Supervisor

 Rod was working on the floor in my office

this morning before he headed off to work.

He had a supervisor.

He is using a vibrating spade 

to take the rest of the tile mastic off the floor.

Beau doesn't trust it and wants to bite

it to protect Rod from it.

(I guess...)

Anyhow, we had to bring him out and shut the door.

But it is a REALLY dusty job.

So poor Rod was in there with all that dust.

I was going to try to work on it a little,

but yesterday I pulled a muscle in my back.

So getting down on my hands and knees

and running a vibrating tool just isn't in the cards.

At least not today.

Obsessed!

 I was watching random YouTubes this afternoon.

There is a young mom in BC.

She has 5 little kids.

She has an interesting channel where she

shows her life, living simply, making

sour dough bread, making most everything

from scratch.

But the SHIRT she is wearing!!!

I LOVE the fabric.

And the shape!

It's a simple, boxy, cropped at the waist

cotton shirt.

And I LOVE it!

I totally would have lived in it back when

I was her age.

Anyhow.

It was chilly today, so I stayed inside and

cleaned my oven and my toaster oven

and my kitchen.

(After making homemade BBQ sauce...)

While watching a young mom with red hair

and the CUTEST shirts.

Surprise!!!

 We got a surprise delivery this morning!

Jelly Belly's and Salt Water Taffy!

Two of the BEST candies in the world!!!

Kyle will especially be thrilled with the jellybeans.

It has been a hard week.

And an expensive one.

Nothing says you are loved quite like a 

box of your favorite candies from your Grandma and Grandpa!

Thank you for thinking of us!

(I'm going to TRY to save some of the taffy

for Kansas - it's REALLY good when it has

been freeze dried - light, puffy, and FUN!)

I make no promises.

It's Friday already.

How does that even happen?

We had a really good Emotional Resilience

class last night - there were just 5 of us there.

(Kyle & I, Nick the facilitator, Wanda & Ashley)

We were missing Ashley's Mom & sister and

Michael - the EQ Pres.

It was Chapter 7 - addictive behavior.

Some good insights about what is addiction.

And what isn't.

It's not always the standard things we think about.

And those aren't always a true addiction.

Anyhow, it was a good evening.

However, I forgot to take the bulletin

with me to make copies.

So when it quits raining, I'll run over to the

church to do that and play the piano for a bit.

I'm playing for Relief Society this week,

so I should pick something and practice it.

Guess I'd better review the talk first.

Before

Kyle just sent me a before picture of

the project tractor.

 It's kinda rough.

But it's slowly getting to a point where

they can at least load it onto a trailer

and it will be able to make the trip.

The axle came yesterday.

The starter comes... tomorrow?

Meanwhile...

I've been busy with paperwork,

we spoke with the electrician yesterday.

He walked through the house and gave us

some suggestions of how we can get done

what we want to get done the most

efficient, safe and cost effective way.

He will get back with us this week sometime

and give us a quote so we can get on

his schedule. I think he is booked out

through March and maybe into April.

But we'll see.

He said the way its wired right now is safe,

but I need more outlets in the kitchen,

we need an outlet in the bathroom,

and we will need several in the garage.

Kyle has been busy mulching.

On Tuesday his mulching head threw a knife.

(In English... the HEAVY metal thing his

cutting teeth attach to flung off!)

It immediately started a violent vibration.

So he had to shut it down.

And, of course, with all the rain, everything

is under water.

So the next morning he went to the store and

bought a metal detector.

And then he went out and found the part.

(Said it took about 4 seconds, but he would 

have NEVER found it without the detector.)

Then he went to another store and bought

a new welder, because, as we all know...

say it with me...

the welder is in Kansas.

He spent the entire day yesterday grinding

and welding and grinding and welding

and got the part back on.

(He said he welded it THREE times to

make sure it doesn't fling off again...)

(Oh, and he painted it GREEN so he could 

keep an eye on it... at least until all the

paint wears off. Probably in about 15 minutes.

hahahahaha)

And then he turned all the teeth and sharpened

them all again. (MORE grinding.)

Anyhow.

On Monday his alternator in his Cat went out,

so he had to buy a new one and install that.

Good thing he has BIG jobs this month

because he is spending BIG money.

That's NOT how this is supposed to work.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to eat out of the

pantry and freezer so we won't have a bunch

of food we need to get rid of.

The time is getting closer!

We've been having some kind of creative meals.

Rod's hours were changed again, so now he is 

supposed to work 2-10 but he usually goes in

before noon and stays until after 10.

(It's nearly impossible to stop in the middle

of a project!)

This morning and tomorrow morning he is

doing the last of his continuing education here

at the house via zoom.

I'm getting ready to head out the door.

Hope you are having a wonderful day!

Stay safe, healthy and happy.

Another Project

 Kyle was mulching a couple acre parcel

and came upon a discovery.

Under all the palm and brush there was

a little, OLD TRACTOR!

*with some implements...

It was old.

It was rough.

Only one of the tires was flat though.

So there's that...

The people asked him to haul it away.

So he did.

To our back patio.

Where all projects seem to end up.

He's got it torn apart, waiting for the new axle

(the old one broke while he was loading

it onto the trailer - looked like it had broken

before and somebody sort of welded it together...)

and a new starter.

The idea is to have a project for them to work

on together when they get to Kansas.

But first they have to do some elementary stuff

to make sure the thing will even start.

No point hauling it across the country

if its basically a useless rust bucket.

(But it DOES turn over... so there's hope.)

And it's a beautiful, clear, chilly day.

Perfect for a fun project outside.

Meanwhile, while I was helping out at

a funeral (the new RS president is sick so I

filled in for her) Rod finished getting all

the tile up in the zoom room.

It's coming along.

Next, some leveling concrete.

And carpet.

I just noticed, 

it's about the same color as the concrete.

76

 It's been chilly and / or raining for 

WEEKS.

In fact, the last time we went to the beach

was to watch a night rocket launch.

But before that, it had been more than a MONTH!!!

Well, today when I finished subbing for the morning

class on zoom, Kyle came into my zoom room and

said it was lovely outside and we should hit the beach!

So we DID!

It was a little cloudy, but still it was SO NICE.

When I walked by the thermostat by the

patio doors, I glanced down and was excited

to see the temperature was 76!

(Not 60 something...)

And my brain immediately started singing.

76 Trombones led the big parade.

110 something something blah-di-blah.....

Hahahahaha.

And it was stuck in my brain all afternoon.

You're welcome.

Zoom Room Changes

 We have decided to pull up the tile in my zoom room.

It was Sotelo tile - which nobody is doing anymore.

When Bill (the previous owner) tiled it, this must

have been the final room and he was either bored

or running out of material.

Either way, near the door, the tiles barely have

ANY mastic under them.

And as a result lots of them had lifted and some

of them had broken.

We can't replace them.

We can't repair them.

So... while I was out of town last weekend

Kyle removed about 80% of the tiles.

He just has a row next to the front wall 

and the inside of the closet.

It made a nice big pile of broken tile.

And a LOT of dust.

Once he gets done, we are going to put some

self-leveling concrete to fix the slope

in the floor and then we are going to 

have Home Depot come and put down

some inexpensive gray carpet.

We'll put a nice thick carpet tile under it.

It should cost between $200 and maybe $300

to get it all done.

I'll take pictures when it's finished.

I'm paying him in Jelly Belly jellybeans.

($15 per bag!!!)

Spoon!

I have been in West Palm Beach this weekend.

Teaching a class - this month they actually

all spoke English! What a treat!

I was also training a new instructor to take

over this location when I move away.

This month he only observed.

But he taught in New York for several years,

so it was more of a review for him.

This new curriculum is brutal!

I'm teaching the exact same material,

but instead of 40 hours, we are doing it in 30.

So instead of slowing down, taking time,

doing LOTS of reviewing and playing games, 

and finishing "teaching" about 5:30 and then

reviewing for the final hour,

I'm teaching straight through from 8:00 right up

until the final bell at 6:50.

It's hard on me.

It's hard on the students.

But we got it done.

And over half the class passed.

(I think we will see pass ratios go down because of it...)

Anyhow.

While we were painting the kitchen,

I was glad we decided to pull out the stove.

Because I knew there was a treasure behind it!

MANY years ago when I was visiting Sondra,

she bought me this cool wooden spoon.

Not for it's spoon abilities,

but because I could hold it and my thumb fit

PERFECTLY in the bowl.

Hahahahaha.

Anyhow, it sat on the top of my stove in the

Palm Bay house, and then when we moved,

it lay on the top of the stove here.

Then one day, it slipped down behind the stove.

And has been hiding there ever since.

(Like for 15+ years.)

I was super excited to see it!

It is now safely housed in a drawer and will

be making the move to WaKeeney with us.

*PS - check out the "Get Wakeeney" page

on Facebook. There are some pictures of the

snow they got last week, as well as pictures

of the fun downtown area when it's all lit

up and decorated for Christmas.

Juxtaposition

 I just got a phone call and a text

from our realtor in WaKeeney.

Like most of the country, they are experiencing

a very unusual winter.

She said out at their farm they received between

6 and 8 inches of snow.

But the wind has been really blowing - up to 60 mph!

They are grateful for the snow though.

She said it's was nice and wet.

(Although now it has a good crust on it,

enough that she could walk on it...)

So doesn't make for very good snowmen.

Meanwhile...

Kyle just brought in our latest harvest.

Unfortunately we don't have our freeze dryer,

so when they ripen I imagine we will be 

giving bananas away to anyone who will take them.

(They are call Vanilla Custard bananas and are

really delicious! But one can only eat so many...)

Stay warm, safe and dry wherever you find yourself today.

Kyle Keeps Building!

 The other day Kyle gathered up some

left-over wood from around the property

and made THIS!

He cut and planed all the wood

and then he created a dresser

with 3 drawers (with wooden rails)

and a drawer on the bottom to hold

his laundry basket.

Then he painted the sides and the top 

with some of the left over paint from the house.

And then he sanded most of it off...

Leaving a nicely distressed look.

Put some stain and poly on it...

added some cabinet pulls I had in a box...

and PRESTO!

I think it turned out REALLY nice!

I especially like the bottom drawer.

Very smart.

Way to go Kyle!

Now make ME one!

Happy Birthday Soni!

 Happy Birthday Soni!!!

I was HOPING to find some more current photos.

But although we chat nearly every week,

we don't get together often.

And when we do, we are TERRIBLE

about taking pictures!

But we all know who she is and what she looks like,

right?

Hahahahaha.

I loved that shirt so much I went out and bought one

just like it!

I so look forward to our weekly check-ins!

Sometimes we solve all the problems in the universe.

Sometimes we share recipes,

and sometimes we just rag on each other's weather.

But we always end up laughing.

I love that Soni makes the effort to stay in touch.

We've been talking on the phone on Thursday morning

but more than a decade.

I have memories of being on the phone with her

at work when I still worked in Melbourne...

so... I don't know... years and years ago.

(I'm TERRIBLE about time frames...)

But it's not just me - she also has standing

"appointments" with lots of family members

and even friends!

She's so good at talking with people!

I remember when we did the family reunion in Montana.

Jim was an infant!

Goodness, that makes it 34 years ago!

Everybody went inside to do... something...

and Sondra was out by the barn,

sitting on the porch,

chatting with one of the cowboys.

Just finding out what his life was like and

who he was and why he picked this lifestyle.

No surprise she has become the amazing

therapist that she is.

She GETS people!

Happy Birthday Soni!

I love you!!!

Happy New Year!

 Welcome 2024!

I can't even begin to imagine the things that

are going to happen this coming year.

It is going to be a pivotal year in so many ways.

I'm kind of excited (and a little nervous)

to get this party started!

But today?

I'm taking down the Christmas tree.

Packing it away for the trip north.

(So glad we didn't pack it on the first run!)

Rod is putting in the new door in the tack room.

Kyle is mowing all the pastures and yards.

And he just brought me in a beautiful

bouquet of flowers from the back yard.

I don't know what they are called, but we

call them feather dusters.

We started with the dark purple ones.

Then some yellow ones.

And it looks like they have cross pollenated

because now we have some that are 

kind of rust looking as well as

some orange!!!

I love nature.