my best to hold Bootsy back who was absolutely ballistic by now. I was afraid Eliott was hurt, as it took what seemed like an eternity for him to get up. I kept looking around, hoping some neighbor would come to our rescue, or at least, bear witness to what had happened. And mostly, I kept looking towards the dog's house, hoping the owners would come and call their stupid dog off, but of course they didn't. The street seemed to be desserted of people.

The lab continued to bark and act aggressive, but once Eliott was finally able to regain his feet, the aggressor finally took off running back to his garage. I was left standing there shaking and trying to keep hold of my dogs who both wanted to go after the yellow piece of sh*t dog.

Once I was finally able to get them both somewhat calmed down, turned around and headed back towards the house, my fear subsided and my fury took over. I wanted desperately to go beat on their front door and tell them what had just happened, but I wasn't about to go anywhere near their property as long as that vicious animal was running loose. Instead, I walked home, looked Eliott over thoroughly and was relieved to not find any visible injuries. No scrapes from hitting the pavement, no bite marks from the other dog. But I was certainly hoping Eliott had gotten in at least one good bite of the lab. I then called Animal Control and reported the situation. I don't know if they ever showed up and did anything, but this is one set of neighbors I won't be sorry to see move out. Good riddance!

We went to dinner last night with our friends and I did something I rarely, and by rarely, I mean for the first time in probably 3 or more years... I ordered an alcoholic beverage. Okay, a strawberry daiquirie (sp?), but it was alcohol just the same. I haven't had anything alcoholic in years, but it was just that kind of weekend, and I needed something to calm my nerves.

Commuting to work

How far do you commute to work? Me, 15 miles one way.
What do you think is a reasonable distance to commute? Less than 5 miles, but beggars can't be choosers.
Would you travel more than 200 miles, one way? Not likely
Assuming you didn't work for an airlines or on an island off-shore, would you want to commute by airplane? heck no!!

I meant to blog about this several weeks ago, but it slipped my mind.
When I went to the dermatologist back in early August, the doctor and I were yacking about something, I don't even remember what, nor how we got on the topic of commuting, but she was telling me she lived in North Carolina... mind you, her practice is in Kentucky. I thought surely I'd misunderstood her, and that she meant she had a beach house or mountain chalet get-away type home. But no, I hadn't misunderstood. She actually lives in NC and commutes to Kentucky. My mind was boggled and my eyes nearly popped out of my head.
Okay, it wasn't a daily commute, as she only has office hours on Fridays and Saturdays, but still, I'm asking her "you drive all the way from NC every week for just two days of work?"
She admitted she used to, but got tired of the driving, so she got her pilot's license and purchased 1/2 an air-plane... although when she flies, she uses the whole thing. ;)
She pulled out her cellphone and showed me a photo she'd taken on her flight that morning, of the blue skies and white fluffy clouds. A lovely commute, but still not one I'd want to make.
I'm assuming she has a practice in the Carolinas, as I can't imagine only working two days a week out of state would pay enough to live on, much less be able to purchase 1/2 of a plane and the fuel, etc. For the life of me, I don't know why she just doesn't give up her little practice in KY and devote herself full-time to NC.

I go back to see her this evening, to have a larger area removed from my back. **sigh** all those years in the swimming pool are catching up to me. :(
As it's been so rainy and overcast the past several days, I'm wondering if she had to drive this time, or still flew in to town.

Random stuff

* I'd like to meet the s.o.b. that invented the bra and choke the stuffing out of him.
Do any of you other gals out there have a problem keeping your bra straps from sliding down? It's been a life-long battle for me. I've tried various brands, perfect fits, wearing slightly larger/smaller bras, different makes/models, tightening the straps, loosening the straps, taping the straps, tucking the straps... NOTHING works!!! Guess I've just got sloped shoulders that allow gravity to pull the darned things down. This is one of the major reasons I frequently wear sports bras, they don't slip. I'm tired of constantly sticking my hand in my neckline to retrieve the slipping strap(s) and reposition them, only to have them slide down again a few minutes later. ARGHHH!!!


*Well, it's been about 2 years (or maybe 3, I can't remember), but I think we just might break down and attempt to go camping when we're on vacation next month. Our camper has been parked in the same spot the entire time, unseen by us, so we're both extremely nervous as to it's condition. We're going to go retrieve it this Saturday, see if John's 4-runner is capable of towing it, take it to the firehouse and park it where we can open it, hope for a miracle that it's still in usable condition, and then get it cleaned up. I'm dreading it, but very excited at the same time.



*If we do get to go camping, that means I get to spend 2 or 3 nights cuddled with my baby.
Olivia that is, not John. ;)
John usually sleeps either in the bunk down in front of mine or else at the far end of the camper, and I take the front, king-sized bunk and sleep with whichever dog accompanies us. In the beginning, it was always Kelsey. She was a good camping dog. Eliott went one time, when he was very small (obviously a long time ago), and Olivia's gone the last two or three times. We tent-camped with Smokey once. That didn't go over so well. Bootsy's never gone.


*The house at the end of our street that has sat empty for the past 2 or 3 years, is finally seeing some activity. Some of you may recall me blogging about it last year when it started stinking up the neighborhood from a backed up sump-pump in the basement, and we found out there was mold growing up the walls and other nasties in the house. In the past few days, I've seen work trucks/vans parked in the driveway and men coming/going wearing white haz-mat suits. This morning, there was one of the largest dumpsters I've ever seen in my life parked in the driveway. I know all the carpeting and vinyl will have to be torn out, but I'm wondering about the dry-wall and sub-flooring as well. I'm actually amazed they're able to salvage anything in it. The family that slipped away in the middle of the night and abandon it, left behind lots of belongings... clothing, toys, appliances, big-screen tv, furniture, etc. etc. I'm guessing all of that will end up in the dumpster as well. Hopefully they'll put a new roof and siding on it, and fix the broken boards on the fence while they're in the process of fixing it up. I know the bank will lose money on this one, but it will be nice once it's sold and a family is once again living in it.


*There is a child I know, let's call him/her "Pat". Pat is perhaps 6 or 7 years of age, intelligent and friendly, and yet, I feel so sorry for this child. Aside from being around children/friends while at school, Pat isn't allowed to ever play with other children. I can't figure this out. There are other kids Pat's age that live nearby, yet Pat's only interaction is with his/her parents and grandparents, never any other children. For that matter, I've never seen Pat playing outside alone, only in the presence of said parents/grandparents. Nor have I ever seen any of Pat's friends from school come over to his/her house for a play-date. I think this is very sad.
I fear Pat is going to grow up and be somewhat of a social outcast, not able to relate to others and is missing out on learning necessary social skills. A child should not be confined to only it's immediately family for friendship. I'm all for parents being attentive and watching over their child and keeping them safe, but gimme a break! There is such a thing as smothering a child!!

*The swine flu has hit our little neighborhood. Some of our neighbors on the street behind us have it. I hope they keep it to themselves.

The new season on t.v.

It's September, that means it's once again time for returning shows to premier their new episodes for the upcoming season, and it's time for the networks to debut brand new shows.
For several weeks (months?), I've been anxiously awaiting the season premier of several shows: Dancing With The Stars
The Biggest Loser
Law & Order
Law & Order: SVU
The Good Wife
Cougar Town
Modern Family

With the first two shows overlapping on Tuesdays, I have to watch one and record the other, which is a major hassle for reasons I won't go in to, but on the plus side, I am able to fast-forward through all the commercials and drama moments to get to the good parts.
I must say though, I did correctly predict which two stars would be the first to get booted off the show, but considering how bad they were, I'm sure a lot of people accurately made that prediction.
L&O:SVU, darn it! I totally forgot they switched nights of the week and missed it last night. Grrr!
The Good Wife... well, I didn't know which night/time it was coming on, so I completely missed it. However, I was able to watch it on-line yesterday afternoon, and from what I saw, it looks like a winner. I loved it. Now my only problem is that it's also on at the same time as DWTS & BL. Crap!!
Cougar Town... Unless they do some total re-vamping with that show, it's going to go down the toilet really fast. As far as I can tell, it seems to be completely about a middle-aged, divorced woman that's trying to get laid. It wasn't all that funny, and what is up with Courtney Cox? I've always liked her and enjoyed everything I've ever seen her in, but I wasn't very impressive with her in this show. It's like she's trying too hard instead of letting her natural acting capabilities flow. And can somebody answer this for me: has she had some bad plastic surgery? or is she just aging really badly? Her face looked really weird and fake.
Okay, now for the Modern Family. What a winner!! My husband and I both laughed long and hard through out the entire show. We loved it!! ABC has a hit on it's hands I think. It's been a long time since I've seen a new (comedy)show that had me laughing from the get-go.

Your thoughts on any of the new shows you've seen?

Bored? Need something to do?

For the life of me, I don't know how I ever uttered the phrase "I have nothing to do". Or how anyone can say that, for that matter.
Let's forget for a moment that one can always read a book, cook/bake something, clean house (not high on my list, but it's always an option if I'm desperate), garden, or take a walk around the neighborhood. Certainly those are all readily available and inexpensive options.
But there are so many volunteer opportunities out there, that anybody & everybody should be able to find something they could donate some time to, if they are bored that is.
I love my volunteer work!
And if there is one thing I'm discovering from all the 5k's and charity walks Olivia & I participate in, it's that there are a lot of fabulous parks and/or walking paths, not only in Jefferson County, but also all the surrounding counties. Great places, not only to take a walk/hike, but if you've got kids there are great playgrounds, some have lakes for fishing/boating, tennis courts, swimming pools, picnic areas.
Here's an idea, instead of going back to the same one or two parks you/your family are familiar with, why not try visiting a different park each week or month, or however often you enjoy these gems. By visiting a different park each time, I think it would help avoid boredom, and it encourages you to explore your surroundings.
Livvie and I have two events scheduled for this weekend, one in New Albany along the riverfront. While I spent my early childhood years just up the street from there, I never have taken a walk down there and I'm looking forward to exploring... even if it is supposed to rain. A little rain-water never hurt anybody. And Sunday we're going on a four-mile walk from the Buckner area into downtown LaGrange and back. Once upon a time I used to go out walking downtown LaGrange at lunch time, but it's been a while, and certainly never with Olivia, so I'm looking forward to exploring on that walk.
Louisville and it's surrounding areas seem to have some type of festival, be it musical, art, food, heritage or whatever, practically every weekend, and many of these are free (unless you choose to purchase something), so stop whining that you're bored!! Get out and enjoy your community!!

Jolene

Woo-Hoo!! It's only taken me three months, but I finally managed to get a bridle on my horse 100% on my own. Actually, I managed to get a bridle on Baylee last week, and thought I'd done good, 'til the instructor came over and tightened the strap on it, thus letting the wind out of my sails. Hmph!!
But last night, I was back on Jolene, and no adjustments were needed on her bridle. Yea for me!!


Jolene is a dun, quarterhorse. A wee bit of a swayback, at least, compared to the others I've ridden, but she's still my favorite so far.

Crazy quilt - week 2

It's the end of week-2 for my Crazy Quilt project.

I finally got all the blocks in place and started on the embellishments.

You may recall that I had taken some tail hairs from a horse named "Crazy" that lives on the farm I volunteer at. I stitched "Crazy 2009" in the center of one large block. It's a little difficult to read, and not very smooth stitching... I had no idea horse hair was so difficult to sew with. It was like using fishing line. I don't know as I'll try that type of embellishment ever again.

I didn't get as much done this past week as I had hoped, between having a very full schedule and having a lot of elbow pain, I was lucky to get any of it done. But here are some photos of my progress...

As you can see, I use several different types of stitches, sometimes in complimentary colors, other times not so much.

I added seed beads along the trim of the pocket, and also at the tips of these lazy-daisy stitches I ran between the purple/green flannel and the rose print.

I really need to work on making my stitches more even and uniform, some consistency would be nice, but that's something I've never had much luck at accomplishing.

The father of my dogters

In case you've missed some of my blogs in the past, then I'd like to take this moment to blog about my "dogters'" father, Corey.
You probably thought I was going to say John, didn't you? Well, John is their daddy, but Corey is their biological father.
Like our Bootsy, he came to Kentucky from the Daneboa Kennel in Florida. He once had a promising career in the showring, but an injury to his right(?) hind foot, resulting in him having surgery to remove a toe, eventually ended his career. He still got around okay and went on to sire champions.
Corey is a very mellow, laid back fellow, and with the exception of an ongoing feud with one of his grandsons, he seems to get along with everyone.
He turned 9 years old back in May and despite that pushing the limits on what is considered norm for this breed, he's still in reasonably good health.
However...
A few months ago he started having difficulty getting around and it was discovered he had a bulging disc in his neck. He'd have his good days and his bad days. Everything imaginable, short of surgery, was tried to relieve his pain and improve his mobility. A variety of medications and acupressure treatments provided varying results.


Quite the handsome man, dontcha think? Unfortunately, my Bootsy looks nothing like him. Olivia does have blue eyes to match his one blue eye. :)



Sadly, I got a phone call at 7:30 this morning, informing me he'd gotten to the point he couldn't &/or wouldn't get up. A call had been made to the vet to come to the house. In all likelihood, he won't be there next time I go out to take care of the kennel (in a couple of weeks). It makes me sad, as he was such a sweetheart, but I'm glad that I at least got the opportunity to know him and love him over the years, and am immensely grateful that he sired my two beautiful girls who bring so much joy in to my life. :)

I can see clearly now

I can always tell when it's nearing time for my yearly eye exam, as about 1 to 2 months before, my contacts start giving me fits on a regular basis. I wasn't due for an exam again 'til sometime in October, but after the irritation I was experiencing yesterday, I couldn't wait any longer, I made an appointment and got my butt in there after work.
I've been very loyal to my brand of contacts for many years. They are daily-wear with visa-tint in them, which means they have a blue tinting in them that doesn't effect the color of my eyes nor does it act as a tinting from the sun, but instead, it's purpose is to make the lenses easy to find should I accidentally drop them on the counter, sink, floor, wherever... and trust me, this tinting has come in VERY helpful on more than one occasion.
One pair, in theory, is supposed to last you for a full year. But as I said, mine tend to start giving out several weeks before. My eye doctor has tried, unsuccessfully, to get me to switch to disposable lenses for the past several years, but I've resisted. Up until now, the ones I've been wearing have been more economical. But as so few people seem to use them now, the prices have really shot up there.
After my exam, the doctor announced that once again, the vision in my left eye has improved. This has been the case for the past several years, and it just continues to amaze me. Of course the vision is far from perfect, otherwise I wouldn't need a corrective lense for that eye, but I can't help but wonder, if it continues to improve in small increments each year, by the time I'm 80, will my left eye be comparible to Col. Steve Austin's left eye? My right eye just continues to suck big time. I figure I'll eventually be completely blind in my right eye... it's only a matter of time.
Back to the lenses...
I finally gave in and made the switch, I went with the disposable lenses. Two reason, of course one being finacial, but the second reason is this... since I'd be putting a new pair in every couple of weeks, maybe I won't have to deal with the irritation of wearing worn-out lenses. So here's to seeing clearly!!
Thought I'd throw a song of the day in to celebrate better vision.
Johnny Nash, "I Can See Clearly Now"

Faboo food

We've had such an abundance of tomatoes lately, I've been giving them away like crazy. I had given several to our next door neighbors and to thank me, she brought over a dish of rice she had made using my tomatoes, and some eggplant parmesan. I had fixed a pork tenderloin earlier in the day and I felt her contribution would go nicely with it. The eggplant was okay, I'm not a big fan of it, but I'll eat it if put before me, but the rice dish... ooh-la-la!! It was FANTASTIC!!!!!
I could've eaten that as a meal all by itself! Even the small amoun that was left over I tried the next day, and even cold straight from the 'fridge, it was great! In addition to the rice and tomatoes, it had carrots, green peppers, cauliflower, and onions. When I returned her bowls to her, I couldn't stop raving about it and told her I'd like to have her recipe. I was informed it was something her grandmother had handed down to her (while still living in Yugoslavia/Bosnia I suppose), and told me that any time she fixed it in the future, she'd be sure to bring me some. While I was all for that, I still would like to have the recipe, but I guess that was her way of saying it was a family-secret. :( Obviously, I know what the veggies are, but I've no idea what seasonings she used. I may have to experiment and see if I can figure it out, because truly, this stuff is fabulous!!

Beef Stroganoff is one of my husbands favorite dishes. It's something his mother used to fix for him growing up, and his sister has fixed a time or two for him on his birthday. Despite having his mother's recipe, I've never attempted to fix it from scratch, instead always making it from a "kit", such as Slow-Cooker Helper. Now in all honesty, I thought the kit version was good, and it still perturbs me that they stopped making the Slow-Cooker Helpers, but I digress...
I had bought a huge package of stew meat to freeze, but decided on a whim to use part of it and attempt to make some B.S. I couldn't find his mother's recipe, so I called his sister. She told me the basic ingredients, but no specific amounts, so I had to wing-it. I tossed the ingredients in the crockpot before going to bed last night and added the creams when I got up this morning. John tasted it and said "you nailed it!" Honestly, if I do say so myself, it was superb!! I fixed some Minute Rice to go with it and served some up for breakfast. Can't wait to get home tonight and have some for supper. Mmm-mm-good!!

Faboo weekend!!

Saturday, Livvie & I got up early and headed out to Long Run Park, located on the Jefferson & Shelby county lines. I'd only been there once before, nearly 20 years ago, so I wasn't sure I'd remember how to get there. We left at 6:45am and despite it being still very dark outside, we found it without any problems. Of course, once we arrived at the park, we had no idea where we were supposed to go, so I drove around in the pre-dawn hour, looking for the registration table for the 5k we were to participate in. Finally found it on the far side of the park. But now we had almost 90 minutes to kill before the start of the race.

The 5k was hosted by the Shelby Co. Fire Dept. Ladies Auxiliary. It wasn't a very big turn-out, maybe a couple of dozen people, but we had fun just the same. As I've spent the past 20+ years around fire fighters and auxiliary members (having served as both at one time or another myself), I felt right at home amongst these strangers. Livvie of course was a big hit with most everyone there, and was spoiled like crazy with all the loving and attention she was getting. They took a big group photo in front of the fire truck when it was over. I'm hoping they'll get it posted on their website so I can get a copy.

Sunday morning it was absolutely pouring buckets of rain. Not exactly ideal weather to be working outdoors, but farm chores still need to be done, regardless of the weather. Despite wearing a raincoat, everything not covered by the coat was sopping wet, and the parts covered by the coat were wet with sweat. It was a no-win situation. :(
Another girl and I headed out to make the last of the pasture checks and I had some treats for the goats that belong to the farm's director. As we approached the mares' pasture on the left, I saw something strange lying off the road on the right and down a slight embankment, outside of the alpacas & lamas' pasture. In the pouring rain, it was hard to see, and almost looked like a small log, but as there were no trees immediately close by, I couldn't understand how a log would've gotten there. I asked her what she thought it was. Even as I was asking her her opinion, I was mentally thinking, "it looks like a little alpaca lying there", and then when she spoke her thoughts, it mirrored my own. We hopped off the Kuboda and ran over to the little black baby lying down the embankment. Sure enough, it was a brand new baby alpaca. It still had part of the placenta wrapped around it's neck. I looked at the two female alpacas standing in the pasture, looking anxiously at us and I summed up quickly that it must be Chocolate Drop's baby, as she was the thinner looking of the two. Chocolate Sundae was still rather round and still carrying her babe. After Drop had given birth, the baby must've crawled under the fence boards and not found it's way back in. It was very fortunate that a fox or a coyote hadn't gotten it before we did. We took the baby into the pasture and sat it down and Drop came right over to it and within seconds, it started nursing. Despite the pouring rain that had drenched us, we just stood and watched in awe and amazement. The director was out of town, but I knocked on her door, hoping somebody was there taking care of her dogs. We were in luck, and the woman helped us get the baby and new mother to the small barn and section them off by themselves where they could dry off, get warm, and not have to fend off any predators. Hopefully I can get some pix of it while I'm at the farm this Thursday evening, 'cause it is simply tooooo cute!!

An experiment

A couple of years ago, I acquired a large sewing kit that was full of partially used spools of thread, scissors, needles, straight pens, bobbins, buttons, 4 packages of bias hem facing, and other notions. Some things I tossed in the trash. Everything else I took out of the kit and washed it down thoroughly and then wiped down the items as best I could before re-organizing the kit and adding my own supplies.
I really didn't have any use for the 4 packages of bias, but I held on to them anyway. I am after all, married to a border-line hoarder, and I come from a long line of kin folk that hold on to items for the most ludicrous of reasons, so why break the cycle now?
As I recently started creating a Crazy Quilt, I remember those 4 packages of bias and wondered if they'd serve any purpose on my CQ project. I retrieved them from the sewing kit. All 4 packages were still sealed, so I opened them. On the inside of each label was printed the following:
Does your child sew?
Send 3 labels and $1.00 for a generous package of clippings of Wrights Trimmings for doll's clothes. Allow about 4-6 weeks for delivery. Include zip code with address.
While there was no expiration date printed anywhere on the offer, there was a copy right date printed on another part of the label... 1978. Yes, I was looking at an offer from 31 years ago.
But my mind started to explore the possibilities, turning ideas over and over in my head. What if...? and I wonder...?
So I've decided to conduct an experiment. As there isn't an expiration date, I'm going to send in three of the labels along with my check for $1.00 and see if they will honor their offer. I figure the worst they can do is cash the check and keep my dollar, all the while laughing at me from their corporate office.
I'll let you know in 4-6 weeks how my experiment goes.

I'd like for you to meet...

I'm forever blogging about and posting pix of my much beloved Great Danes, but I thought it was time you met the other 4-legged creatures in our house. Yes, believe it or not, in addition to having three Danes, we also have 2 cats. We had 3, but we had to put BJ down a couple of years ago.
I do love my cats, maybe not as fanatically as my dogs, but I do love them. I don't shed as many (if any) tears when they've gotten ill or when it's come time for them to depart this world, but I do feel a twinge of sadness, all the while saying, "1 down, 2 to go". Sounds cold of me, I know, but if I'm being totally honest here, I look forward to the day when we no longer have to purchase litter or clean out litter boxes, have to deal with the odd gritty piece of litter that gets deposited on our bed when it falls from between their toes, the countless piles of vomit we clean up, all the cat hair, etc. etc. And I look forward to the day when the dogs can once again come into our room and nap on our bed... or maybe not. Perhaps I'll just make that a pet-hair-free-zone in my house and luxuriate in at least one clean spot in my house. ROFL!!! Who am I kidding??
Actually, I do have a specific reason for doing this post now. Both of my kitties are 17 years old now, and considering we lost BJ at 17, I don't know how much longer these two will be with us, especially our little girl.

This is Pudge. We acquired her in Nov. of '92 while we were on vacation out in Branson, MO.

She was just a little bitty thing, hanging around outside the condo we were staying in. One evening we opened the door, she ran in and she's been with us ever since.

Unless she's completely sound asleep, it's hard to get a decent picture of her, as her head is always moving. If you get her attention, she'll look at you and then quickly look away, making it hard to get a good photo. Sorry for the devil-eyes.

Ignore my collection of sneakers and crocs in the background...

I made the comment to the husband a few weeks ago that I didn't know if she would be with us much longer as she wasn't quite herself. She's not taking care of her coat like she used to, and every time I brush her, I keep pulling out several small mats of hair. It doesn't take any time at all for it to mat up again. She's not a long-haired cat, but she has a thick under-coat. Her eyes, don't seem as bright and clear as in the past, perhaps she's getting cataracts, and she doesn't run to the food dish as enthusiastically as she used to, instead picking at it off and on throughout the day.

Again, I apologize for the devil-eyes.

This is Frodo. He turned 17 this month. He's our butter-ball kitty. While none of our cats have ever been very big, he was certainly the largest of them all, topping out around 9 lbs. Yes, our other cats have been rather petite.

Okay, so yesterday when I got home, I discovered one of the cats had decided to take a crap in our bathtub instead of using one of their litter boxes. If I'd known which one had done it, I'd have probably wrung it's 9-lives out of it then and there, but since I don't know, they both continue to live.

I grabbed some toilet paper to pick up the pile of poo, all the while cussing them out, then immediately felt bad when I discovered the pile of poo was full of blood.

While I suspect it was Pudge, I have no proof. I scooped out the litter box, but saw no other evidence of blood having been passed, and saw no evidence of blood on either cats bottom. The vet's office was already closed, so I called this morning after I arrived at work. Without knowing definitely which cat it was, I could either separate them (not an option in our house) or drop both off at the vet so they could separate them and run tests. Um, yeah, I see a hefty bill attached to that option. Short of taking off work to take them in mid-day, the vet couldn't work me in for a late appointment 'til Wednesday at the soonest. I just mentally rolled my eyes and asked what could be some possible reasons for the bloody stool, of course cancer is what was running through my mind. Parasite was one possibility, or inflammation of the lining of the stomach/bowels was another.

Neither cat seems to be in distress right now, they are both still eating and drinking. I had just started them on some different cat food a couple of days prior, so quite possibly that was the cause of the inflammation.

So for now, I'll keep an eye on them and their litter boxes and hope for the best.

Hell must've finally frozen over!!

True story here...
These two women I know, when I met them a handful of years ago, were sworn enemies. Woman-1 had years before accused Woman-2 of having an affair with (or trying to seduce) her husband. Granted I didn't know either of these women at the time this feud started, but knowing them now as I do, and having known the husband for many, many years, I seriously doubt it happened. Woman-2 has better taste than that. So Woman-1's accusation is laughable to everyone that knows the situation.
These two women did their best to stay out of one anothers way, but from time to time, their paths crossed. There was a definite chill in the air whenever they happened to be in the same room together.
Now, to Woman-2's credit, she did her best to try and get along and let the whole by-gones be by-gones thing take place, but W-1 continued to snub W-2 every chance she got, in fact, she often feared W-2 would break into her home and ransack the place or steal something, or some other ludicrous thing. And seriously, these fears were as unfounded as they could possibly be as W-2 is such a passive person, just incapable of doing those things. Those of us that knew the pair all felt that hell would freeze over before W-1 would ever consider being civil towards W-2.
Well, it's finally happened. Hell has indeed frozen over and I imagine the devil is looking for a couple of sticks to rub together to try and start a fire! If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes and, what's more, heard it with my own ears, I'd never have believed it!!
A few days ago, W-1 was not only talking to W-2 and being civil, she initiated the conversation.
Okay, it could've been an isolated incident, perhaps she forgot to take her medicine that morning, or perhaps she was having an out-of-body experience. But, if I'm lyin' I'm dyin', it's happened several times since. It's almost as if they're becoming best buds.
Small wonders never cease!!

Winning the war

I think I've mentioned before how much of a pack-rat my husband is. How he is forever bringing things home from work that he has salvaged from a dumpster somewhere. Did I also mention a couple of weeks ago how I took advantage of him being out of town on trash pick-up day and disposed of some items he was having trouble letting go of?
As we've been dismantling our swimming pool, I told the husband I wanted a couple of other items in our backyard to be thrown out. 1) the umbrella that we never used and was a handy-me-down to begin with and was falling apart, and 2) the "love seat".
The love seat was a piece of furniture, wide enough for two people to sit on, and part of an expensive set of resin furniture we purchased several years ago. The only thing it's really been used for in the past couple of years is to attempt to block the dogs from getting in the area behind the pool and getting muddy. I say "attempt", as it never stopped Bootsy. That girl can jump hurdles 3 - 4' tall, and 2 - 3' wide, from a stand still. Trust me, I've seen her do it! So when I arrived home last night and saw that the husband had sat the trash bin out at the curb, but none of the items I'd asked be disposed of were sitting out there (obviously, he's having trouble letting go of them), I knew what I had to do...
that is, wait until he'd left for work this morning and then drag the items from the back yard myself. He has such a problem with letting go. I often wonder what would happen if I should die in my sleep at home... would he just let me lie there instead of calling the coroner's office?
Another example of his hording... I picked up his lunch-cooler and started to fix his lunch. When I opened the cooler, I saw a black bag in the bottom. I picked it up, looked at it and in it, and couldn't figure out what it was for. I was tempted to just throw it away right then and there, but on the off chance it had something to do with his hand-held computer for work, I went to the restroom and asked him what it's purpose was.
His reply: oh, I found it on the road yesterday and picked it up.
Me: why?
Him: I thought it might be one of those can-cooler-huggie-things, but it wasn't.
Now I'm thinking 1) so what if it was? we've got more than enough of these things, we don't need one that was found on the side of the road, and 2) once you saw it wasn't a huggie, why not throw it out, and 3) you basically put trash in your lunch cooler!!!
I knew it would do me no good to point any of these valid reasons out to him, so I just let out a sigh and dropped it in the trash can, then went to sanitize my hands.
I may not win the war, but occasionally I claim little victories.

Crazy quilt - week 1

It's been 1 week since I started my new project, a Crazy Quilt. Remember, there are no rules when creating a CQ, no patterns to follow, and no such thing as a mistake. And certainly, there is no rhyme or reason for the manner in which I created this piece. It's my first attempt, which means it's probably going to be the craziest one I ever do.

I started with a piece of muslin approx. 2' x 3', and just started basting miscellaneous pieces of flannel, cotton floral prints, and some corduroy. I've only got a couple of small areas to finish attaching pieces before I start with the intricate work of embroidering and embellishing along the seams, and finally, adding a border around the finished article.


Notice the white/purple plaid piece near the upper left corner, it still has a pocket on it. I'm thinking about sewing a handkerchief in place, sticking out of the pocket.


I forgot to bring my embroidery floss with me this morning, but I do have the tail hairs from Crazy the horse, so I'll probably go on and sew those on. As the hairs are very silvery-white, it will have to be against a dark piece so that they'll show up.
'Til next week...

Seeing is believing!!

Okay, you've read and heard me yammer on and on about riding lessons for the past three months, and you've seen several pictures of some of the horses I've ridden, but that's not really proof that I've actually been on them, is it?

I took the camera with me last night in hopes of getting Jolene's photo and even better, me on Jolene. But she had a cut on her leg and is out of commission for a few days, so no photos of her this week. Instead, I was given Baylee to ride.
I had our instructor, Debbie, take the photos. I apologize for their blurriness, I may have to get my "personal photographer" to accompany me one night and take photos, as she does such a marvelous job. [Ahem, personal photographer, you know who you are. ;) ]


This is Cathy, riding Cody (or Dakota).



And myself on Baylee. Helmet looks a bit cock-eyed, doesn't it?


I'd like to blame the camera for adding 10, 20, or maybe even 100 lbs. :(


If you have two quarter horses, doesn't that mean you only have half a horse?