Sunday, October 31, 2004
Spooked By Mother Nature!
Finally----Happy Halloweeeeeeen!
Well yesterday started out warm and a little windy. As the day progress it got real windy with gusts that seemed like 50 miles an hour. Was I glad the big trees had come down --you bet yah!! But that didn’t stop the power outage. Sitting serenely in front of the monitor typing an answer to an e-mail when all of a sudden the phone gave a short ring and the my screen went black!! It was 1:55 p.m. so Jay reported it to Consumers Energy. We were instructed to wait two hours and if it hadn’t been restored to call in for an estimated restoral time.
After four p.m. I called in and the recording said to call later. So we went out and grabbed a bite to eat. Upon returning I checked again and found that restoral time was set for November 1st at 11p.m. So now we head to the garage to pull out the generator ( a $1600. investment that I will never regret). In setting it up we found it was low on gas and the battery was dead. So we drained the gas cans that are kept in the shed and boosted the battery with the tractor. In business now!!
Not knowing how long we might need the generator I decided to drive into town and fill up the gas cans. With everthing under control we settled down until around 10:20 p.m. I thought I had better start winding things down for the night so I could turn the generator off. I happened to check for the red light on the side of the electric meter and found it glowing happily. Aha we have power. So turn off the switch to the generator and turn on the switch to the power in the circuit box, go to the garage, turn off the generator, unplug it, pull the unit back in, and turn off the switch in the garage.
I couldn’t help but wonder if Mother Nature was trying to spook me a day early!!!
Friday, October 29, 2004
Weep Or Win!
Sweet Thing aka Cindyisms was up to visit on Wednesday and we figured out her knitted hat problem (kinda). She is using a round hand loom to make hats and the directions aren’t real clear on how to do certain things so we winged it!!
It is always a joy to spend time with her. We worked on printing out some templates from Microsoft.com. She showed me a few things she had learned in her computer class. ( I’m getting jealous). But mostly it was ‘good friend’ talk.
That was why I was surprised to find this in the mail today. 
I thought I would send it along to you!
On the bright side, I guess, it will be all over but the shouting on November the 3rd! Then we will weep or win!!
“Small Stuff”
Raining today! Gray, cold, depressing but what do you expect? This is Michigan on the ‘eve’ of November. I want dry, sunshine, uplifting weather!
I am so tired of election ranting--the fact that I must choose the lesser of two evils. Nooo! I want a better choice! I want someone who won’t try scare tatics and half-truth to win support. I want someone that talks about tomorrow’s problems not who did or didn’t fight before. Not he didn’t vote for this or that with no reason why. Was there an amendment or a ‘pork barrel’ tacked on it that had nothing to do with the original meaning of the puposed law? They don’t tell me that. Only that he voted againist it.
I want to stop feeling defensive around my hubby. I guess the togetherness kind of tears up the nice feelings. You forget that you love someone when day after day you don’t park the truck right on the first attempt. When you try to correct it the response is, “ It’s the same as before” or another lesson or worse still just a snicker. If you ask what is wrong the look is like you should know. When you hold an item in front of him to determine what to do with it and he responds with what is it without even looking at it first. Of course I get pissed--pay attention to the item or me so I don’t have to explain what you can plainly see. I want to show love not dissension.
I want to ask for a deposit to the checking account without feeling like I’m taking the food off the table. I don’t want to feel like I have to beg for every penny and then feel lucky because I get it. I know he doesn’t mean to make me feel this way--but he does and after 30 years I’m not going to change it.
Then something like this shows up in the shopping cart at checkout--
And I know he loves me and everything else is the ‘small stuff’!
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
BOO!
Four days to go and this is the most frightening sight yet!
Going, Going, Gone!!
At 8:10am this morning they arrived with three large trucks.
A truck was positioned to start shredding. A second truck with a man in the bucket with a chain saw started cutting and roping branches to control their fall.
The third truck was outfitted with a hydraulic boom claw for loading large pieces into a truck for disposal.
The trees and branches are gone, only the stumps remain.
Stump grinding came next as the other workers finished the shredding and cleaning up.
By noon the trees were gone. Two truck loads of shredding had accumulated. One truck load (18 yards) had been unloaded out behind our shed. The other load was taken away.
There you have it --going, going, gone!!
Sunday, October 24, 2004
Little Better Today!
Last night after a big swig of NyQuil I managed a few hours of sleep and felt some better this morning. Throat is not as tight but nose is still doing the 100 yard dash and it hurts to blow it now.
My brother’s fiancee call yesterday evening to tell me he was in the hospital with pneumonia. He is doing better today and hopes to be out tomorrow. This must be kick the old farts in the lungs week!
It is baked butternut squash and swiss steak tonight. The old kind of swiss steak made with vegetables and tomatoes (diabtic cookbook style though). This was what my Mom called swiss steak but today they make it with gravy and no tomatoes. I did goof up though, I put brown sugar substitute on the frozen strawberries instead of Splenda so I’m waiting to hear Jay’s reaction to this new ?(taste tempting treat)? Oh well I’ve been sick!!!
Saturday, October 23, 2004
Hint # 4
“ Somethings happening here”
“ What it is ain’t exactly clear”
That what I thought as this apparation appeared on the porch!!!
Not Good!
The song that starts out ‘Oh what a night!’ is upbeat and happy. But my night was any thing but as I shivered, yawn, and blew my nose over and over again. That right shoulder with the arthritis increased in pain as I tightened up to stop shivering. It had started with a tight throat that felt like tiny pieces of dry leaves that I couldn’t cough up. Then the nose began to run and the chills set in.
After two hours I was ready to give up. I had lain there with a roll of Bounty paper towels tucked beside my pillow because a hankerchief lasted only 10 minutes before it was soaked. All the shaking and twisting finally brought on a pounding headache. At 1:20am I got up, made a cup of tea and took a Motrin then crawled back in bed. I wished I could just curl up and die! It was 2:30am, then 3:15, then 3:45 and nothing was easing up. Paper towels were all over the bed and falling off on the floor and still I shivered.
I finally pulled myself out of bed and climbed into the shower. Hot, very hot was what I needed. I toweled off, pulled on a nightgown, robe, and slippers then started a pot of coffee. Jay had been up several times trying to figure out how to help me but to no avail.
I poured a cup of coffee and made a slice of toast. I sat and read for a bit until I knew the shivers were gone. Then it was grab a cough drop and fall back into bed. I slept until the cough drop was almost gone and then woke up coughing and nose running again. Would I ever get through this night?
Finally morning came and the chills were gone, the pain had subsided, but the nose runs on. The throat is still tight but the urge to cough has calmed down. Man, I think I am going to live!!
Friday, October 22, 2004
Last Weekend!
A visit from the Evil One, Little Snit, and their beautiful offspring resulted my being reminded that Saturday was Sweetest Day. I can remember when if Jay missed Sweetest Day I would be pissy for a month but not anymore! (Anyway Happy Sweetest Day roughly a week late everyone!) A visit to our house involves overnight for the Evil One’s family so here is a pictorial of Sunday morning!
Grandpa(Jay) presides over the cooking of the breakfast! A masterpiece when he is through!!
Courtney sleeps in! At least she tries too!
Momma reads the new book, while pointing out which is her good side. However by the looks of those jowls ‘there ain’t no good side that morning’!!
Molly plays with the new toy Little Snit brought her!
And all is right with the world in OtisvIlle!!
Think You Know Him!
After 30 years of marriage I felt I knew all there was to know about Jay. But each day brings a new surprise, another facet to his humor.
The ritual since the diabetes has developed is to the test blood sugar twice a day. Morning or before supper he sets up his meter, pokes a finger, and waits for a reading. When the reading is good he tells me. When the reading is bad he sits staring at the meter. He reviews everything he has eaten the night before or the during the day depending on the test time.
This involves things like, “It must be the grapes. You know I can’t open the refrigerator door without grabbing some.” Or, “I don’t understand this. I didn’t eat anything to cause this.”
So yesterday, as he sat and reviewed the facts because the reading was high, I finally said, “How about the juice and cider?” He looked at me kind of funny and said he didn’t use but one or at the most two glasses a day. “Only four ozs. at a time,” he said. I agreed that sometimes there was only one glass on the counter and another in the dishwasher at the end of the day. But I have counted three or four glasses a day when I took a used one and put it in the dishwasher causing him to take a clean one. His response was, “I use them for water too,” but the little quirk that he gets around his mouth told me that it wasn’t always true.
This morning I struggled sleepily out of bed and stumbled into the kitchen. This is what I saw as he sat grinning at the table.
I married a smartass but a funny one at least!!!