Thanks!

"Thank you, Lord. Three cancellations by 2:00 pm."

A Grandmother's Prayer

Today three of my grandsons have games scheduled at approximately the same time.

"Dear God,

Please, please, please, bring on the rain at 5:00 pm today."

On the Home Front

We took Mr. Fixit to the Atlanta airport yesterday for his vacation with his family. He will be gone until the latter part of April. He called this morning and said that he had no problem. One of his sisters flew into Atlanta from Memphis and traveled on the same flight. I’m glad that he had someone with him. I was a bit worried about him. Now I only have to worry about him getting mugged and being in a country that doesn’t have the best relations with this country.

Ben, Bella, and Levi went with us. I was really nervous about driving in Atlanta. The children were very good in the car, and Levi was so excited to see many soldiers. He is into all things military.

I like going to big airports. They are the best places for people watching. You see all sorts.

The weather has suddenly turned a lot cooler here. Last night the heat even came on again, and we’ve had rain a few days in a row. I thought spring was here to stay. The lilac is blooming, but our azaleas are anemic this year. In fact, they appear to be near death. The Bradford pear trees have lost all their white flowers and are now that nice spring-y green. I hope spring returns soon.

Another of Life’s Little Mysteries

Yesterday I stayed in the car in the parking lot when Mr. Fixit went into the bank. The car positioned a bit higher than street level so I could see into the cars that went by.

A woman driving by was texting on her phone with her left hand and holding a sandwich in her right hand. I have no clue as to which appendage she was using to steer the car—a third hand maybe?

This and That

Spring is definitely here. I don’t need the warm temperatures or the birds tweeting outside my window at 4:00 am. to remind me. The calendar isn’t necessary either. I know spring is here because it’s BASEBALL season again. Cole, Noah, and Owen are all playing, and Levi will soon start playing flag football. That should be fun to watch—all those little boys running around not knowing what the heck is going on.

Mr. Fixit is preparing for his vacation. He will be spending more than three weeks out of the country. I’m going to take him to the Atlanta airport. I dread it. I’ll have to make the trip alone; the traffic is horrible, and Atlanta drivers are crazy. I always thought that New Jersey had the worst drivers, but Atlanta is worse.

Elizabeth Taylor has died. While I didn’t admire her personal choices in life, I can honestly say that I admired her beauty and talent. I believe she was the most beautiful woman of our time. No one could be a gorgeous as she was in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” “Suddenly, Last Summer,” or “Giant.”

The news hasn’t been great lately. A new front has opened for this country in the Mid East. Natural disaster and environmental disaster are threatening all of us. I’m sorry to say that I take all that is reported in the media with a grain of salt. I think lies are being told about the situation in Japan.

I would also like to know why the media hasn’t reported more on the story concerning the non-disclosure by a  Justice of the Supreme Court of his wife’s earnings paid to her by a think tank. He was sitting in judgment of a case in which she was involved with one of the parties. His excuse was that he misinterpreted the law. He’s a Supreme Court Justice for heaven’s sake.  Somehow I expect the Justices to be able to interpret the law. Perhaps I am expecting too much. The media has dropped the ball on that story, but we know all about Ms. Lohan and Mr. Sheen, don’t we? Who gives two hoots about these people and their self-inflicted problems when people are dying in wars, and our world is perhaps being damaged beyond repair? Our government is being run by power-hungry, narrow-minded people and supported by people who believe any lie that is told because of bigotry and ignorance and their unwillingness find the truth for themselves.

Is That a Rhetorical Question?

Tomorrow I have a doctor’s appointment for my semi-annual check-up.  It never fails; when he walks into the room, he always says, “How are you?” Is this just a bit of civility on his part, or does he really want me to tell him how I am? I never know what to say, so I say, “I’m fine. How are you?”

Does he want to hear  the normal stuff that happens when our bodies age? We have painful knees, hips, and our hair is thinning. Does he want to know that our blood pressure is up (or down) and our weight fluctuates, but never changes enough to be happy if it goes down or worried if it goes up. Does he care to hear that we have cavities that need to be filled? Does he want to hear that we have the blues or if we are happy as larks? Does he care that we can have diarrhea one day and constipation the next? Does he want to hear that we don’t take our medication as regularly as we should because we just can’t remember to take it? Does he want to hear about our age spots and dry skin? And what about the dizziness that sometimes hits when you are in public and causes you to stagger or walk a bit off kilter,to say nothing of the acute embarrassment which accompanies the bit of a stagger?

I don’t know what the hell he means when he says, “How are you?”  so unless I have extreme pain or an open, bloody wound, I will just continue to say, “Fine, thank you. How are you?”

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A few days ago we received a letter from the IRS agreeing that we do not owe the thousands of dollars  they said we did. Thank heavens! I have only one thing to say to the person or computer who decided that it was necessary to bring me to the brink of a stroke. I would like to say (or sing), “Neh, neh, neh, neh, neh!” You can add you own favorite little melody to the nehs.

Drudgery

I know I have said this many times, but once again I have to say, “I hate housework!” I like the result which lasts for about a half hour, but I hate the drudgery necessary to have a clean house.


Since Mr. Fixit retired, I have done very little cleaning—just enough to get by and to insure that the Health Department doesn't declare this address uninhabitable. When Mr. Fixit says, “Let's go!” I don't let the vaccuum keep at home. As long as he gets a home cooked meal every now and then and he has clean clothes, he doesn't mind the clutter and the dirty windows. In fact, sometimes he gets a little huffy with me when I start cleaning around him.

One of his sisters called Sunday evening and said they were thinking about coming to visist this weekend. What is wrong with these people? Don't they know I required at least two weeks notice just to clean and hide the clutter? She hasn't let us know yet for sure if they are coming so I have been cleaning like crazy. They are my in-laws after all. I think that after 45 years they still wonder if our marriage is going to last.

I have cleaned the carpets, scoured the burned-on debris from the stove, removed all the green fuzzy stuff out of the refrigerator, cleaned the windows, dusted, and removed the visible spider webs. I saw a few that were not conspicious so I left them alone. Spiders need a home, too, don't they?

Mr. Fixit offered to help, but to tell you the truth, he's slow as Christmas and he only does part of the job. He cleaned the bathroom downstairs, but he neglected to clean the floor in the hall leading to the bathroom when he did the bathroom floor. I had to finish that up. He replaced two tiles in the kitchen and that took half a day. I have been cleaning up and putting away the stuff he uses to “help.” He cleaned the ceiling fan in the living room and it turned into a major project. I sound ungrateful—I'm not.
Every little bit helps.

It's just about killed me though. I was thinking this morning about how all this work I was doing was the same stuff that I used to do once a week or more often when I was younger. I didn't consider it hard work or that tiring. Now I feel as if I can't put one foot in front of the other. I was telling Mr. Fixit that all this cleaning was what used to the just the usual. He said, “That's what happens when you get old.” That made me feel so much better.

Travels with My Camera

Easley, SC
I took this picture as part of my interest in water towers, but the result was so aesthetically pleasing that it is one of my favorite photos. The picture was taken during a brilliant pink sunset causing the tower to pick up the rosy tint.


Greenville, SC
This concrete plant (manufacturer?) caught my attention. It appears to be abandoned, but there are concrete items for sale, i.e. birdbaths, garden statuary, etc. The interesting thing to me is the greenery growing out of the tower.



When I zoomed in I noticed something else.


A portable john atop the tower? I suppose they didn’t have women working there because there is no ladies’ room up there.

Norris, SC
There is something sad about this chimney surrounded by kudzu.

Did a fire destroy the home was was heated by the fireplace? Why hasn’t the property been used? Was the chimney left standing as a reminder? Or was there no one left to care?

(Click on photo for detail.)