Counting down

Won’t be long now and we’ll be pointing the hood south and starting our vacation. Actually it’s the wifes vacation as I’m designated driver. Before we leave we’ll have to make sure there are no cats under the car our under the hood because at our old house we had a short tailed cat when we didn’t check.

Good Lord willing and the crick don’t rise we’ll be on our way a week from today, the cat sitter is ready, the alarm will be set, and our neighbor will keep an eye on the place for us. Even got some extra things done so they won’t have to be on the list when we get back.

Got my Medicare all squared away so will have coverage again soon and checked my online account at my financial advisor which made him happy. The Medicare was more screwed up than I thought and was glad to finally reach someone who understood old school redneck.

Haven’t checked the weather yet for the trip as we’re want to get a little closer so the extended forecast doesn’t get everything wrong. Since we’ll be going through Missouri to get to Oklahoma we’ll check the weather forecasts in both. And I’ll have to look at the maps to see which way we’re going to try this time.

There has to be some two-lane blacktop with our name on it between here and Tulsa we haven’t cruised yet. Might even check out more of Route 66 on the way. We’ve been told that Route 66 goes through Oklahoma and Tulsa. There has to be diner that has good cheeseburgers on that stretch.

Enjoy the rest of our Monday as it should still be Sunday. Now for some coffee and leftover pizza. Comments are always welcome.

Sunday snicker

A friend shared the following online. It’s a little long, been heard before, but it gave us a chuckle so here it is-

A young monk arrives at the monestery. He is assigned to helping the
other monks in copying the old canons and laws of the church by hand.

He notices however that all the monks are copying from copies and not
from the original manuscript. So the new monk goes to the old Aboot to
question this, pointing out that if someone made even a small error in
the first copy it would never be picked up! In fact, that error would
be replicated in all the subsequent copies.

The head monk says “We have been copying from the copies for centuries,
but you make a good point my son.”

He goes down into the dark caves underneath the monestery where the
original manuscripts are held as archives in a locked vault that hasn’t
been opened for hundreds of years.

Hours go by and nobody sees the old Abbot.

So the young monk gets worried and goes down to look for him. He sees
him banging his head against the wall and wailing.

“We missed the R, We missed the R, we missed the bloody R.”

His forehead is all bloddy and bruised and he is crying uncontrallaby.
The young monk asks the old Abbot “what’s wrong Father?”

With a choking voice the old Abbot replies, “The word was….
CELEBRATE!”

Bits and pieces

We’re getting ready to hit the road soon and hope we don’t forget anything. Actually, I’m just hoping we don’t get turned around in the truck stop above and come out the wrong end again. That was a strange feeling.

The lows here got down in the 20s and reminded me once again that there is no heat in the office. It’s a bit nippy but can’t see my breath so it’s bearable. At some point I’ll remember that fact when it’s hot outside and get it fixed. That’s the plan anyway.

And last night I noticed there’s a light on in the garage that I’m going to remedy at some point today. Don’t remember leaving one on but will check it out since there are no energy efficient bulbs out there. Don’t know how long it’s been on as the security light usually makes it hard to see.

Lately I think I’ve been turning into my Dad. When I’d visit him he’d always mention his bad knee while I still had a right knee and a left knee. Now I’ve got a good knee and a bad knee too. At least most days one is good.

One of feral cats that’s been missing for some time showed up a few nights ago and has been hanging around. I missed Patches and we’re glad to have her back. Not sure why she took off or where she was but she looks good so she wasn’t mistreated.

Enjoy our Saturday before the weekend turns into a Monday. Now for some coffee. Comments are always welcome.

Day after

If you’re reading this you also survived the strangest Thanksgiving Day in our memory. We hope yours was enjoyable. In our case, the wife had a 12 hour shift so I dined on great holiday fare, a bacon cheeseburger pizza. And I must say it was better than usual with all the added goodies.

Today people will go out very early to stand in lines for the Black Friday deals that always attract such crowds. I’ve never been and the wife has gone once, when we got our first computer. Suffice it to say we are not fans.

That being said we will cruise over to the grocery store as it’s grocery day for us and we need a few things. It will be interesting to see if there are more people getting groceries today, or less. We’ll find out at 7 am.

We’re also preparing for a little cruise to Oklahoma next month so the wife can have some much needed time away from work. If the weather cooperates we don’t foresee a problem. It it doesn’t we’ll figure a way to get there anyway.

Funny thing about travelling in this crazy time of the virus is checking to see restrictions in in the states we have to drive through and our destination. Whatever they are I’m sure it won’t be a problem. Once on the road we’ll find out.

Do know the wife will have her GPS box and I’ll have my Road Atlas for when the GPS is wrong. I have a major dislike of those things and would rather have a map. Enjoy our Friday as another weekend is upon us and I still need some coffee. Comments are always welcome.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope all enjoy it in your own way. Since we learned something today
about how the holiday got started and the woman behind the push to have it, we’ll share it. Sarah Hosepha Hale is said to be the ‘Godmother of Thanksgiving’.

Who you ask? Perhaps you know her nursery ryhme “Mary Had a Little
Lamb”. She was born in 1788 on a farm in New Hampshire and was home
schooled. While growing up there were no female teachers so when she
turned 18 she just started her own private school which she ran until
she met her husband and married in 1813.

Her husband died 9 years later leaving her to care for their 5
children. She opened a woman’s hat shop and later resumed teaching and
writing. 5 years after her husbands death she published her first
novel. Around this time John Blake of Boston read her novel and asked
her to work for him at the ‘American Ladies’ Magazine as the first woman
editor of a magazine in America.

During her time as editor she wrote hundreds of letters to governors,
ministers, newspaper editors, and U.S. presidents requesting that the
last Thursday in November be set aside to “offer to God our tribute of
joy and gratitude for the blessings of the year.”

Finally, in 1863, Abraham Lincoln got a letter during the Civil War
again asking to declare the last Thursday in November a National
Thanksgiving Day. He did so on October 3rd, 1863 and also ordered all
government offices in Washington closed for the day.

Sarah Josepha Hale enjoyed over a dozen Thanksgiving days before her
death in 1879 at the age of 90. In 1939 President Franklin Roosevelt
moved the holiday to the third Thursday in November after businesses
complained they wanted more shopping days between Thanksgiving and
Christmas.

People celebrated on the last Thursday of November anyway and when
FDR realized his mistake he moved the holiday back to the last Thursday
in November. And now we know.

Enjoy our Wednesday and Thanksgiving tomorrow. Now for some coffee.
Comments are always welcome.

What the …?

Early this morning I went from sound asleep to wide awake with a feeling that something was seriously wrong. Trusting my instincts I listened for any sound of an intruder yet heard nothing but one of the wifes cats snoring.

Then I realized the house was pitch black inside with no light to be found anywhere. Not from the streetlights out front, the security lights, or the light we keep on in the kitchen. After my daily exercise of standing up while my body makes strange noises I prepared myself for a trek to the kitchen to find my flashlight.

I can usually walk around the house in complete darkness as I know the layout yet had to wonder if the cats plotted against me and drug something into my path that I wouldn’t be able to see and could trip over. They didn’t, and after grabbing the flashlight and my coat I ventured outside around 5 am to see if I could spot the problem.

Neighbors to the south had power, neighbors to the east had power, and ourselves and neighbors to the north were dark. I knew this because no security lights were on and it was dark. Realizing it was snowing and I didn’t grab my hat I returned to the house to find a few candles so I could make a cup of coffee.

Since the electricity was out, decided on instant as even though our stove has electronic ignitors it can be lit with a lighter. In the candle glow and with a hot cup of instant coffee I contemplated what my action should be.

Yeah, I had another cup. Knowing our landline wouldn’t work I debated calling the power company on my cell phone and telling them it’s cooling off inside the house. Not enough to freeze pipes, just enough to get your attention. At around 6:30 am the power came back on, the furnace kicked in, and things were back to almost normal.

Enjoy our Tuesday even if your day started as ours did. Now for more coffee in case the power blinks off again. Comments are always welcome.

Up is down

Things are getting crazy in our world and don’t look to get any better anytime soon. If some medical experts, politicians, and sidewalk preachers are to be believed if the virus don’t kill us the climate will. Getting more than tired of this ‘Boy who cried wolf’ approach that seems so popular now.

There are scientists and doctors who are saying that lockdowns and mask wearing is a hoax. Others say social distancing doesn’t work since the virus can actually spread up to 30 feet during a sneeze or cough. And this whole stimulus package is a bunch of cow chips.

Our politicians pat themselves on the back because they give us a small rebate on taxes paid which will only increase taxes down the road. Said politicians are spending money like drunken sailors with no thought of how to pay it back. And all the while these self-righteous asshats hold parties and enjoy fine dining without masks or practicing social distancing.

Nope, nothing to see here. Can’t figure out why people fall for the bull they’re shipping and just shake my head. For instance; why can we cram as many people as possible into a WalMart but restrict schools and restaurants? I’ll bet their kids aren’t doing the remote learning.

Yes, what’s up is down and BS is the new standard for politicians and the media. Excuse us if we pass. We’ve been on the drama train before and didn’t care for the ride.

Enjoy our Monday as we woke up breathing again. Now for more coffee. Comments are always welcome.

Sunday snicker

A pastor fell out with his church council over various policies and procedures, including how the finances were handled.

After bitter arguments and many nights of lost sleep, he decided to leave the congregation to take a job as a prison chaplain.

He preached his last sermon at the church on John 14:1: “I go to prepare a place for you.”

Oops!

Seems I misspoke yesterday when I wrote that Little Bit was the last feral cat left. I saw this white one in a trap and later said trap was gone. Silly me, I thought that meant we’d never see this white cat again.

Imagine my surprise when going out later yesterday to find the cat had gotten away somehow and was now in the wind again. Even Little Bit seemed happy with that. She went from several playmates to none in a short time.

Not sure how long the white ghost will remain free but look forward to find out on my own. With feral cats you never know. We’ll just enjoy her while she’s around and miss her when she’s gone. As mentioned yesterday we can’t bring them all in or we’d have to add a room to the house.

It’s turning cooler today and we may get some liquid love from above to make it seem cooler. Don’t know about where you’re at, but it’s been windy here and though we’ve gotten used to it we could use a calm day. We’re just looking forward to a little vacation next month, unless everyone is on lockdown.

Enjoy our Saturday as it’s one of the shortest days of the week. Now I need coffee. Comments are always welcome.

Last one standing

We call the cat in the picture Little Bit and she is now the last of the feral cats still running free. Saw our neighbor while unloading the groceries and he said they had her trapped once but when they opened the trap to grab her, she ran off.

Almost thought about catching her and bringing her in the house until I remember the wife already had 4 cats in the house. That wouldn’t be so bad except they get underfoot and scream when I step on them. Know my heart must be ok with all that unexpected screaming going on.

According to the neighbor, all the trapped cats are getting spayed or neutered and will be released in the wild. I forgot to ask him where ‘the wild’ is. Said neighbors and us have been feeding these cats since they’ve been weaned and we’re not sure they could hunt their own food.

Next time I see the neighbor I have some questions. On the bright side, we should use a lot less cat food than we have been using. But that also means I may have to travel to find critters to photograph. With the colder weather the birds aren’t as plentiful so we may have a lot of sky pictures in the short term.

Enjoy our Friday as it’s here anyway. Now for some more coffee and a snack. Comments are always welcome.