Pronunciations 103013

               I was taking Gabi to school when she suggested that I be quite. I do often make unusual noises and occasionally try to sing during or trip to school. She was correct I should be quite more often than not.

               During my quite period I started thinking about words and how they are pronounced. As an example I would usually say “pernounced” not “pronounced”.

There are many words that I have and do say incorrectly and even though I do not always present a vast vocabulary I do usually understand the words other use.  

The incorrect pronunciation of words is a major factor in my less than stellar ability to spell. I am thankful for spell check but I must admit that I intermittently stump spell check with a word I am trying to spell.

The following is a word I misuse and abuse even to this day.

               Tar; a black sticky substance use on roofs and roads

               Car Tar; a round device that attaches to a wheel of a car

               Radio Tar; a device to hold antennas above the ground

               I’m Tarred; meaning I need rest

               Tarred and Feathered; a method of disgracing a person in the olden days

Another word I mispronounce is “figure”; I most often utter the word as “figer”.

               In Missouri we would say, “I figered he would …

Figer can be a number or representation of…        

The lady’s figer was… 

A figer of speech is the use of a word or a phrase, which transcends its literal interpretation.               (I got those words from a dictionary)

 

Well, I assume that is, “enough” for now. Did you notice the parentheses around the word enough? Why is the word spelled, “e n o u g h” but pronounced as, “enuff”? 

 

I have always wanted to learn Spanish but now that I think of it, maybe I should learn American English first.

 

I am tarred and I figer you have had enuff so I will stop for now.

 

Have a day filled with positives.

 

Don Ford

 

Continuing Soga of The Great Squirrel Conflict

               This story begins with two boys sitting in the yard talking about everything but world affairs. They were enjoying the days and watching the squirrels eating acorns from the oak trees.

The squirrels have begun eating the acorns since they have eaten all the pecans. I should note that we are not sure the squirrels are eating the acorns, they may be chewing them into small pieces on the sidewalk intentionally causing me to need to sweep every day.

The boys were discussing how they might cause the squirrels to leave the neighborhood in a humane manner. One of the boys suggested hiding in the bushes with a BB gun but that is discouraged by the local police.

The second boy remarked that some people get an electrified collar and put a wire in the ground to keep the dog on their property without a fence. The first boy noted that some dog owners are able to stop their dog from barking with an electrified collar.

Without discussing it with their parents the two boys decided to stop the squirrels.

First they made some box traps and baited them with sliced apple. This was a very effective method of humanely trapping 8 squirrels and one skunk. It was decided that the youngest boy would release the skunk which turned out to be an odorous task.

These two lads went into their dads shop and invented a small electrified harness that would fit on a squirrel. This harness was like a harness used on dogs but much smaller with electrodes that would shock the wearer.  These harnesses were orange in color which made it easy to identify the victim’s subjects.

The boys found it difficult to get the harness on the squirrels but they were persistent and eventually outfitted each of the eight squirrels. As each squirrel was released the oldest boy tried the electrical shock and each squirrel jumped as if they were shocked (they wereJ).

The next day the boys were again in the yard sitting under the shade tree in the grass waiting for the victim’s subjects to arrive. From across the street came the first squirrel. About half way across the street the boy pushed the button and the squirrel went straight up in the air about 2 feet. When the shocked squirrel hit the ground he appeared to be confused. He started to continue his path across the street and the button was again pushed. Again he went up in the air and hit the ground this time running back across the street. One squirrel learned his lesson.

The boys were very happy that their invention was working. The above story was repeated several times. Then the, “youngens” (the word youngens is a Missouri term which means “young ones” aka kids) observed a fat squirrel coming across the electric wire. The button was pushed and the fat squirrel did a double back flip off the wire which was 30 feet above the ground.

               The End

 

I hope your day is not electrified.

 

Don Ford

Not everything in the above article is true, some comments were fiction.

 

Was he set up? 101613

           

            The other day as I was sitting in my chair reminiscing of days past it occurred to me that I use to work and I still have some of the old notes and photos. I thought I might take a short trip down memory lane and review a power point or two.

            I went through a couple power points from a couple centers (aka Warehouse) which brought back many memories.

I realized that during my last couple years traveling to each of the 8 centers, some of the managers and supervisors did not look forward to my visits. The reason was simple; I was looking for anything that would improve safety, security, cleanliness and or production. I assume some thought of my visits as nit picking and possibly causing extra work.

 

Was he set up; the title of this article came from an incident (aka accident) at the Cape center. The accident involved a fork lift operator who was attempting to get a pallet down from and overhead storage rack. When this operator moved the pallet from the overhead rack a carton fell from the back of the pallet and was damaged.

Since the product fell, was damaged and could have caused injury to another staff member (had a staff member been in the area) this operator was sent for a drug screen and received a disciplinary action.

The employee commented that he was, “set up”. By “set up” he was indicating that he was set up to fail. I assume it is possible that he was set up to fail but I believe it was just careless work by the previous operator.

I began to review the area for situations that were setting up staff members to fail, there were many. Below is a photo of just one situation.

 

 

The above situation was not high in the rack, easy to see and photograph. Had that have been 20 feet high the operator may not have been able to see the carton or get it down without it falling.

I began to think about setting someone up but not to fail, instead, “to succeed”. The following statement is what I wrote in my notes to my boss.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

If management throughout (company name) could get all staff to believe in and work toward the following statements

 

         “Set the next person up to succeed”, which includes;

                 Set the next person up to be safe

                 Set the next person up to have no errors

                 Set the next person up to be productive

Set the next person up to have a clean work environment

 

Think how nice it would be.

 

                                        Yes the reverend Ford is preaching again.                                     NARBNL

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

 

In reviewing the above statement two thoughts came to mind.

First the statement was well written, yes I am patting myself on the back, if I don’t know one else will.

Second the statement could be modified a little and apply to not only work but everyday life. We unquestionably want to set our children and family up to succeed.

Think how nice it would be if we all tried to set up not only family and friends but others up to succeed.

 

In reviewing the above comments about helping the next person to succeed, I noticed on the bottom line I referred to myself as, “the reverend Ford”. I have and do often preach to others;    maybe I should minister to them instead.

(The word minister sounds more soft and polite than the word preach; I was raised in a church where they preached, therefore I preach.)

 

            For that one person who was observant enough to see the, “NARBNL” which was also on the bottom line, you should know it is my political statement; Not Always Right But Never Left

 

Hope your day is better …

 

Don Ford

 

Weather is just right 10.23.13

               Recently we had over 5 inches of rain and since then we have had fall like temperatures which seems to have cause most of the flowers at the Ford Homestead to bloom.

This Bougainvillea is one of several that have excelled in displaying its blooms. Although I did not get photos of the Rose bushes and other various flowers are also in full bloom.

 

Have a colorful day.

 

Don Ford

 

Can't be Right 10.20.13

               Hello from the Ford Homestead of Hewitt, Texas. We are doing well and hope you are also.

               What “can’t be right” you ask. Well I am about to tell you.  To the best of my memory, this is the first year since we have lived in the great state of Texas that this has happened.

How many years have we been here, almost 35 years?

Why is this the first year for this to occur; I believe I have the answer.

Earlier this year we had a lot of insulation installed in the attic and all the holes in the wall under the sinks were filled in alone with weather stripping on the windows and doors. I assume the insulation works.

I should tell you that the temperature this morning is 39 degrees and for me that is cold.

Yesterday I decided to go for a ride to the Bunk House for lunch. Before you ask, riding 45 minutes one way is not too far to ride for lunch. I like their “Tooth Picks” but I wish they were all peppers with no onions.

I have explained what Tooth Picks are in the past but I will try to explain again. Tooth Picks are thinly sliced peppers and onions that are dipped in a batter and then deep fried. They are served with Ranch Dressing.

I guess there are times when I do not pay enough attention to my environment. Yesterday I moved the Wing out of the garage and readied myself for a 45 minute ride to Clifton Texas. It seemed a little cool but not too cold, as the house blocked the wind off me. I chose the thin un-insulated leather gloves for the ride. For some reason I thought the temperature was about 65 when in fact it was 52 degrees.

I left the house first heading for the ATM to get a little cash. The ride to the ATM was about 1.5 miles and I quickly learned that is was cold. At the ATM I changed the light gloves to the heavy winter gloves and turned the hand grip heaters on. You can call me a wimp but the heated hand grips are nice.

If I was to be honest about half way to Clifton I was wishing I would have been in a car.

After the noon meal, which was very good, I readied myself for the ride home. My original thought was to ride directly to the Bunk House and after eating I would take a longer casual ride back to the Ford Homestead. I changed my mind and the ride home was as direct as possible. If I would have been smarter and taken a sweat shirt I could have enjoyed a casual ride home.

It seems I have again deviated from my original subject.

Normally at the Ford Homestead we would have the air conditioner on one day and the next day have the furnace on but that did not occur this year. We haven’t turned the heat on yet and as I said, “the temp this morning was 39 degrees”.  I assume the extra insulation actually works, who knew.

 

I guess that is it for now. My spouse of 44 years (who doesn’t want me to mention her name in my articles) and I need to head out for Brunch.

No I am not explaining what brunch is, you should know that.

 

Have a warm enjoyable day. 

Don Ford

 

 

A ride to forget 101813

 

 

Last night the local Honda shop had their last dinner ride for the year. To explain what a dinner ride is, motorcycle riders meet at the Honda shop and ride together for approx. one hour with the destination being a restaurant.

               This final ride of the year was not well attended. There may have been 10 bikes on the ride and three were people that worked at the Honda shop. I was told we were going south of Waco for the evening repast (meal) when we actually went North West.

The lead rider did not seem to know where he was going as he slowed down and had his turn signal on several time but did not turn. Finally he made the turn and it was the wrong road. Everyone had to turn around on this small road and ride back to the main highway. As the motorcycles reentered the main highway, problems began to occur.

The main group headed up the road but one of the trikes had pulled off to the side. One of the Honda employees pulled over with him and I slowed down. I used the CB radio to let one of the riders in the main group know that we had a bike on the side of the road. It is odd that the lead bike did not have a CB.

I continued riding at a slower pace and could see the main group ahead. They turned left at a stop light. A general rule of riding in a group; if the group is spread out to a point where rider/s behind you can’t see that the group turned, a rider stops at the turn until the following rider/s see where to turn. 

I stopped and waited on the two following riders. It was almost 2 minutes before they caught up but they continued on as if they did not see me.

I turned around to follow them and as luck would have it the stop light was red.

Finally I was on my way. I could not see them but I continued on. Out of town I was on the highway again but still no motorcycles in sight.

I may have exceeded the speed limit in an attempt to catch up with them. I assume they may have been ridding faster trying to catch up with the group not know they had turned. I rode about 10 miles chasing them and when I did catch up with them I could not get them to pull over. I was flashing my head lights and had my turn signal on.

The Honda employee finally pulled over and he indicated that I should continue to attempt to get the other rider to pull over. I continued on and after a couple more miles finally was able to get him pulled over. I explained that the main group had turned and we needed to go back.

The trike rider and I rode back at a fast pace to the stop light but we did not see the Honda employee again.

We made the turn and headed out of town. I assumed that the main group had pulled over somewhere or at least one of the riders would have been waiting for us. 

The road we were on would eventually take is to highway 84 (about 15 miles). I had decided that I would head for home if we did not catch up with any of the riders by the time we got to highway 84.

The trike rider and I arrived at highway 84; I explained that I did not know where the group was and that I was taking a left on 84 and heading for home. I asked if he was ok and he said he was. I made the turn and rode for the Homestead.

30 minutes later I arrived at home.

All in all not the best ride, but I did get home safely.

 

I hope you don’t get separated from the group.

 

Don Ford

 

Molly T 101813

               Good morning, afternoon or evening. It is a nice day, somewhat cool and it isn’t supposed to rain until this evening. The reason for evening rain on Fridays in Texas is to determine who among us, “are true fans of High School Foot Ball”.

Those people that attend the Friday night games in the rain have one of three labels.

               One; a parent or guardian of a player,

               Two; a football Fan,

               Three; a glutton for punishment,

Regardless of their labels they will be sitting in the rain and rooting for their team.

 

The title of today’s article has nothing to do with the Friday night games so I will now change the subject.

               As some of you know our cat is named Molly T. The T as one would expect stands for trouble. This cat has developed the necessary skills to be able to escape from the Ford Homestead at lightning speed. We go to the door and look around for Molly. Not seeing the cat we open the door and start out. In a flash that darn cat is outside and refuses to come back in. She is hard headed and only returns when she is ready.

               All the above being true it is not the reason for this article. Molly does have a few good attributes which I will attempt to explain and show in the following.

               Molly is playful and will get into almost anything. She is ultra-inquisitive and has to check out any and everything. My spouse of 44 plus years was working on a fall wreath with some of the supplies in the floor when Molly had to get into the middle of things.

 

This cat often takes naps on the bed in the grandkids room. I would say she gets very comfortable.

It appears that she enjoys a pillow when napping.

I think we could assume that she is very comfortable in the above photo.

 

I hope you enjoy your naps as much as Molly.

 

Don Ford

 

Dragons are real 101713

               This article will be shocking to many readers, as they have been lead to believe that Dragons are extinct. I am here to tell you they are alive and real, killing the unsuspected on a daily basis.

               If those statements are true, then why haven’t you read about the Dragon in the newspaper or seen the story on TV. 

For one reason the TV news is too liberal to deliver a violent story involving, “government protected Dragons” killing the very pretty and I might say innocent.

The newspapers are almost extinct themselves, and do not print important news.

I suggest, if you are the least bit squeamish, do not read any more and for goodness sake do not view the photos as they are truly heartless and very shocking.

This story begins as many of my stories do; I had walked out to my favorite rocking chair late in the afternoon. It had rained most of the day and the temperature was about 60 with a stiff breeze out of the north.

I had a container of peanuts and a magazine to review. As always my constant companion and confidant Tejas was with me.

I have previously explained that Tejas enjoys peanuts possibly more than I do. Me, being a health nut, I eat the peanuts because they are good for me but Tejas mostly likes the salt.

I walked to my rocker and sat down. Tejas was almost in my lap letting me know that he wants his daily ration of peanuts. I removed the top from the container and took a handful of peanuts out for him. At this point he was acting like a puppy wagging his tail and drooling. I placed his peanuts on the drive and he quickly consumed them.

I then reached for my magazine and leaned back in the chair expecting to enjoy, “Horse and Rider”. As I flipped through the pages I began to become aware that I was not alone.

I could hear a faint noise that I was unable to place. What was this sound? Was I hearing things? The sound was kind of a buzz and then kind of a flapping sound.

I was in no way prepared for what I was about to witness. To say it was barbaric would be putting it mildly. What I saw was a vicious attack by the Dragonfly on this pretty Monarch Butter Fly. I have been alive for many years and this was the first time I had ever seen this type of attack. 

I quickly reached for the camera and took several photos (two of which are attached below). When I approached for a close up photo I could literally hear a crunching sound as the Dragonfly was eating parts of the butterfly.

My second thought was to free the Butterfly from the Dragonfly but I did not. Not knowing how much damage the Dragon had inflicted on the Butterfly I decided to let nature take its course. (Click on the photo to see a larger image)

I hope this wasn’t too shocking for you.

 

Have a Dragon Free day.

 

Don Ford

 

Dog Poop 10.15.13

               It seemed like any other day, the weather was excellent as expected and the neighborhood was quiet. I, being retired and on a fixed income, was at home doing nothing. I am allowed to do nothing at home because it doesn’t cost anything.

               I had just completed stretching my back, arms and neck when I noticed a female type person walking down the street. Not being dead I thought I would be close to the front door when she came back up the street. Since I am the neighborhood watchman I always try to check out all the female people that walk on our street.

Before you ask, no we do not have an actual neighborhood watch team it is just me being inquisitive, some might say snooping.

As usual our TV was on and, “Let’s Make a Deal” was in the middle of a big deal. Obviously I am not a fan of the program but I did stop and watched the deal until the “idiot” made a deal for a zonk. Where do they find these people to be on this TV show?

After being side tracked by the zonk, I again started toward the front door to check out the female person walking on our street. My timing was impeccable as she was standing in front of our house near the mail box. Anyone standing in front of our house immediately becomes a suspect.

The female subject had a large dog on a lead. She looked at me in a manner that seems suspicious.

I being a friendly person and wanting to be a good neighbor, I waved and smiled. This female person did not respond with a friendly gesture instead she reached into her pocket for something.

Was she going for a gun?

Should I shut the front door and call 911?

In all honesty she was quick. I didn’t have time to shut the door.

When her hand came out of her pocket I could see what she had reached for. It was a plastic bag. Her large dog had pooped in my yard and she was going to pick it up and take it with her.

Have you ever watched someone pick up dog poop using a plastic bag? I will attempt to explain the process. The person takes the bag and turns it inside outplacing the hand in the bag. They then take hold of the warm dog poop using the plastic bag as a glove. When they have the warm dog poop in their hand they attempt to turn the bag right-side out again using the other hand. When the bag is again right-side out they seal the zip lock top securing the warm dog poop for the return walk home.

The above process was completed by the female person, knowing that I was watching. That must be somewhat degrading.

Do you think they carry the poop home are do they drop it when they think no one is looking.

I, being a good neighbor, execute a weekly pick up of dog droppings from my back yard. I do this prior to mowing so the mower doesn’t spread it. Neighbors on both sides have dogs (more than one each side) and do not remove the droppings.

Before you ask, I pick the droppings up with a hoe, placing it into a box which goes into the trash container. Let me explain the word “hoe”; it refers to a tool used in the yard and garden and not a lady of the evening.

Well I guess that’s it for today;

We hope all is well for you and yours

 

Don Ford

 

Coupons at the checkout 10.18.13

               Have you ever stood in line at the checkout behind some person with a hand full of coupons, when you only have one or two items to purchase?

I arrived at the hardware store with a list of three items to purchase. They were having a parking lot sale and I needed to replace the battery conditioner for my motorcycle. The conditioner keeps the battery at a full charge which is important when it is not being ridden regularly. The sale price with the coupon was 50% less than regular.

I also wanted a small wheel and tire to put on a rope for the grand kids to swing on. It cost $4.00.

I wanted to procure a package of D batteries. These batteries were also 50% off with the coupon.

I did purchase all the above items and I had a coupon for each item. I decided I would need some, “butt connectors” due to having to rewire the battery conditioner. I found that it was less expensive to purchase a large package of connectors using a 25% off coupon than it was to buy a small package without the coupon. 

I had two additional coupons for free items (flash light and a 25 foot tape measure). For those of you who can do the math, that is a total of six (6) coupons. I lay the items on the counter and the lady began to scan them into the computer, then I hander her my hand full of coupons and the guy behind me with on item in his hand sighed. 

  “Today I was the person in front of the line with all the coupons; it felt good to be there. “

I hope you get to enjoy many discounts this week.

Don Ford 

 

I don't seem to understand 10.09.13

               This is a story about pricing at one of the world’s largest retailers. I decided to purchase an item and started checking prices as all retired people on a fixed income should do. I thought that my past employer might have the item at a lower price so I check their website. Their price was higher than I wanted to pay so I checked a couple retailers in Waco. I found a price of $54.00 for the item at Wal-Mart. Evidently people are willing to pay a lot of money for these items because no one had one priced for a senior citizen on a fixed income.

               I even took the time to read a couple reviews of the item and I took the advice of one of the reviewers who stated, “go to the store and check the prices they are sometimes cheaper at the store than on line”. 

               Arriving at the store I discovered the item with an $80.00 price tag. I immediately decided to go back home and purchase the item on line since there appeared to be a $26.00 difference.

               When ordering on line I had the choice of having it delivered to my house (no shipping charge) or picking it up at the store. I elected to pick the item up at the store and later wished I had allowed them to ship it to me.

               I placed the order about 10:00am and waited on the email advising me to come and pick up the item. I checked the email several times expecting to have a message to, “come and get it”.

               About 4:00 pm I received the message and it was about 6:00pm when I was able to get away from the house to get my new item.

               The area where one picks up items is in the center back of the store. This is an obvious attempt to get one to shop when picking up an item. I drove to the car service area and entered the building there, as it is a much closer entrance than going through the front door.

               I quickly walked to the pickup area and I did not shop as I walked.

               I pushed the doorbell button for help. When no help arrive I touched the screen that indicated "for help touch the screen”. A few minutes passed and no help arrived.

               A young woman came through the doors that lead to the back room and she asked if I had been helped. I replied no and she picked up the phone and asked for a page to have an employee come to the service desk. She reentered the back room.

               Time passed and I took a seat on their counter. The same young woman came out of the back again and asked if I had been helped and again I replied no, she again picked up the phone and asked for a page to have an employee come to the service desk. This time she remained in the area.

               Another female (who was pushing a dust mop with one hand while holding her cell phone to her ear with the other hand) walked by.

I asked the first young lady if the person with the dust mop was a store employee. She responded, “Yes she is”.

I then asked, “Are employees allowed to talk on cell phones while they were working? To which she replied, “no, but everyone does it”.

I then stated, “hire me as manager for two weeks and I will fix some of the problems here! The young lady stated that the management team are just as bad as the employees.

Finally, a person came from the retail floor to assist me. This person brought my item to the counter and explained that they had reduced the price from the online price to the in store price of $52.00. I explained that when I was in the store earlier the price of the item was $80.00 and that is why I ordered it on line. She responded, really? 

I took the item and left.

I wasted about 20 minutes trying to pick up the item at the service desk.

They emailed me a survey which I eagerly completed.  

Now you see why I wished I had ordered the item for home delivery.

 

Enough of my commenting…

 

I hope your day is wonderful.

 

Don Ford

Having a good day 10.06.13

               I hope you are having as good a day as I am, the weather has turned off cool and we did get a few sprinkles of rain early Sunday morning but not the rain predicted. 

               My spouse of 44 years seems to be enjoying her new vehicle. I have loaded a few CDs to the hard drive so she can listen to her music or the Grand kids can listen to their music just by pushing a button. I have also loaded a few photos on the hard drive so she can customize the display monitor with personalized photos.

               On a different subject;

In the past I have written about the “rattle head copper moccasin” which is prolific here on the Ford Homestead. My grandson Alex has captured one of the creatures and also photographed the malicious reptile. Please understand this photo is graphic and may not be acceptable for all viewers.

  

The “rattle head copper moccasin” did eventually release my finger and the vicious reptile was released. No “rattle head copper moccasins” were hurt during this photo session.

               New subject:

            Was I really that good or has time made things seem better?

There was a message on our phone that went like this. “Don Ford, this is (person’s name), I use to work for you. I was just calling to say, you was one of the best bosses I ever had, I just wanted to tell you, I appreciate you letting me work for you. You all take care. “

I did work with this lady probably 15 years ago; she worked in the old bin section at the Waco Center. I wonder if her opinion of me was as good then as it is now. With the passing of time there may be a tendency for many things and situations to seem better than they really were.

I did not get to talk with this person but her comment was a big part of me having a good day.  

A comment about a previous subject;

Those darn squirrels have taken almost every pecan off my tree; I am not declaring war on the squirrels but it is now a “declared conflict”.

Everywhere I look I see squirrels. Sunday morning I could see only one pecan on my tree. Later in the day as Glen and I were partaking of refreshing beverages, we observed a few additional pecans on the tree, but not enough to cancel the conflict.

I will use approved methods to exile these pests and bring the conflict to a quick end.

I hope you are having a very good day!

Don Ford

 

Three parts posting 10.01.13

               Good morning, I hope you are having a good day. I just finished playing, “chase the monster” with my grandson Alex. I never saw the monster but Alex could see him so we were all over the yard following the elusive monster.

 

               Part One;

               Someone asked, “how the eye surgery went and could I see better now”.

               The surgery went as expected, yes I can see better now. I had the one week checkup yesterday and the doctor said everything looked good. He also said I could now wash my hair when I shower, just keep my eyes closed. I did not explain that I have been doing that. I am still restricted from lifting more than 20 pounds and no mowing the lawn.

 

               Part Two;

            My spouse of 44 years now has a new vehicle. She decided on a “Dodge Grand Caravan”. I don’t know why they named it, “Grand”, other than the cost had many Grands in it. It is a light tan in color, has sliding doors on the side with lots of room in the back for things that my spouse purchases.

            I took Gabi to school in the new van and when we arrived at the drop off point I pushed the button to open the sliding door. The door would not open. Gabi pushed the other button to open the door but it would not open. We were holding up the traffic. The lady that was trying to open the door from the outside ask, “New vehicle”, to which I responded yes.

When all efforts to open the door had failed, I put the vehicle in park. I was going to get out and see if I could open the door. All of a sudden the door opened and Gabi exited.

            When I arrived at home I tested the hypothesis that, “the vehicle must be in park to open the sliding doors”. It is a safety feature; the doors will not open until the vehicle is in park.

            I asked the sales person why he had not explained that to me. His response was, I did not know.

The cost of the vehicle has caused us to start to actively look for “larger road kill”, when we are picking up the aluminum cans from the side of the road. Being on a fixed income, may keep us from enjoying meat purchased from a store.

                    (Donations may be sent to, “The Ford Foundation”, please identify these donations for the new vehicle.)

 

               Part Three;

               Pecans and those darn squirrels.  Our small pecan tree was loaded with pecans this year and with the rains we had I just knew we were going to have a bumper crop of pecans. Well that theory went to heck in a hand basket. Our poor tree no longer has enough pecans on it to make one pecan pie.

               I should note that we do have a bumper crop, of squirrels. We did not have as many squirrels last year as we do this year. The neighbor has been trapping them but I am not sure of what he does with them we he catches one. I may join him in the capture process as long as he is not releasing them.

 

               That is most of the news from The Ford Homestead.

 

I hope you don’t have a squirrely day.  

 

Don Ford