THIS MORNING AT OUR HOUSE



GOOD MORNING!

IF WE STAND REAL STILL, MAYBE THEY'LL THINK WE ARE YARD ORNAMENTS...

WHAT HAVE WE HERE, COMPETITION?



BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS



YOU CAN'T SEE ME NOW...

I'M OUT OF HERE!



LET ME IN PLEASE...

A to Z Challenge

When April comes around I will be blogging every day.  I joined the " Blogging from A to Z Challenge" with my friend Betty at A Bench With A View.  The decision wasn't an easy one since I've been such a sporadic blogger lately, but I'm looking forward to it.  So during the month of April, there will be a post from me each day, beginning with the letter A on April 1. They suggest settling on a theme to make it easier to stay true to the challenge.  So I've done that.  But you will have to wait until April to find out what that theme is.

If you are interested in joining in, just click on the link below or on my sidebar.  I was number 307 when I signed up the day the challenge opened (I think last Wednesday).  There are almost 500 bloggers linked up at this time.  This is going to be fun!

Barn Charm

It has been quite awhile since I have participated in Barn Charm.  Missouri's landscape is dotted with barns - some in great shape, but sadly, many sagging with old age and neglect.  Today's barn is a drive-by shooting from our recent trip to Chamois.  It is the proud owner of a salvage yard and antique cars.  The owner is a distant relative of Jim's.  I've seen his cars in some of the local antique car shows, and let me tell you, they are works of art.

 

So how about it.  Head on over to Bluff Area Daily and check out all of the other barns from around the world. 

 

I hope everyone has a great Tuesday.  The Missouri temperatures are still in the upper 60's.  We have been promised rain - thunderstorms to be exact.  Since the drought has continued through the winter, we will gladly and pleadingly take that promise of rain.  Tomorrow's forecast?  Why snow, of course!

 

 

 

If anyone had told me that I would be outside on January 28th, painting shelves for the new bookshelf going in my scrapbook room, I would have just smiled and said "yea, sure".  Same goes for temperatures climbing to the upper 70's.  But, then, what do I know.... 

Go rest high

 

With the temperatures climbing into the 60's last Saturday, we abandoned all thoughts of cleaning the house, as we had planned, grabbed a picnic lunch, and headed to destiny's unknown.  We ultimately ended up in the little town of Chamois, MO, visiting Jim's dad, Elmer.  It seemed fitting to spend some time with him on such a beautiful day, since last week marked the 17th anniversary of his passing. 

 

After all of these years, I still think of Elmer with a smile on my face.  He called me Nana and treated me like a daughter.  A mechanic by trade, he spent all of his spare time as a shade tree mechanic, bringing car motors back to life and banging dents out of old cars.  He was the worst money manager known to this universe, seeming to never have two nickels to rub together.  But somehow, he kept his family fed and a roof over their heads.  He was a great grandpa to my kids, letting them crawl all over his big belly as he laid on the cool concrete of the car port when the heat of summer was too much for him.  He also called them "little shit asses".  He was a good dad to Jim, as he shook his head in disbelief that his son would build his house in the middle of "all those tall trees".  We loved him and still get teary eyed when we reminesce about him.

 

Elmer is layed to rest with many other relatives in the Most Pure Heart of Mary Cemetery.  So, go rest high where the Eagles soar, Elmer.  We love you and miss you.

 

Most Pure Heart of Mary Cemetery, Chamois, MO, overlooking the little town and the river bluffs.

View from cemetery, overlooking farm land, railroad tracks, and the Missouri River.

As we walked among the graves of oh so many relatives, we heard the unmistakable trill of an Eagle.  Pure majesty.

 

 

 

 

The country road, Hwy. 100, back to Callaway County.  See ya Elmer!

Old People

Sometimes comments become a blog of itself.  This is one of those times: 

My friend Iggy said:

"I missed a (couple) days in school, what is an OATS bus? Old And Tired Senior?"

OATS, as used in my blog post, stands for Older Adult Transporation System.  To make sure I was correct, I googled it and found it is an acronym for various other titles, none of which have anything to do with "old and tired seniors".  It is a great service, providing transportation to older people who are unable to otherwise get out and about.  We have many little towns around Jefferson City that are great places to live, but offer very few services and places to shop.  So OATS is definitely a valuable service.

Then Iggy went on to say : "My mom who is much older than you, Punkn, carps about the "old foaggies" that shuffle their feet, look truly lost and call the Mrs on a cellphone (they did figure out how to do that) and ask what size can of Baked Beans to get (and the answer is probably, "Get the same size we have gotten for 45 years!") when she in the Florida Keys. :) "

I hooted a little at this one, because he described dear ol' Jim to a T.  A don't belieive he has ever gone to the store without standing in one of the food aisles with his phone out, calling me to ask something like "did you want low fat or plain sour cream" (I always buy the low fat).  But then, he also usually calls to say, "Have you thought of anything else" - and almost always I have.  Never mind the fact that after he calls to make sure I've thought of everything, I call him as he pulls out of the grocery store parking lot, saying "Oh, I forgot I need a _________________ (fill in the blank)!

I'll admit it.  If there is an OATS bus anywhere near a store, I tend to avoid shopping there - especially if that store is ALDI's grocery store.  (For those who don't know, Aldi's is a discount grocery store.)  My experience has been that the old folk tend to stick together, toddling down the aisles two by two, stopping to visit and talk over the price of things.  And of course, getting the food out of their carts and onto the conveyer belt is a whole 'nother story.  It is easy to help unload their carts, but even paying for their groceries is quite an ordeal.  So I avoid the whole scene.

Aldi's uses a quarter system to control cart returns.  You put a quarter in a slot to get your cart.  Then when you return your cart, the quarter pops back out of the slot.  Today was an Aldi's run day.  The OATS bus was just pulling up as I left the store.  Whew, I dodged that bullet!  As I returned my cart to the corral, a little lady was trying to figure out the whole quarter system.  The bus driver was trying to explain it to her, but he had his hands full helping everyone else.  I offered her my cart and the driver told her she had to give me a quarter.  The baffled look on that poor lady's face!  I told her it was ok, the cart was hers to use.  Right then and there I made a vow to no longer avoid the OATS bus.  Maybe, just maybe I can help make shopping just a little easier for this generation preceeding me.  Face it, I'm not that far behind them, and sure will appreciate a little caring and understanding when it is my turn to stand at the cart corral looking confused. 

And before my kids kindly point out that I am already often confounded and confused, I know it.  Just so you know, though, it is only going to get worse!

"Butt jiggle is just my little way of..Waving goodbye!" Maxine