I’m pretty sure I mentioned this gray elephant before but I’m old and I can repeat if I want to—and usually do!!! 
A little over 10 years ago when we picked up Spirit to replace Phantom an African gray I’d lost the breeder had suggested that we pick up a soft toy on the way home to substitute for the bird’s clutch mate.  So Jay ran into a pet store and selected this elephant because it was soft and gray like the bird. 

This elephant stayed in the cage for a long time.  Spirit would lay his head across the elephant to sleep when he was very young.  As he grew he began to mess on it and try to pull thread from it so I removed it, wash it and put it on top the cage.  He would get up on top the cage and throw the elephant on the floor. 

So when Brandy our Shih Tzu came to live with us last year I gave elephant to her.  She proceeded to tear off one ear so I wash it up again and put it back on top Spirit’s cage.  What I discovered the other day after Spirit got out and climbed on top the cage was this bird cuddling with the elephant it had gotten several years ago. 

I finished it yesterday.  Not the pattern I had bought the yarn for but it will still serve as a cuddle blanket.  It is 48” by 62” big enough to wrap even this old body up.  I don’t know what the pattern is called because a coworker wrote it down for me many years ago.  She has since passed but still lives on in my memory every time I complete one of these afghans.  Thank you my friend for leaving this behind.

Les, Anne, and Courtney were up yesterday to have dinner and bring two belated birthday gifts.  One was season one of the TV series House they had given me season two for Christmas.  The other was a very special gift from Les.  I have always had trouble making my CD/DVD equipment work so I never watched anything from our library of discs because Jay was blind off/on and couldn’t remember the procedure. So unless some one visited that knew the workings of said equipment it didn’t get used.  It was a mental rebellion on my part against the use of symbol instead of words on the buttons and knobs.  So yesterday with pen and paper in hand I watch as Les ran through the steps, noting which steps were manual, which took which remote, and what buttons to push.  I now have hours of entertainment at my fingertips.  Thank you son.  Now I need you to decipher my notes from different computer questions I have asked you the next time we see each other. 

Anyway we had our dinner and then sat and watched a DVD of THE I T CREW ( I believe that was the name of it)  British and humorous as the dickens. Les also check the computers while he was here for any minor problems.  All in all a very productive and pleasant visit.

The door and drawer fronts on my kitchen cupboards have an overlap on the side edges.  This area is extremely vulnerable to splitting off which is what happened to the bottom drawer day before yesterday.  With 31 drawer and door fronts to replace this is not affordable at this time.  So Jay took the drawer out to fix it and our Molly who loves hiding places crawled in.  When she saw the camera see started to jump out the the picture is a little blurred. 

We are expecting Les’ crew up today so it is mashed potatoes with horseradish and sour cream, home made cole slaw, oven fried chicken, biscuits, gravy, and whole kernel corn.  I made a butter pecan layer cake with cream cheese frosting and fine walnut pieces sprinkled on top (from a box of course).  There is ice cream in the freezer so we should be well fed today. 

Monday we get a report on my brother’s biopsy but it doesn’t look good.  I just keep saying to Jeanie his significant other and telling myself that it is important to start planning now and not wait in hopes that it will go away.  If things turn out better than we can be happy about it but if not we will at least be getting prepared.  I have been through this with Verl, my first husband, so I know sitting and crying accomplishes nothing.  I plan to be spending more time with him so my posting may slow down. 

As far as the Axsoms are concerned we are moving right along.  Jay is in the kitchen right now peeling potatoes and setting the ingredients for biscuits out so I have to close for now and start on the chicken.  Have a good week—stay warm—give and receive the love around you! 

Up before 6:30 am today with plans to take Brandy to Doggy Depot for a cleanup and the truck to Simms Chevrolet to fix the wipers.  It seems that you can click on the first three or four positions and nothing happens but when you hit the last one those wipers take off like a Tasmanian Devil.  When I went to leave a little after 7 am the ground was icy which dictated hanging on to things and watching carefully where you step. 

First stop was the gas station where I clutched my heart when I saw that the price was climbing again.  Up to $2.55 a gallon—guess there is no one needing to get elected right now!  $54.02 lighter my wallet, Brandy, and I proceeded to Clio, MI. where I left Brandy a makeover.

The Ewok look is gone.  The Vet suggested we have her face shaved due to the hair getting in her eyes and causing them to weep which seeps into the other hair on her face and making it mat up.  So this is Miss Brandy’s new ‘do!

Then it was on to Simms with the truck.  Roughly an hour and a half later with a new wiper control module installed and a wallet skinnier by $243.33 it was back to pick up Brandy.  It was already starting to snow and the roads were getting slippery.  A half hour after we got home this is what it looked like outside.

So now I am of two minds.  One says don’t get up early because you can spend over $300. before 9:30am.  The other is I’m darn glad I did get out early because I’m sure not going anywhere now and the wiper problem could have only gotten worse. 

Stay warm, keep smiling because we only got 20 more days until Spring—-yeah right!!!!