ineluctable bargains
Nothing much new to report. I discovered on Monday that the thermos I use to hold 3/4 pot of coffee eveyday was absolutely coated with mold all around the inside. It was hardly visible without a flashlight so I can only wonder how long it has been growing in there. Perhaps this is what's been causing my congestion and wheezing. Cutting a lot of grass, yard saling, running. I felt really busy this week because I had a dentist appointment, a viewing, and a funeral to go to. One of my neighbors died on Monday. I had been up to see her last week. Like my father, she was brought home for hospice care and very weak and having a hard time speaking. I'm glad I got to say goodbye and I hope the final days her family had to spend with her were some comfort. She was a really great woman who was always there for her family and all her kids, grandkids and great grandkids. I talked with her often last summer and even though she was having some health issues even then she really was there for me when my dad was sick. She baked a cake for him and another one for me on my birthday. She used to baby sit us when my mom went to college and work and she had an awesome basement, playground, and campers for us to play in. In hind sight that was incredibly generouse because I would not let 1 kid play alone in my treehouse, let alone 5-8! She had a slot machine and she'd sit on the floor and play it with us and if we won we got some Garbage Pail Kid stickers. Several friends and family spoke at her funeral and it was a nice tribute to her and a great reminder of how much impact you can have on people's lives just by being a moral, accepting, caring person.
Just 2 summers ago I remember she was gardening with her husband and she was standing in the back of his pick up shoveling out mulch at age 74. She wasn't an exercise nut or anything, just an active person who kept agile by doing what she enjoyed... cooking, playing with all her grandkids, etc. She had several strokes and was able to come back from the first couple but the last one was too debilitating. Some people just passively give up their mobility by doing less and less each day and I really take inspiration from people like her and my father who weren't slowed by apathy but only by serious health problems.
Yard saling last week was okay. I got beat out on a few things and only found a couple things to buy, none of which I really got a great deal on. I got a jigsaw cheap that I had been looking for but it wasn't that exciting since I don't have any immediate uses for it. This morning was much different. Even though I did miss out on a few things I got an Xbox with 12 games & 4 controllers, 6 recent Lego sets with a bunch of ninjas and other minifigs I don't have yet, Paris skateboard trucks, a 10X10 easy up style awning, free and cheap books, 3 backpacks, iron on lettering for t-shirts, a new remote controlled helicopter, 2 insulated lunch bags, and law and order suv season 1 (50 cents!). All told I spent less than 70 dollars, which is about what the awning would cost on sale. That is a lot of money but it was nice to find things to buy this week...last week we were out before 7am but so was everyone else it seemed. I also passed on a lot of other things...longboard decks and wheels, a stereo reciever and 8 speakers(10 bucks)... I don't purchase every bargain or I'd need a u-haul and I'll spend enough time as is sorting through this stuff at home. Law and order is 17 hours of episodes, I'll be shocked if I'm done with it at this time next year.
Here are some 2-3 week old photos and artwork.
More Art & Animals
Power of Journalism fan art
Drawing Views.
This guy was just chillin on my way back from Falling Branch. Possibly the longest, thickest black snake I've ever seen, the photo really doesn't do him/her justice.
Minutes before I saw a huge bird running out of the creek and shuffling up a huge embankment on the other side of the road. I guess it was a pheasant or turkey. Soon I'll get a new phone with better camera and also run with it hung somewhere it's instantly accessable. I already seem to take more pictures than I want to sort through and crop, however. I came across another snake with a fresh meal visible a third down his body on my next run. I see far less when I'm hiking. It must be a combination of covering more ground and moving more quietly.
My turtle returns... 5th or 6 year. Very easy to spot making his way slowly around the pond in the sun or by shining a flashlight into the water at night.
scaredeer.
sm.jpg)
Chimney Stomper down by the big pond.
I collected my initials from the field. Once the bugs and sun get done cleaning them up I'd like to mount them properly.
Just 2 summers ago I remember she was gardening with her husband and she was standing in the back of his pick up shoveling out mulch at age 74. She wasn't an exercise nut or anything, just an active person who kept agile by doing what she enjoyed... cooking, playing with all her grandkids, etc. She had several strokes and was able to come back from the first couple but the last one was too debilitating. Some people just passively give up their mobility by doing less and less each day and I really take inspiration from people like her and my father who weren't slowed by apathy but only by serious health problems.
Yard saling last week was okay. I got beat out on a few things and only found a couple things to buy, none of which I really got a great deal on. I got a jigsaw cheap that I had been looking for but it wasn't that exciting since I don't have any immediate uses for it. This morning was much different. Even though I did miss out on a few things I got an Xbox with 12 games & 4 controllers, 6 recent Lego sets with a bunch of ninjas and other minifigs I don't have yet, Paris skateboard trucks, a 10X10 easy up style awning, free and cheap books, 3 backpacks, iron on lettering for t-shirts, a new remote controlled helicopter, 2 insulated lunch bags, and law and order suv season 1 (50 cents!). All told I spent less than 70 dollars, which is about what the awning would cost on sale. That is a lot of money but it was nice to find things to buy this week...last week we were out before 7am but so was everyone else it seemed. I also passed on a lot of other things...longboard decks and wheels, a stereo reciever and 8 speakers(10 bucks)... I don't purchase every bargain or I'd need a u-haul and I'll spend enough time as is sorting through this stuff at home. Law and order is 17 hours of episodes, I'll be shocked if I'm done with it at this time next year.
Here are some 2-3 week old photos and artwork.
More Art & Animals
Power of Journalism fan art
Drawing Views.
This guy was just chillin on my way back from Falling Branch. Possibly the longest, thickest black snake I've ever seen, the photo really doesn't do him/her justice.
Minutes before I saw a huge bird running out of the creek and shuffling up a huge embankment on the other side of the road. I guess it was a pheasant or turkey. Soon I'll get a new phone with better camera and also run with it hung somewhere it's instantly accessable. I already seem to take more pictures than I want to sort through and crop, however. I came across another snake with a fresh meal visible a third down his body on my next run. I see far less when I'm hiking. It must be a combination of covering more ground and moving more quietly.
My turtle returns... 5th or 6 year. Very easy to spot making his way slowly around the pond in the sun or by shining a flashlight into the water at night.
scaredeer.
Chimney Stomper down by the big pond.
I collected my initials from the field. Once the bugs and sun get done cleaning them up I'd like to mount them properly.