'Tis The Season

It's not just the deer that have mating on the mind.  Both goats came into season at the same time and their tails are whirring so fast I really expect to see their hind ends lift up and hover.  I'm happy to report that whatever was wrong with Tessie's foot seems to have healed or, as I suspect, what was probably a rock was dislodged.  If she had let me, I could have helped her days ago.  Silly girl.

My shirts are a pretty good indicator of the changing weather.  I've gone from tank tops to tee-shirts and now I'm in long sleeves.  Yesterday I put on gloves to go down to the barn.  I know it's still in the 40s, but the house was colder inside than outdoors.  Sitting outside on the deck didn't help much as the sunshine was weak, trying to get through the smoke from the valley.  Coming back in and shivering, I thought to myself, "Self, this is ridiculous.  The Kids split all that wood for just this reason," and I lit up Stove for the first time this season.  Good old Stove.  He fired up right away and the house was warm in no time.  I didn't want to get caught making another midnight trash run again, so Bess and I went down to the big road in the afternoon.  Omigosh, coming back to a warm house was pure bliss.

I've really got to keep a closer eye on the calendar.  Thanksgiving is coming faster than a freight train and I'm not ready (but I'll be vacuumed!).  The menu never changes, so making a shopping list is a breeze, but it does require that I go shopping.  Aarrgh.  And then will come Christmas....

Yup, the holiday season is upon us.

Haute Couture

I made a quick trip up to Holiday yesterday.  I needed just a few things and it wasn't worth going into town.  As I approached the store from the parking lot, a little old man who had been sitting outside hurriedly came toward me pushing a grocery cart.  "Here ya go, ma'am."  Turns out he had a table set up to hopefully collect donations for veterans.  He, himself, had on a veterans cap and a VFW jacket.  From his age, he probably was in Vietnam or earlier.  There are two funds to which I will drop a bill in the can or bucket:  Veterans and the Salvation Army.  This gentleman insisted I have one of the VFW Buddy Poppies and showed me where he thought it would look best.  I'd have loved to talk with him, but another shopper was approaching and he took his self-imposed duty of providing a cart seriously.

I am definitely starting a fashion trend.  The last time I was shopping in town, I was stopped by a lady who wanted to know where I got my bibbies.  She wanted a set for gardening.  They are surprisingly hard to find.  The same thing happened yesterday at Holiday.  Again I explained I go online to shop.  (Dickies should give me a discount for advertising.)  Later, a man stopped me, saying he hadn't seen anyone wearing bibbies in over twenty years.  It's a trend, I tell you!

Finished shopping, I put my groceries in the truck and started to return my cart to the store.  (I'm one of those who always walks the cart back; it's so irritating when they're left in the parking lot.)  Before I could get there, that gentleman again came hurrying to me to take the cart back himself.  What can you say but thank you?

As Luck Would Have It

If I seem to wax rhapsodic about something as mundane as a vacuum cleaner, it's because this thing is amazing.  For someone who grew up with an effective but heavy and clumsy Electrolux canister that had to be dragged around, the advancements in technology leave me gobsmacked.  I thought when the cyclonic cleaners that didn't need replacement bags were as good as it was going to get.  This new one swivels so it can get into crevices and has such a low profile that it could go under the armoires where no other vacuum could reach.  Aren't I the lucky one that the Kids made exactly the right choice for me?

As for Clint Bowyer, if it weren't for bad luck, he'd have no luck at all.  He started the race yesterday toward the back of the pack and had worked his way up to seventh place in the last stage and then his car was wrecked and he got a DNF (did not finish).  That put him out of contention for the big-money race this year.  Phooey.

My heart breaks for the thousands of people displaced and the devastation of the Camp Fire up north.  Entire towns and hundreds of thousands of acres have been burnt to ash.  For the second season, family members have lost their homes, but luckily escaped with their lives.  First responders in all departments deserve all the support and gratitude we have.  Once again, California, north and south, is under attack by fire.  I try to stay apolitical, but when POTUS declares it is our own fault and threatens to withhold aid, I find that despicable.  We're not exactly in charge of climate change and years of drought have left us vulnerable.

Let's hope the forecasters are right.  With any luck we could get some rain by next week.  Fingers crossed.

Holiday Season

I don't care what the calendar said, yesterday was Christmas at my house.  Deb and Craig arrived and they came bearing gifts.  Yes, Santa has helpers.  Seeing the Kids was the best present, but then they started unloading their truck.  Good grief!  There were Meyer lemons from their tree and treat after treat from Costco, including a big bag of pistachios (I'm addicted).  I'm set for cold weather with a bright-red plaid flannel jacket with fleece lining; how luxurious is that?  In keeping with the out-of-season holiday, there was even a bottle of boozy eggnog!  I immediately turned on some appropriate music to help the spirit.  They also brought KFC, which they said they only have when they come up here, and the same goes for me.  I never want to take the time to stop to eat anywhere on a trip to town; I just want to get home.  Gosh, everything tasted so good, and I'm sure the company had a big part in that.

And then...and then came the biggie, a new, high-end vacuum cleaner!!  The last one I'd bought was still standing in the living room, abandoned due to my frustration with its inefficiency.  Craig put the new one together (he'd heard about my two-day episode with the old one) and we gave it a trial run.  As Willie Nelson would say, it could suck the chrome off a trailer hitch!  It is cordless, how do they do that?, so I'll be saved having to plug and unplug when going from room to room.  If I saw the Kids any oftener, I'd have told them to enjoy themselves while I finished cleaning.  Who knew vacuuming could be fun?  NASCAR or no NASCAR, I know what I'll be doing today.

Craig traditionally takes a nap when they come up, and Deb and I played catch up.  That in itself is a gift.  Later, we all went out so I could introduce the Delawares, especially since they're now living in the Taj that Craig built.  The door that Clay cut is, as he knew it would be, fine as a makeshift cover, and Craig immediately started planning how he'd make permanent doors.  That will be great if and when we get rainy weather.

The deer are in rut now and oblivious to traffic, so it was important for the Kids to get out of the hills before dark, but it was hard to say goodbye, even with "Love You" echoing down the drive.  I put the critters to bed and went in the house to relive a truly great day.

Some while later the phone rang.  It was Deb saying they'd be back shortly as she'd left her wallet on the table.  Those poor Kids, it's a long enough trip as it is, and having to double back just made it longer.  Sure enough, they'd seen a number of deer roaming around on the roads, including three bucks, one in my yard.  It did give me another chance to say thank you and "Love you!"  Christmas doesn't get any better.

On The Horizon

The view from Farview got a change recently.  There was a lot of activity on my neighbor's property with heavy equipment, but it all went on just over the hill so I couldn't satisfy my curiosity.  The only reason I know for sure what the enormously tall pole is for is because a couple of workers bringing more equipment got lost and ended up in my driveway asking for directions.  It's some kind of newfangled telephone pole!  I can't say it's a thing of beauty or that it adds to the view of the horizon, but I am grateful that it's not directly in my line of sight and somewhat off to the side.  Oh well.

Without going to the store, I was trying to come up with a little something, anything, to serve to Arden as an appetizer, using ingredients on hand.  Rummaging through the pantry and freezer, I came across a package of frozen pie dough left over from baking a single-crust pie in the past.  (I always make a double batch.)  Hmmm.  It came to me that I've not made an onion-and-bacon pie in years and that would be perfect, good at room temperature if our visit was delayed, which it was.  Since my friend arrived closer to the dinner hour, I threw in some roasted Brussels sprouts and we called it a meal.  I always enjoy Arden's visits, not least because we have such wide-ranging conversations.

And what's on my horizon today?  A confirmed visit from Deb and Craig!  Whoopee!!

Erratum:  I shortchanged the Panthers yesterday.  They actually got 21 points, not the 14 I stated.  (They still lost big time.)

Mystery

Sometimes a thing occurs so gradually that you don't know it's happening until it's done.  The ground squirrels have gone missing.  Oh, there's a token gang of five to nine still hanging around in the front yard, but I don't hear Shaddup yipping anymore and, come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I saw Robert the Raider on the deck.  Turk doesn't come to sit on the bird feeder in the morning.  The pens that teemed with the furry critters are empty.  Believe me, I'm not complaining, but where did they go, and why?

Did I mention the leaves?  The wind that sprang up yesterday did not clear the deck for me, but generously piled up this mess by and on the front porch, nearly burying the garden pigs.  Raking now would be an exercise in futility because the oaks haven't dropped their full load.  Sigh.

I don't see Missy on every trip to the barn, but she's not missing a meal.  Her bowl is empty every time.  I wonder where she went for so long and why, another mystery.

The Steelers/Panthers game last night was a rout:  52-21!  The Steelers were virtually unstoppable.  Yay!  The Vikings are doing well, too.

Arden is coming over this afternoon and (shhh, I don't want to jinx it) Deb and Craig are planning to come up tomorrow.  I don't mind dusting when there's a real reason for it.

Over And Done

Whew!  I, for one, am so glad to see the end of the many, many political campaign ads on TV.  The mute button got a real workout because of all the rancor and down-and-dirty mud slinging.  There's enough meanness in the world without having it in my living room.  Hopefully it will be two years without any more.

Tessie has been limping for two days now.  She won't let me touch her leg so I can't tell the cause.  It could be something as simple as a stone or sticker between her toes, but I can't look if she won't get up on the stand.  I have liniment if it's a strained muscle.

Sheila, on the other hand, has developed a bad case of the needies.  She's waiting when I come out of the barn to rub against me and then won't move until I scratch her head and talk sweet talk to her.  Then she walks beside me up to the gate, preferably with my hand on her back.  I guess we're besties now.

The hens have not laid an egg since the move.  I don't know enough about their reproductive systems, but I hope they're not stacking eggs inside.  How uncomfortable would that be?

What a difference the comforter made last night.  My niece in New Hampshire gave a hoot when I told her yesterday that we're down in the 40s at night.  Yeah, it's all relative.

A pretty good wind has sprung up.  With any luck it will blow a lot of those leaves off the deck and save me some work.  Odds are, though, that it will just bring more.  Oh well, they don't call it fall for nothing.