the heat is on

I went to Jackson this morning with the intention of swimming with Reaves at her Daddy's house.  I sat around waiting for Lauren to get there from church and by the time we got there the place was packed out!  They were working on getting the pool converted to salt water which looked like it might take a while so I sat with her in my lap soaking up the coolness of her wet bathing suit.  I do NOT do heat well therefore, I didn't last long.  At least I got some hugs from both she and Alex and he gave me a picture to put on the fridge that was just for me.  Sweet sweet kiddo.  They call her Elizabeth and I call ther Reaves so I'm hoping there's no identity crisis!  Both of the kids call me Gaga.

I made the mistake of looking ahead at the weather and it ain't looking good.  Like several days of over a hundred.  I may have to get a third job to pay the electric bill.  I do pre-pay so as not to get a big surprise at the end of the month and it's running about 5 to 6 dollars a day when it's this hot.  I shudder to think what it would be without good windows and a nice storm door.  

Highway 412 has several areas under construction meaning that half of it is newly paved in one lane. Madison County is done and smooth as a baby's butt except there's that clusterf**k at I-40 on Hollywood.  As for metro Jackson's streets they are a hot mess.  Kind of like Dyersburg.

I'm looking for a GI doc in Jackson and Jackson Clinic only has one who is evidently not taking new patients because I called and did not get a call back.  There's gotta' be somebody else and I will keep looking.  Rome wasn't built in a day.  

That whole deal with the Titanic expedition was a disaster but hopefully those guys didn't feel a thing.  They knew the risks.  I have no idea how long a millisecond is but supposedly that's how long it took to implode.  No pain according to "experts."  At least they died doing what they loved.

Y'all do what you can to stay cool.  There are cooling stations available everywhere so seek them out.  We may get some severe storms tonight so heads up^j^

gator time

Bubba and Sadie scooped me up for a visit to the bottoms where the farmers are working. It was kind of fascinating to see the lush green areas close to the river vs the baby plants busting out of the hard dirt.  The old riverbed is still there with one entrance where Flatt does his fishing back where Joe and Ernest used to go.  The field corn is not far from tasseling but I don't eat that.  Just give me some sweet corn and squash and I'm happy.

It's such a small small world. I attended a luncheon yesterday where some awards were presented to those who are involved with the PADD coalition and one of them was a distant cousin.  I was totally impressed with all that these people do with the partnerships they have formed, especially for early intervention with tobacco use, binge drinking and prescription drug use.  That's why I love being a stringer.  You learn something new with every interview.  

I made a Kroger run this morning and once again I'm amazed at how much food costs.  One of our staples when I was growing up was pot roast.  I price checked today and they are twenty bucks plus.  I spent 72 bucks which should get me through until another payday.  I think back to how my mother fed a family of five and realize that Daddy's garden was a necessity for us to survive.  He had an electric pea sheller that he used for purple hulls that made the task much easier and kept the freezer full.  To this day they are still my favorite.

It's about to be 100ish every day so y'all stay cool and be blessed ^j^  Love ya....mean it.  

running the other way

Like most everybody who has grown up in church I kinda' sorta' knew the story of Jonah.  Today I learned the rest of it!  Mary Beth explained that God instructed Jonah to go to Nineveh which was a pretty evil place with lots of sin and the streets lined with corpses.  Jonah, as we all do on occasion, decided to not follow directions and boarded a ship to sail 2500 miles away from home.  Pretty soon the ship was hit with horrific storms and wind and the sailors figured out that it was Jonah's God causing all the mayhem.  He told them to just throw him overboard and it would stop.  They really didn't want to do that and pagans that they were, began to pray for the whole thing to cease.  Which it did not, until Jonah hit the water.  A huge fish, possibly a whale, swallowed Jonah up and he stayed in the belly of the fish for three days and nights until he got spit back out onto dry land.  Now, one would think that he would have learned his lesson but noooooooooooo.  He constructed himself a little hutch with no roof to protect him from the sun so God gave him a shrub to cover the top and keep him cool.  Evidently Jonah was not grateful enough so a worm came and destroyed the shrub.  Boy was he mad!  He finally went to the place he was told to go to in the beginning of this drama to warn them that they had 40 days before they would be demolished.  And so it goes.

How often do we as Christians refuse to do what God asks of us because it seems unpleasant or against our will?  I do it all the time.  I've never been swallowed by a big fish but my life has been filled with lots of situations that, had I listened to God's voice, might have turned out differently. One instance was when I didn't have a CT because of the cost even though I KNEW I had diverticulitis.  We all know how that turned out.  My friend asked me later "Since when have you not done what he told you to do?" speaking of our mutual doctor friend.  My bad.

Lauren and Reaves and I had a wonderful visit yesterday just playing and playing.  I took a little pink tent that Cathy gave me for her and we tried for a long time to put it together but uh...it was complicated.  We will eventually figure it out!  She had told me she wanted me to bring the tea set so we could have a tea party so I packed up what was left of the hand painted china that Ms. Polly White had made for Lauren.  Come to find out, Reaves had wanted the teapot with Santa Claus on it.  Note to self:  Take that next time.

I was pleasantly surprised by my lab results because my renal function has improved a lot.  Thank you sweet baby jeebus.  Part of me thinks that the Covid vaccines played a part in all that because that's when it started.  But, it could also be influenced by having an ileocolostomy.  And getting old!  Who the heck knows.

Y'all be faithful and transparent and do the next right thing ^j^

take no shit

Not any more.  I'm too old for that.  Unless it's something really important, I just let things roll off my back.  We made a girls' trip to Charlene's today and, Lord have mercy it was more crowded  that I've EVER seen it due to a 20% off sale.  Not that I could afford to buy anything even with that discount!  It was nice to get together and visit though and the food was good.  Carol's 13 year old niece Emma went along for the ride and I really enjoyed spending time with her.  Very cool kid.  She is spending the summer with her grandpa Barry.  I also ran into one of my dear church friends Ms Bobbie and we chatted about every little thing.  She is sweetness personified.  

This morning found me at the kidney doctor's office getting blood drawn in preparation for next week's visit.  I don't expect the numbers to look real good since I've had to take Aleve for the pain in my shoulder.  Donna at Sunflower hooked me up with some arnica cream and curcumin gelcaps to see if that helps with it.  I actually had two pain free days in a row and then last night it started again.  I feel like something is torn up in there like a muscle.  Donna told me to "hit it hard" with the things I bought so that is what I'll do.  She also suggested a new physical therapy place that takes insurance.  I went by to check them out and was impressed.  Gotta' get a referral from my doctor who doesn't work on Friday.

The last of the wheat is being cut so it's a hot hazy mess out there.  I've had three friends requesting t-shirts from the place where I work which kind of surprised me.  I brought home a few for them to choose from.  I'm enjoying the job because I get to see a lot of people.  

My life is pretty boring and I guess that's a good thing. I do miss seeing my girls but that is what it is for now.  Maybe someday things will be different.  

Y'all don't stop believing ^j^

walking the yard

I did a lot of work last spring moving perennials down here from the old house like hosta and the prized red peony.  The hosta and other things from my friends were buried and watered all summer.  Not this year Satan!  Everything I bought in the spring is potted on the deck where it's shady in the afternoon. That's when I water.  Behind the deck is a stargazer about to bloom in a week or so and some volunteer Verbena, red and yellow.  To say I was excited is an understatement.  I plant in faith and learn every growing season.

They are cuttin' wheat out here so the sky is kind of hazy what with all that Canadian smoke drifting down.  God bless all of them. A wildfire could very easily happen here if somebody flicked a cig into the field. That would NOT be cool.  Beans look good in spite of the dry spell.  So does corn.  I started the yard walking with my Daddy years ago.  Kentucky cousin did it with Jimbo and me and Mo do it now.  I love just wandering around barefoot in clover and seeing what's up.

I'm adjusting to the new jobs and planning on doing more as I can.  Right now I'm just praying nobody notices that I'm out of date on you.know.what.  I get paid on Wednesday and it will all be legal...That is when I plan to go grocery shopping!! I have never been so excited in my life.  I used to hate it with a passion.  Now, I want fresh and I want to see it.  

Oscar is coughing a lot more meaning that the heartworms are after him.  I think he had them when we rescued him from the crazy guy down the lane.  As long as he is happy and wagging his tail, he's my baby.  So is Rosie.  My shoulder?  *meh*

It takes awhile to recover from an injury or loss.  Lauren and I have both been grieving our shared experiences and looking for a new normal.  Sometimes that seems impossible, ya' know?  Everybody has an opinion on things and nobody is ever right except by the law.  Which is serving us well this week, by the way.

I don't have any answers but I ask God to show me the way.  One day at a time ^j^

 

burn baby burn

It was bound to happen with a clumsy old lady like me serving food.  Yesterday as I was pouring up hot soup I dripped some on my finger and OUCH!  My first instinct was to run cold water on it but then a co-worker had an incident also and was told to put mustard on it?  She said it worked.  Never heard of that one.  Mine formed a blister overnight which promptly busted this morning so now it's covered.  

After work yesterday I stopped by the local Salvation Army to do an interview with the director and I must say, it was the best one I've had yet.  I was amazed at what this totally volunteer organization manages to accomplish with a very small budget.  In case you feel like donating, they take EVERYTHING between the kitchen and the thrift store.  Right now, they are sorely in need of bottled water.  If you feel froggy, buy a few cases and drop them off.  Today I went back to take pictures and found them in high gear feeding the approximately 200 folks who show up for lunch every day.  And they know most of them by name!

It's hot and dry here so the irrigation rigs are running daily on the corn where the children live.  It's growing like crazy in spite of the dry conditions.  Pretty soon it will be taller than me. Such is farm life.

Y'all keep the faith ^j^

no doze

Well, I am officially tired.  My hurt shoulder flared up yesterday in spite of myself and I hit the recliner to stretch about 5.  Then I tossed and turned all night alternating heat and cold.  All of this was in spite of the last of the pain meds.  I would find a comfy position, snooze for about an hour and then move around.  I was feeling pretty snoozy around 4AM and Rosie found her toy mouse that makes noise.  O.M.G.  Needless to say, it's off the floor.  There's a lot of OTHER things down there, but I'm working on it, as time allows.  

Farmer Joey and his crew are finishing up the last of planting and about to begin on wheat.  That won't directly affect me but the plot across the road could.  Not that I'm spending much time outside because it's freakin' HOT.  Humidity is low though and if you catch a breeze like on my porch it's, as Daddy would say "tolerable."

I had a video chat with Reaves yesterday while she was playing and it made me dizzy being all turned upside down.  That other kid was rowdy.  That is what I get now instead of visits.  Lerd.  It's a long story that I won't go into now because it ain't pretty.  No unicorns or anything like that.  She seems to be having fun though.  That's what counts.

The wheels are turning around here for me to get out of the financial hole if only I budget wisely and the creek don't rise.  Since we've had no rain for three weeks that's a pretty sure thing.  Y'all be merry and bright.  And remember who you are ^j^ 

pick your battles

I've been fighting a lot of things lately like constant diarrhea in el baggo but come to find out, that's normal for someone with the gut set up that I have. I just now learned that stool will be liquid with an ileocolostomy so don't fight it with Lomotil...just empty and regroup. Plan when you eat according to availability of the bathroom.  Working is a challenge that requires timing.  I've lost about 25 pounds since my surgery three years ago and none of my clothes fit anymore.  I think this is also normal because the nutrients are not being absorbed.  Sounds like protein shake time! I have very little appetite for real food except in the morning.  

It's not officially summer yet but..it's here, following a brief pause.  No rain in a long time so it's dry as heck.  They bush hogged the farm lot next to me today and dust was everywhere!  Reaves and I talked about my new jobs today and she wants me to bring her a newspaper and a cookie next time I come.  We were going to video chat but something got messed up and I missed it.  She always asks about her cat Angel Henry who went to heaven.  "But where did he go?"  I replied that I thought he just wandered off and got in some trouble.  He was a pure housecat who had never been outside.  I managed to keep him in for a few days but he slipped out and that was it.  Life can be cruel.

I told my friend today about a situation and she immediately started googlein'  by zip code.  I love that girl.  She was concerned because I had not been sharing my posts with her.  I explained that I had been in a mood that wasn't particularly, um...positive so I didn't think folks would like that.  Not ranting, just talking about stuff and naming no names.  Except for the usual cast of Pecan Lane.  That consists of Bubba, LP and Reaves plus the farmers and the neighbors.  We are all just far enough apart that, while not in each others' faces we watch each others backs.  That's a good feeling.

My favorite neighbors were the Gilbreath family down the lane.  We both gardened and helped each out. They fed me many times and I watched Mia grow from a shy 10 year old into a beautiful young woman, newly graduated from DHS and headed for college.  The steady hum of the AC reminds me that today's bill will probably hit five bucks and there's only 45 there.  I'm playing it close to the vest right now until I get a paycheck.  

I won't promise no more pity parties, but they will be fewer.  I feel myself being lifted out and from this hole by the prayers and good wishes of others.  And to the ones of you who listen to me cry on the phone, bless y'alls hearts ^j^