Weather... 04.30.14

Weather…       04.30.14

 

                The weather doesn’t know whether to stay warm or cold.

                How did you like the use of the two words in the opening sentence?     

We have had days this spring when the temperature was 93, today the temp at the beginning of the day was 53.

                As everyone knows I would never complain, but I will comment on topics such as the weather. You might ask what the difference is between a comment and a complaint. The difference between a comment and a complaint is simple.

                A comment, is what “I” do, when I want to express my point of view.

                A complaint, is what “you” do, when “you” want to express “your” point of view.        

 

                Enough of the training session, I can’t always be the Maestro (from the Italian meaning "master" or "teacher) to everyone. 

 

                I have been up grading my security cameras here at the Ford Homestead. I had 5 cameras for several years and I have purchased an additional 4 cameras.

I have two comments, notice they are not complaints.

First comment; I purchased “one” BNC to RCA connector from Radio Shack and it cost about $7.00. It worked so I knew I needed at least 3 more. I went on line and purchased “six” of the connectors for less than $4.00 with free shipping. During the installation of the new connectors, I found that the one from radio shack is not a good tight connection like the less expensive connectors.

Second comment; I have set the cameras up to record when there is motion. Did you know that moving shadows made by trees will activate the motion detectors? In addition, the wind has not stopped blowing for several days.

 

I hope others do not Complain to you,

And listen to all your comments today.

 

Don Ford

 

A Rose by any other name... 04.27.14

A Rose by any other name… 04.27.14

 

                I received my instructions for the afternoon and they were, “get outside and water”. Not wanting to receive another beating, a severe tong lashing or even worse, no supper, I proceeded outside to water the flowers.

My present spouse will purchase flowers and then I am required to water them. It seems like a fair deal, isn’t it?

Anyway, first I went to the garden and installed the tomato rings that we had purchased this morning after we had eaten a nice Brunch. Installing tomato rings is a skill that not many can acquire, I have the skill.

I then watered the garden. About two minutes after I started to water the garden I remember that as a kid I was told never water plants that are in the direct sun. My garden is in the direct sun and the clouds parted as soon as I began to water. 

I then water the plants in both the front and back yard.

I took a couple photos of some of “The Ford Homestead Roses”, hope you enjoy them.

 This yellow rose is in my antenna tower.

They are wet because I watered, no rain.

Pretty and Pink.

 A group of red and pink.

Each photo is from a different flower bed.

 

I hope you have a “Rose” of a day!

 

Don Ford

The Name Game 04.27.14

The Name Game        04.27.14

 

                As I sit in the back yard looking at my newly built handicapped ramp, and as Alex tries to get my attention, I have been thinking about naming a kid.

Often, “new parents to be”, take months to pick the right name for their first child. These young “parents to be” want to have the perfect name in an attempt to not upset any of the grandparents or other family members.

This true story is about choosing a child’s name, but not the long version involving months of research.

I went to the dentist the other day for my six month cleaning. As I sat in the waiting room a fellow walked in and spoke to the receptionist. She ask his name to which he replied Jackie, this caught my attention. I have a brother named Jackie and this started me remembering a story my mother told me.

I had asked Mom why they named my brother Jackie. _{As a note; everyone calls my brother Jack.} Mom related that they had not picked a name, so they decided that each family member would write a first name on a piece of paper and put them in a hat. I wasn’t born at that time so I did not get to participate. My sister wrote the name Jackie and that was the name drawn from the hat. 

                As you can see, it didn’t take long to decide on a name, and who knows, it may have upset everyone who’s suggested name was not drawn, or not. 

                That being said, how did they decide on my name, “Donald”?

“McDonalds”, did not exist when I was born, so it did not come from a fast food establishment. For that one person that likes to make snide comments, yes I am older than “McDonalds”.

“Old McDonald”, did have a farm when I was born, so my name could have come from the nursery rhyme.

 

New Subject:

There are buds on the tomato plants in our garden and there are very small peppers on the serrano peppers. We haven’t received any rain so I must water today.

 

Have a good day, enjoy family and friends. 

 

Don Ford

Chapter 5 04.26.14

Chapter 5         “The best laid plans of mice and man…”

                I woke up Friday morning at the normal time. I get up at 5:46 each morning. I have often thought about why 5:46 instead of say 6:00am. I do not set the alarm clock so the time to get up was not something I decided on. Possibly it was preordained that I should rise every morning at 5:46.  The time I get up has little or nothing to do with this story.

                After my normal morning duties, I decided to revisit my ramp project.  The weather on Friday was predicted to be perfect for any outdoor activities. I had planned to have assistance with the last phase of the project. My plan was to have my son mixing the cement as I worked to keep it in place inside the slanted forms.

                I decided that I could not pass this perfect morning, I would attack the project myself. The cement bags were in the back of my Dodge pickup, and yes the Dodge pickup was able to haul all eight bags a total of 640 pounds of dry cement mix. I backed the pickup into the back yard, parking close to the shed.

80 pound bags of cement are very heavy, especially to a retired person. I found that I could move them to the edge of the tail gate without lifting, where I had positioned the wheelbarrow. I then cut the end of the bag off, the dry cement began to fall into the wheelbarrow. As the bag emptied (became lighter) I moved it closer to the edge until empty.

I was able to do each part of the project without causing any ill effects on the outcome of the entire project.

This morning (Saturday April 26^th, 2014) I ventured into the back yard to remove the forms from the cement ramp. The following two photos show the project.

Yes I did replace the dirt around the ramp prior to taking the photos.

After my second time of walking up the ramp I decided I would rather have a step. Walking down the ramp is ok for senior citizens but walking up was not comfortable. The cement blocks on the left is my step and will be used when I am not pushing something into or out of the shed.

                I have pushed the wheelbarrow with 100 pounds of left over dry cement in it, up the ramp without any problems.

                The End

 

                On another subject; my neighbor was working in his garden pulling weeds, so I, not wanting to be outdone, decided to do the same. It should be known that my yard is mostly weeds this year, but my garden did not have weeds growing in it.  My garden has Bermuda grass growing in it rather than weeds. Grass grows in the garden but not in the yard, just my luck.

 

I hope your day is weed free.

 

Don Ford

Chapter 4 04.22.14

Chapter 4         “The best laid plans of mice and man…”

                For the one person that closely reads my articles, I have changed a word. The word “mouse” has been changed to “mice” in the heading following the Chapter indicator, starting in Chapter 3.

            Well, Easter has come and gone and I did relax and enjoy the family. There was the typical Easter egg hunt in which I came in third place out of the three egg hunters (grand kids are fasted than old retired people).

                Monday morning I decided to begin again on my project of a ramp into the shed. As usual I take some quite time in the throne room each morning. The throne room is usually quiet, you can adjust the lighting to fit your mood and no one bothers me during my meditation.

                As I sat on my throne I was considering my approach to the ramp at the shed. I must remove the metal from the bottom of the door before I can proceed with any other work. I have purchased two of the saw blades needed to cut the metal. I pondered the idea of getting the extension cords and stretching them across the yard to power the saw. That sounds like extra work which a person of my age and being on a fixed income (cost of the electric) does not need.

                Suddenly the throne room was filled with an aroma, this aroma may have helped me with the thinking process. I reckoned, there is an alternative to the electric saw. Tin Snips; I have a pair of tin snips that were probably my dad’s and they do not require electric. Another problem solved in the throne room. Once the paper work was complete, I headed to the back yard for some physical labor.

                Arriving at the shed I observed some flora that was blooming beside the shed. I reached for the trusty camera and took the following photos.

In these photos we see flowers growing under the solar panel and along the shed.

 

These roses are not near the shed but I thought they were pretty. They were gifts to my present wife several years ago from her niece Donna Rea. These rose bushes are about 6 feet tall and as you may be able to see, there are red and pink roses.

 

                I began the work of cutting the metal from the door. The tin snips did work or should I say the tin snips cut the metal and I did the work.

                After successfully removing the metal I began to place the plywood for the form. This required me to be on my hands and knees for an extended period of time.

                I have now placed the form for the cement and I have started to back fill. I have determined that if I am to be successful at the venture I will need help with the cement. I assume I can make a somewhat dry mix and probably be able to control it but I will need someone to mix the following batches as I smooth and try to keep the cement on an angle inside the form.

                I woke in the middle of the night last night thinking about the ramp and in this semi-sleeping state I considered that the cement ramp may be too much work. I lay there considering the amount of cement needed and… zzzzzzzz

 

                The garden is doing well, we thought we were going to get rain yesterday so I did not water. There was no rain, I will water today.

 

I hope your day is filled with smiles.

 

Don Ford

 

 

Chapter 3 "The best laid plans of mice and man."

Chapter 3         “The best laid plans of mice and man…”

                How to proceed or, forget the project was my conundrum.

If I continue I would need to alter the shed door which would allow me to be able to open and shut the door once the ramp is in place. Opening and closing the door seems like an important part to this project.

If my decision were to forget the project, I would think of myself as a quitter and I would not have my handicapped cement ramp.

Obviously, I have but one choice. I must see this project through to fruition (I also like the word fruition, it is spelled like it sounds). 

Needing to update my plan, I acquired my camera from the desk drawer and proceeded to the shed. Arriving at the shed I opened the door and took several photos of the door inside and out before the camera batteries went dead. Is the batteries going dead an omen; should I defer this project for a few weeks?

Over the years I have developed a strategy of taking a few photos and then heading for my computer. I can sit in my easy chair and review the photos which most often provides ways to update the original plan. Today was no exception.

I have learned that the door frame is smaller than the metal that covers the frame. In my update plan I will remove a protective piece of metal from the bottom, then cut about 4 inches of metal from the bottom of the door. I will reinstall the protective strip which will cover all sharp edges. Below is a photo taken by yours truly, showing the amount of metal that will be removed close to the bottom of the 2 X 4 bottom of the door frame.

 

Accomplishing the above, I will be able to continue with the original plan to install the cement ramp.

I have worked with cement in the past but it has all been in a flat or level form. This time I will attempt to lay the cement in a form that has a 12 inch drop in four feet, from the back to the front. I believe I will need to work with a more dry cement mixture.  

The weather person is calling for possible showers over the next 4 days, which includes Easter weekend. During this period of time I hope to rest and relax while enjoying family and friends.

Note:

The small garden is looking good with no ill effects from the almost freezing weather. The only problem with the garden came from me. As I was trimming the weeds along the edge of the landscape timber, I backed into the solar panel attached to my shed, causing the string trimmer to cut the tops off about 4 onions.

 

Don Ford

The best laid plans of mouse and man. 04.16.14

 

Chapter 1        

                Bing the master of the Ford Homestead of Hewitt, TX (my spouse of 45 years does not read these articles, I can say what I want without fear of retaliation) I thoroughly plan all my projects.

                In order to remove my tiller or the generator from the shed I use two eight foot 2 X 8 boards with ramp hardware on the ends. I would like to have a permanent ramp in place, made of cement. That would allow for easy egress from, and entrance into the shed. Also I have stepped out of the shed a few times and kind of tripped over the cement stepping stones.

In the above photo there are two stepping stones remaining. The one closest to the shed is a flat rectangle shaped cement block while the other was a bag of cement that got wet and hardened. I have previously removed another cement bag step. As you may be able to envision, a retired person (aka senior citizen) living on a fixed income should not be stepping up and down on these type stepping stones.

For that one smarty out there, that has come up with the idea that I want to install a handicapped ramp, you are wrong, “there will be no hand rail, so it can’t be certified as handicapped” (at least not initially).

Back to my story after that rude interruption. I decided to build the ramp and I made plans on how to build the form using plywood, see below.

These are difficult to see.

They were done in pencil.

I bought the plywood and precisely cut the pieces. It helps to be a master wood butcher. I went to the shed and began the work first removing one of the cement bag stepping stones then excavating the dirt. After about 45 minutes of back breaking work, I discovered that the door would not close with part of the form in place.

                You may be able to imagine how dishearten I was, all my planning and I had not considered the door may not operate properly.

                Discouraged, I removed the incomplete form and replaced the dirt that I had excavated.

A lesser man would have had tears in his eyes and just gave up completely. Not me, I held my head high as I “sauntered” to the house. (I believe that is the first time I have ever written the word sauntered).

I decided to have my noon repast and think about my conundrum (I also like the word conundrum).

 

 

Chapter 2         “The best laid plans of mouse and man…”

                After a light lunch and a few minutes of listening to Rush Limbaugh I decided to go to town and see if I could purchase a few items. I had a list of 4 items;

·         Saw blade for a reciprocating saw

·         A reel to wind an electrical cord on

·         A DVR with 4 security camera for the Homestead

·         A bottle for the occasional happy hour

I arrived at the store and observed that there were only two cars parked on the lot with a few cars parked in front of the store. I assumed that there would be few customers shopping which makes me happy as I do not like to shop in crowds.

                I enter to store and there were people everywhere. The checkout lanes had people waiting in line. I continued on with my shopping experience walking swiftly to the saw blades. I reviewed the offerings and decided they were too expensive.

Moving on, I went into the electrical department but they did not have the reel I wanted.

Proceeding to the security camera aisle the bin for the DVR with cameras was empty. There were too many people at the checkouts and there were no other employees visible, so asking for help was out of the question.  

I thought, possibly I would walk around and shop for a few minutes and some of the customers might leave. Everywhere I went there was someone trying to look at the items I was. There were even female customers in the hardware store, there should be a law…

I, discouraged for a second time in one day, decided to leave. Dishearten, I crawled into my pickup and started for home with the thought of stopping at the package store on the way. After a couple minutes the package store was in sight but my vehicle would not turn into the parking lot. I continued my trip home with nothing to show for the trip.

There may be additional chapters if I can get over all the discouraging events.

 

Don Ford

 

What the heck? 04.15.14

 

                I know it is tax day, the deadline for some people to pay their income tax. Yes there are a few of us that continue to pay for others to have 50 inch TVs and Obama cell phones.

                I learned that today is not the final day to file if you are going to get a refund. Yep, your government will allow you to file late if you are getting a refund. Isn’t that nice of them.

 

                Taxes is not what I want to comment on today. My topic is, “Spring”.

            Spring has sprung, Fall has fell, Winter is back and it is colder that heck.

                I have switched between the furnace and air conditioner several times and last night I again turned the furnace on. This morning it was 34 degrees at the Ford Homestead, my small but stylish garden was shivering in the cold.

                I shouldn’t be complaining because it will likely be in the mid-90s in the next couple weeks and I will obviously want to complain about that.

 

I hope your day is warm, or maybe you get a warm smile from a friend.

Don Ford

 

Short ride Supper... 04.10.14

 

                Thursday morning I was considering riding out to the Bunk House for lunch when I received an email asking if anyone wants to do a short ride and have supper. That sounded better to me so I replied in the positive.

                The plan was formulated via email and we began the execution by meeting at the Flying J truck stop at 6:00pm. After the politically correct greetings were issued, it was decided to head south with Jason as the lead rider.

As we were getting ready to mount the bikes Jason found a penny that was heads up next to my motorcycle. He grabbed the penny and refused to allow me, a senior who is on a fixed income and who needs all the good luck I can get, to have the penny. It was closest to my bike so it should have been mine. J

                The weather partly cloudy and very windy. Our ride was nice, we kept to the speed limit and I enjoyed the scenery. Not having ridden much in the last few months I notice the helmet seemed to bother me some and I found myself adjusting how I was setting. These conditions do not affect riders who ride more often than I do.

                As we slowed on our approach to an intersection out in the middle of nowhere I observed a large owl sitting on a power line. Actually he seemed to be clinging to the line as the wind was blowing violently. It was about 6:45pm and not close to being dark. I surmised this owl was a senior citizen and could not see as well after dark so he was hunting during day light hours (I could be wrong).

                We observed a 1963 Chevy parked in some ones yard. This old vehicle was a 4 door hard top and the emblem indicated it was a 327 cubic inch (that is the motor size). In the olden days the term “two door hard top” or “four door hard top” meant there was no post between the body and top when the windows were rolled down.  I had a 1963 Chevy, two door hard top, 409 cubic inch, 4 speed, SS. 

                We arrived at the bar/café (I have no idea of how to spell the café’s name, so I will not try) in the middle of a lot of farm land. I was impressed by the lady that served us. She wasn’t pretty but she was good at her job.  She is one of those people that actually seem to enjoy her work. I enjoy being around people that present the image of enjoying their work.

                We appreciated (I used the word enjoy/ing three times in the above paragraph so I didn’t want to use it again) conversing before and after the food.

                Our ride home was uneventful and not as much fun as the ride down due to the darkness. Riding in the dark on rule roads requires a rider to be focused on the bar ditches for deer and other animals that could wonder into your path.

                I assume there will be a question as to, “what is a bar ditch”.  The bar ditch is the ditch alongside of the road where many people end up after an evening at the bar.

                I am going to try to attempt to not indulge in tea when eating out on the rides. A very large glass of tea or two, seems to have an inordinate amount of caffeine, which keeps me from going to sleep after the ride.

                Different subject:

                I trimmed the shrubs behind the house this morning. I wish I could say the shrubs looked good but they look kind of shabby. The shabby look is not due to my trimming abilities, everyone knows I am a master trimmer, but due to the winter weather.

                I had to water the garden yesterday since a few of the plants were looking a little wilted. All the plants had perked up by this morning.

That is it from the Ford Homestead of Hewitt.

 

Have a warm enjoyable weekend.

 

Don Ford 

 

I could have been a Techie 04.07.14

 

                As I was looking for something else I found my first digital camera. I am not too sure just how old it is but I remember we took it on vacation many years ago when we went to Colorado. This camera was quite the conversation piece each time I used it.

When I took a photo and then was able to see the photo instantly on the camera would draw attention from anyone that was close enough to see it.

I don’t remember how many photos the camera would hold but it wasn’t a lot. This old digital camera was soon replaced with newer versions that took much better photos.

The camera was very advanced with a lens that rotated 360 degrees. One could even take a selfie with this camera even before they were invented. 

There were buttons for just about everything. The quality of the photos were good if you were outside in the bright light but not good inside the house.

This Camera even had a so called telephoto lens.

                I put batteries in the camera and it still works. There are even some old photos on the camera of Texas. Texas was our German shepherd prior to Tejas.

                I do not remember how to get the photos out of the camera, I will need to look through all my old documents and see it I can find some instructions.

               

                I always like technical things, so yes, I could have been a techie.

 

Have a megapixel day!

 

Don Ford  

Spring has sprung 04.05.14

 

                Yesterday I spent most of the day on my knees. Yes I was praying that she would allow me to stop working and come into the house.

                Spring in Texas is that magical time between it is too cold to go outside and it is too hot. Spring lasts a week or two, so one must use the time wisely. Retired people must make the most of this time. Being on a fixed income we are unable to afford to hire someone to work in the yard, which means we must do any work ourselves.

                I mowed all the weeds in the ditch behind the house. I did not want to use the mower because I did not know what might be hiding in the tall grass and weeds so I used the weed eater which takes longer. I found the remains of what looked to have been a rabbit, the wings of a dove and I accidently killed two rattle-head copper-moccasins (aka grass snakes).

                I loaded my trailer on my trailer just to get it out of the way. (Small trailer that I pull behind the motor cycle loaded on my larger utility trailer.)

I removed about 30 each 16 inch by 16 inch cement blocks each weighing close to 50 pounds. These blocks were at one time level and placed on the ground where the play house sat. Over the years the tree roots have moved and pushed up blocks to a point of being un-level and ugly.

I made a hopscotch out of some of the cement blocks.

I attached the basketball goal to the kid’s fort which also got it out of the way.

I then enlarged the blackberry bed by 300%. This is where I spent most of my time on my knees. The bed went from 2’ X 2’ to 4’ X 4’. Removing the grass by hand and then digging a trench to insert the cement border in, was a lot of work. I was, and am tired.

Today (Saturday) I observed a male Grackle strutting around with his wings and tail feathers spread, making all kinds of noise attempting to influence the female who seem to be ignoring him. That is a sure sign of spring, the male trying to influence the female and she doesn’t care.

My present wife and I plan to go out to supper tonight to celebrate our wedding anniversary. Yep, on April 5, 1969 I married my first wife. It is remarkable that anyone could stay married to me that long. I think we have stayed married that long because she has learned to ignore me.

We are going to an expensive restaurant which may take all of our savings, if you want to send donations (suggested amounts are $25.00 and $50.00) to The Ford Homestead they will be greatly appreciated. I don’t want to see my wife picking up aluminum cans on the side of the highway again while I drive behind her in the pickup.

I hope you are in a giving mood

(suggested amounts are $25.00 and $50.00)

 

Don Ford

 

Small garden 101 04.02.14

Small garden 101                   04.02.14

 

                My first wife wanted to get some Easter decorations out of the shed which means, I need to get the decorations out of the shed. During the process I found that I had a tiller in the back corner of the shed. Finding said tiller I decided to see if it would run. After adding a small amount of gas and pulling on the starter rope a few times the old tiller came to life.

                I decided to change the oil in the tiller and then use it to level out a pile of dirt which would make it easier to mow. This process would run the gas out of the tiller so it can be stored again.

                Earlier this month I had toyed with the idea of putting in a small garden. The imaginary garden might consists of a few tomato plants, some peppers, onions and not much more. As you can envision I would not need much room for a garden with those few plants.

                I thought about the work that would be involved initially (tilling, raking out the grass, re-tilling, making the rows and then actually planting) and then follow up work trying to keep the weeds and grass out, water the plants and trying to keep the wild life away.

                I had decided to put the tiller away and forget this venture when I mistakenly talked with my first wife. She pointed out that the grandkids might like to help in the garden and it could be a learning experience to see the garden grow.

                I filled the tiller with gas and marked off a 10 X 15 foot area near the shed. This spot is in full sunlight which is good for the plants. I misguidedly said to myself, “it should be easy to till.”  The tilling process in an area where the grass has been growing for years is not an easy process but I believed I was up to the job.

                First pass through I hit something the stopped the tiller dead in its tracks. I carefully evaluated the area below the tines, to my surprise I found a cement block which was not visible before tilling. Shovel in hand I removed this obstacle and again began to till. 

                A short time later the tiller again stopped abruptly. This time it was not a cement block. When I reviewed the area below the tines I found a piece of rebar that my tiller had bent into a “J” shape (photo to follow).

Surely I would not till up any other debris. What a foolish thought that was. In an effort to make this story somewhat shorter, I also hit the following items; one earth anchor, several roots and a rock in that order. Each of these items stopped the tiller abruptly (see photo below).

 Things I tilled up.

Below, “The garden spot” after tilling several times and raking repeatedly.

Next you are being treated to a photo of me, “The Master Gardener” posed with his trusty tiller.

Onion planting for the grandkids; easy for them but the dirt clods hurt my knees.

                The above photo also shows the bottom portion of a solar panel on the side of my shed. This panel keeps a 12 volt battery charged in the shed. I am able to use some small electric devices through an inverter. Also during the winter months it keeps my mower battery charged.

 

I assume you have heard the expression, “growing like a weed”. We now have evidence that indicates I am, “The Master Gardener”, and that the soil in my garden is very, “fertile”. In the photo below you will notice that we planted a grandson and he is growing like a weed (look at his feet). 

The plants are in the ground, we can hardly wait to see the “fruits of our labor”. 

We hope the fruits of your labor are many and greatly appreciated.

Don Ford

 

*        *        *        *        *        *        *        *        *        *        *

 

The following is a Comment (sermon) by,                 Don Ford

 

                Planting a garden isn’t like working at a job. You are rewarded each time you visit the garden with either exercise such as pulling weeds, or the vision of “your” garden growing in the sun.

Picking fruit or vegetables from the garden and then either eating them or sharing them with others is an excellent personal reward. I, believe, it is a blessing for you. 

                Gardening is a personal gratification, which is sometimes missing in life. 

                Whether we are;            

The teacher or the student,

The boss, or the employee,

                The parent or the child,

                Husband or wife,

We may get so involved in daily life that we feel we are not appreciated, and we may forget to appreciate others. Take a moment and think about how often “you”, show your appreciation to others.

?              !              ?              !              ?              !              ?

 

I believe you most often, “get what you give”.

If you want to be appreciated, appreciate others.

I have noticed that we often show appreciation or say thank you to someone we have just met. Why do we often forget to be grateful to those we are around daily?

 

Sometimes the spouse, the boss, the parent, the child, the friend or relative has so much to do that they forget to say thank you for all you have done; could that be you? 

 

The sermon is over and I want you to know, even though I don’t say it enough, “I appreciate you”.