"Things change and stay the same?"

               How can things change and also stay the same? Well I am about to tell you and show you how.

               The words “show you” should indicate to those of you who are alert, awake and or paying attention, there will be a photo in this message. For that one person that isn’t aware of your surroundings let me state, there will be a photo in this message.

               Message; wow I am in the process of posting messages. That would indicate that I have some amount of information that is worth passing on, but is it?

               David and Clair have move into their new home which has left the Ford Homestead “an Empty Nest”.  Alex and Gabi no longer have to share a room. Alex was excited that his room had a closet and his own window.  

               My wife of 44 years has moved some of the furniture in the room that Gabi and Alex used. Now that Alex no longer uses the bed, Molly T has decided to take over and use it for her naps when she doesn’t want to be bothered by humans. That is how things change and stay the same.

I ask you, does this cat have the life or what. Not only is she using the bed without permission but she has her head on the pillow. I would expect her to have her paw around one of the stuffed animals next time she naps.
 

Today, Thursday is house cleaning day for my wife of 44 years.  Alex often helps with the dusting and I most often try to stay out of the way.
 

               Well I guess that is about it for now, I hope you have an outstanding day!

 

Ford’s Place

 

 

Shredding papers at the Ford Homestead

               As I sat in my chair, in what use to be my office, my constant companion Tejas asked what I was doing. I explained that my wife of 44 years had instructed me to shred three years of Ford Homestead top secrete papers. These papers could also be known as old checks and statements.

               The shredding of papers sounds easy but it is more difficult than first thought.  I first have to get the shredder from its storage location in the garage. Then I go through the book like calendar and remove all the checks and bills. Once these are removed I need to unfold each page or set of pages. After this preparation I oil the unit by placing a few drops of vegetable oil on the cutting blades (this is recommended by the mfg.). At this point I am ready to start the shredding process. When I start I try to feed the papers in the shredder in a manner as to keep the motor running continuously. I must occasionally check the shredded paper receptacle to keep it from getting too full. Dumping it into a trash bag is a skill in itself. I am skilled in removing the shredded paper to a point that I now do not spill any during the process, most of the time.

               I have found that is takes about an hour to shred a years’ worth of top secrete papers.

               My almost constant, “trouble companion,” has just come into the room and deposited her body on my desk and keyboard. This trouble making cat seems to enjoy getting in my way when I am trying to enter data into the computer or when I am shaving or brushing my teeth. If I wasn’t on a fixed income, I would offer money to someone to take the cat.

               Our memorial day was like most other days except my wife of 44 years made a brisket with all the trimmings. Later in the afternoon we had a very sweet water melon. Dave brought the grandkids over and we all enjoyed several slices of melon.

 

That is all for now, I hope you are having a happy day.

 

 

Don Ford

 

 

 

 

Holidays!

            Well another holiday is here for our enjoyment. As you know, I am working hard every day, trying to earn enough to pay the bills. It is so nice when one of these holidays pops up for us “common folk” to get a day of rest.

          A day of rest and relaxation, now what do I do. Obviously I will not want to get up early and I will want to take several naps during the day. 

          Wait a minute, I relax every day and I take naps daily. Oh my, I may be on holiday every day.

          If I am on holiday every day, does that mean I should work when the rest of you are on holiday? What a thought, having to work when others are off. A holiday for one is a work day for others.

 

          I was able to get my limbs hauled off and the yard mowed this weekend. My wife of 44 years used the riding mower to mow the back yard while I was required to use the walked behind on the front yard. The ditch behind the house needs to be mowed but it isn’t flat, and since I am not supposed to be mowing due to doctors’ orders, I don’t want to overdo it.

 

I hope you have or had a nice holiday.

 

Don Ford

 

Just take over and never ask

               All is well at the Ford Homestead but the heat has come to Hewitt. It has been hitting the low 90s the last couple days which has caused the grass to grow. The doctor told me to not lift or bend over longer than to tie my shoes. Basically not too much exertion which has been fairly easy for me…

               At my last doctor visit I asked if I could mow the yard if someone started the mower for me.  He said “no”, it is the dust and other air born items that might get into your eye.  Well, the yard really needed to be mowed and they are predicting rain for the next couple day. I started out by mowing around everything in the back yard then my wife of 44 years got on the riding mower and mowed the rest of the back yard. It was the first time she had mowed with the rider. She did a good job.

               I mowed the front yard with the walk behind mower; I had goggles on to keep the dust out of my eyes. The goggles would steam up when I got a little hot but I finally got the yard mowed. I don’t think I did any damage to my eye.

               I was surprised with some fresh vegetables from Keith’s garden. We will be eating fresh squash this evening.  He also brought a couple bags of onions. We will tie some of them in bunches and hang them up to dry, others we will eat. I guess Keith knows we are on a fixed income and doesn’t want to see us eating road kill.

               I was surprised by a phone call from a good friend today. We had not talked or seen each other for quite a while. It was very nice to hear from a good friend.

This photo is supposed to show Molly T Ford (the T stands for trouble) so do not look at my fat belly. Molly is not a lap cat but she is a desk cat. She will walk on the key board and try to drink my hot coffee. As you can see, this cat is nothing but trouble.

              

Well I guess that is it for now, I hope you have a nice day.

 

Don Ford

 

 

 

                                                                                                                  

                  

 

Everything is bigger in Texas?

At the Ford Homestead we received 1 and 1/10 inch of rain yesterday and last night.  After a nice rain like that, I usually like to review the flora around the Homestead. All seemed well and happy that it has rained again. We need all we can get as summer is coming this weekend.

The prognosticators are predicting temperatures in the 90s beginning Saturday. Summer is kinda like winter, except you stay inside to keep cool not warm in the summer months.

Several years ago we had planted black berries on the Ford Homestead. The first couple years the black berry patch yielded many berries, of which the birds took more than their share. These berries were about as big as my thumb and they had an excellent taste.

It was difficult to get to the black berry patch with the hose, so it often went un-watered. As you might expect, the plants began to die. Last year I dug up two remaining small plants and put them in a flower pot. One of the plants survived both last summer and winter. This spring the plant was looking good so I decided I would again plant it in the ground but closer to the other flowers for ease of watering.

My wife of 44 years decided to purchase an additional plant so I then had to plant two.

            In the above photo we see the two black berry plants. On the right is the plant from our back yard and on the left is the recently purchased plant.

            Black berries are known to spread. I have a 2 X 2 foot area for these plants (everything is not bigger in Texas) but it will be easy to expand to a 4 X 4 or larger area as needed.

            My grandson just came in saying he wants a donut. I said no I don’t have any money which is my normal reply. He walked away then returned with change in his hand saying he wants a donut and he has money. Needless to say, we are going to get a donut.

 

Have a berry nice day!

 

Don Ford

 

 

 

 

Operation over, seems to be a success

               The operation was executed on Monday. There were a couple hours of waiting, 30 minutes of operation, 15 minutes in recovery and I was sent home. 

               Went in for a checkup today (Tuesday) and to have the eye patch removed. The Doctor said everything looked good.

               I have three eye drops that I use every 6 hours and I go back for another check this Friday.

               There is no pain at all; the doctor said he put a stitch in my eye but I can’t feel it.  The doctor said no lifting over 10 pounds and no bending except to tie my shoes for 30 days. I have to wear a patch at night for a while.

               I can see better with the eye now than before, but not totally clear yet.

 

Have a very nice day.

                

Don Ford       

 

Rich Neighbors.

               It is very disheartening to live near rich retired people who can purchase nice things and still be able to eat.

One neighbor after retiring is continually remodeling everything inside his house. His wife baby sits kids during the day so they are not on a fixed income like me.

Neighbor two built a new garage last year; they had some new furniture delivered to their home recently. Also, they had a new refrigerator delivered this week. His wife continues to work so they are not on a fixed income.

Neighbor three has had new furniture delivered in the last couple weeks, and yesterday he brought his motorcycle home after having it converted to a Trike.  His wife also works so they are not on a fixed income.

              Being on a fixed income and not having a working wife, the Fords of Hewitt must be very careful when they spend what little money they have.  

               My wife of 44 years is driving a vehicle that is at least 13 years old but we are on a fixed income and you know people on a fixed income can’t spend what they don’t have.

               If you want to donate to “The Fords of Hewitt Humanitarian Fund” (funds to be used so we can keep up with our rich neighbors) you can send checks or money orders (minimum suggested donation of $25.00). All donations will be appreciated and you will receive our quarterly newsletter.

 

Different subject;             we had a nice rain yesterday of about 7/10 of an inch. People south of us had some storms with hail and high winds. Glad we received the rain and no bad weather.

The ham weather spotters were activated. I turned my hand held radio on (ham radio 2 meter) and the battery gave up in less than a minute. I grabbed the other handheld and the battery was also dead. I guess I should charge the batteries occasionally.

 

               The cataract removal is scheduled for Monday morning. I have had several people offer to save me some money by preforming the surgery with their dull rusty knife. I appreciate the offers but I think I will stay with the doctor.  

 

That is it for today; I hope you have a nice Mother’s Day.

 

Don Ford

 

 

Believe it or not I

               The day started as usual with coffee and a bowl of cereal. The cereal wasn’t anything that I like but when you live on a fixed income you eat what you have even if it is cheap.

               After the first cup of coffee and watching the so called news I shaved and brushed my teeth. Who would have thought shaving and brushing your teeth would ever be the high light of my day.

               Teeth clean and face shaved, I took another cup of coffee and went outside to my favorite chair on the drive way. The sun was coming up and shining in my eyes. I was relaxing and enjoying the morning thinking about the nap I will take later in the day.

               As usual, there were many birds traveling overhead. Did you ever wonder why they are all going in different directions? Why these birds are not more like people, heading toward town in the morning (all in the same direction) and away from town in the afternoon.

               As I pondered the daily migration of the birds I remembered seeing an unusual sight the other afternoon. There was a light tan colored hawk flying very slow with about ten smaller bird’s harassing him. I first thought he was an owl due to his light color but his head indicated he was a hawk.

               As I sipped from the cup I noticed that my coffee was good and hot. I moved the cup down to the arm of my chair and believe it or not, there was a splash in my cup from overhead.  A friendly bird had deposited a lump of black and white sugar in my cup. The seven second rule applied so I was able to remove the black and white lump from my cup and finish the coffee. When you are on a fixed income you don’t throw anything away.

In the past I had wondered how often people were hit by droppings from overhead. Believe it or not; an online search indicated that 1 out of 729 people are hit daily with bird droppings.  That seems like a high number to me but…

 

I hope nothing falls on you today. 

 

Don Ford

 

 

I did say believe it or not.

 

Little Emergency

            It is now afternoon on Monday and I have had a nap. Our little emergency began Sunday night about 10:00pm. I was sleeping comfortably; my wife of 44 years was watching TV or possibly sleeping in her recliner. The grand kids were put to bed about 8:30 but evidently one of them had not gone to sleep.

            I was awoken from my needed sleep by Donna saying something about taking Alex to the emergency room. That got my attention and I spring from my bed. Ok I didn’t spring I was able to roll over and get out of bed.

It seems as if Alex had put a small piece from a Lego set in his nose and could not get it out. He tried blowing it out but it was stuck. Claire was going to take him to the emergency room so I decided to go also. To make a short story long, we arrived, completed the forms, Claire and Alex went back to one of the examining rooms and I sat in the waiting room.

They were able to remove the item and gave Alex a couple stickers. He was in a good mood and so was us adults.

 

Different subject:

Last week I decided to thin some of the limbs out of a tree in the back yard.  I was able to remove several smaller limbs using the manual pole saw. The last limb I cut had to be a pain and it was trying my patience. Everyone knows how patient and calm I am, but this limb was trying to get me to cross to the dark side. The limb was cut most of the way through and it broke over but did not fall. It was very high (I had the pole saw extended to the max) and in a position where I could not complete the cut. I grabbed onto the limb and twisted and pulled to no avail. Deciding to keep my religion and not drift to the dark side, I cut all the smaller branches from this devil limb leaving only the bare stub hanging in the tree. Later David and I both pulled on this limb and it came down.

We had some wind in the last few days and as you may be able to see in the photo below, we had a limb break but not come completely out, from a different tree.  

            I have been in the process of cutting this tree down one large limb at a time. This particular limb decided to come down of its own accord. Possibly the wind gusting to 40 MPH may have played a part in the limb breaking. Basically I was unable to get in a position to cut this limb at the break, so I removed as much as I could from the ground.

            In the next photo we see a different limb on the ground. In fact this limb was the limb that the broken limb was attached to. I used the gas powered pole saw and cut this limb and I was not able to cut always the way through the limb. The problem was getting in the right position to make the complete cut. I use the manual pole saw to finish the cut and down the limb came.

           

            This morning, even though I was tired from the emergency run last night, I picked up all the limbs and branches and loaded them on the trailer. Alex helped me and as usual the load is immaculate. You can lift the front of the trailer easily due to perfect balancing.

           

            On a different subject, I will be having cataract surgery on my right eye next Monday.

 

            Have a good week.

 

            Don Ford

Nothing Planned

               This morning after dropping Gabi off at School I returned home with nothing planned for me to do. I sat there thinking about tomorrow visit to the eye doctor when I decided that I would consider cutting some limbs.

               It was cloudy and that makes it a good day for me to work in the yard. There are two reasons that I want cloudy days for yard work. First I am not supposed to have my arms in the direct sun light do to skin damage from the sun. I either have to put the sun block on or have a long sleeved shirt. Second I have cataracts and the bright sun light makes it hard for me to see.

               I surveyed the limbs and decided to thin out a few that were blocking too much sun. I use the hand pole saw which means I had to work. My gas powered pole saw will not reach as far as the hand operated.

               Alex was inside when I cut the first limb. As I started the second Alex decided to come out side. I would have appreciated him staying inside but that wasn’t happening. He went to the trailer and said he would stay there eating some M&Ms. I returned to the task at hand when I noticed Alex had left the safety of the trailer and was moving about in the yard. This limb was about to fall so I stopped and required him to go inside.

               Alex was crying and very unhappy with me. The limb finally broke loose but did not fall. I first tried to pull it down but that wasn’t happening. I moved around trying to get a better angle to make the final cut and the sun had come out. It is almost impossible for me to see the dark limbs with the bright sun light popping through the branches.

               I quit attempting to cut anything, leaving the limb hanging. Alex was back in the yard and he was willing to help me move the limbs to the back of the yard.

               After a quick shower I returned to the yard to review the hanging limb. I will attempt to get it down later today when the sun is almost down making it easier for me to see.

 

Here are some roses that are growing in our back yard. It has been said that they are doing good because there is a lot of BS around our house.

Speaking of smells, our neighbor has a garden and the smell coming from the garden would indicate that he has been putting fish guts and other parts of the fish in his garden for fertilizer. He fishes a lot this time of the year and his garden does smell.

 

Well, that is it for today, I hope you day is not smelly.

 

Don Ford