A short ride by Biker Don 06.28.14

 

                A cloudy day with a 20% chance of rain but not everyone would get rain.

                I decided to wash the bike since the sun was behind the clouds. I don’t work in the direct sun light if I can avoid it, and the bike dries too fast causing water spots when the sun is directly on the bike.

                While washing the bike I remembered that I need to get some gas and I need to go by the bank to get $5.00 _{(my weekly allowance since I am on a fixed income)}. All of a sudden I had this bright idea, I would also ride to Glen Rose for lunch. It would be about 80 miles there and another 80 or so back.

                I finished the washing of the bike, then I washed myself. I rode to the bank and got my $5.00 then to the gas station and got gas for the bike. With that all done I headed out for Glen Rose. I made the turn off highway 6 onto county road 56. It seemed even cloudier now. As I was riding I could smell fresh rain, but there was nothing falling on me or the bike. I noticed that the road was wet, which indicated a rain had passed through ahead of me.

                Not being easily discouraged, I rode on.  “Biker Don” is not afraid of a little rain but he is afraid of a lot of rain.  I again rode through an area where there had been rain just a short time before I arrived.

                Glen Rose is out, and I am now heading for the Bunk House in Clifton TX. On the way there was additional areas of wet road indicating scattered showers.

                The day was very gray and gloomy when all of a sudden it was surprisingly bright. To my right there was a field of sunflowers. It was truly a pleasant surprise and a high point of this ride.

Please ignor the johnson grass in the forground of the photo, I took them while riding and was not able to eliminate the weeds.

The rest of the ride was uneventful.

 

I hope your day is filled with sunflowers.

 

Don Ford

"Overpopulation" good or bad Part 2 06.27.14

 

            Back again, and today I will stay on subject. There will be no drifting into, “leftfield”, I am staying in center field and focused.

            Overpopulation was evident and on my mind again this morning, as I meandered through the neighborhood.

            I have found that starting my morning walks at a slow pace helps get the body ready for the quicker steps that will follow. I assume it is something like athletes stretching their muscles before an event.

            This morning I was slowly walking down the street, when there was a squirrel about 40 feet ahead of me walking the same direction along the curb. This squirrel would walk about 4 or 5 steps then stop stand on his back legs and look at me. He would then walk a few more steps and repeat the action.  I was wondering why he didn’t just run into someone’s yard and up a tree.

            This silly squirrel continued this process for about 50 feet. The curb turned to the left as we were entering a cul-de-sac at the end of the street. The squirrel made the corner and I could not see him until he stopped and stood on his back feet. I could see his head over the curb for a moment and down he went, out of sight again.

            All of a sudden this squirrel popped up about 2 feet in the air. I can’t say he did a back flip but he wasn’t far from it. I thought, there must be something like a snake that scared him.

Down on the ground again I could not see him until I rounded the corner. I was curious to see what had made him jump into the air. There was a wet spot and some rocks but no snake. I assume he was focused on me and was surprised by the wet spot.

This darn squirrel continued along the curb, into a drive way, and then up the drive way to a wooden fence. Maybe he was afraid of trees.

 

In studies done of the overpopulation, the * FHA has determined that over population is both bad and good. At this point in time the overpopulation is not good. Providing food is a major concern and the unsanitary conditions that exist due to overpopulation can be seen almost everywhere.

We should understand, in the near future this overpopulation will be our saving grace.

 

As many of you may know, our country is basically without proper leadership. Yes we have politicians, whose job it is to lead, but they are leading us down the road to a point of no return.

I believe that many politicians at one time in their life wanted to be leaders, wanted to make a difference, wanted to represent, “we the people”.

All their good intentions fall away as they become more interested in following the party lines and being, “re-elected”.

It is my opinion, many of these politicians are not capable of leadership, but they enjoy, being thought of as “whatever their title is”.

It is also my opinion, many politicians believe they are doing the right thing when bureaucrats are appointed to head up or run an agency. Look at the VA and we see what bureaucrats wanting more money in the form of bonuses, have done.

It is my belief, that many of the, “politicians” should be removed from office. Term limits would definitely help. 

My beliefs applies to politicians from your local city council, all the way to the president.

 

Why did I bring up the political world when I was talking about overpopulation? We will discuss that that in a coming article.

 

I hope your day is politics free.

 

Don Ford

 

Overpopulation good or bad 06.26.14

 

            I have been contemplating this subject for some time now, and have now formed an opinion.

            I know what some of you are thinking, here comes another opinion from, “The Ford” and it will probably be way out in left field.

            First off, what is wrong with being in left field?  There are many balls hit into left field and if no one was in left field the center fielder would be over worked.

            Also, you should reserve your criticism of the article, at least until after you have read it.

            All “facts” in the article are true.

 

Thank You; now I will get back to the subject at hand.

 

            Lately, I have been either walking or riding a bike each morning, in an effort to get some needed exercise. I have found that this early morning walk or ride is stimulating to the body and mind. As I walk through the neighborhood I observe many things, such as the house with the large window. The curtains are pulled almost together, but there is a space of about 3 inches which would allow someone to peer out at the passing public. Is it possible that these curtains will be quickly closed when someone looks in that direction?

            Is it also possible that someone is sitting there looking out, when they see a passerby look in their direction they quickly pull the curtains close. 

 

            This is a little off the subject but I have noticed that many people on TV mispronounce the word curtain. If you listen closely you may hear them say curin (no T sound).

Yes, I occasionally watch, “let’s make a deal” in the afternoon. It comes on at the same time that Alex takes his nap. It is also possible that I have taken a nap at the 2:00 hour.

 

            I digress; I have become aware of the overpopulation during my morning walks and I have pondered the hypothesis that overpopulation might be good, while having negative properties at the same time.

 

            Although this has nothing to do with the subject of overpopulation, I have noticed several rabbits in various yards during my morning constitutionals. It is becoming increasingly evident that today’s rabbits, living in a town like Hewitt, where all the dogs are kept behind a fence or on a lead, have little or no fear of humans.

            This morning as I strolled along the street, I observed a medium sized rabbit in a yard, possibly 15 feet from me. This rabbit was scratching its head with its back foot and it did not care weather I was there are not.

            In the olden days we hunted rabbits for food. Yes we were poor, and yes we had other food to eat.

Harvesting a wild rabbit or two was fun _{(for the hunter)} and when properly cooked _{(fried in some bacon grease that was kept in a container on the stove)} with some white gravy and a piece of cornbread along with some white beans, we had a meal.

Also, 100 years ago, _{when I was a kid,} every kid had a BB gun. Rabbits and birds were smart and wary enough to stay hidden or at least away from humans. 

 

“Wow”, I have strayed from the main topic again. As long as I am off the subject I will comment on a lazy cat that I saw this morning. Actually I heard several Mocking birds making a lot of noise in a tree next to the drive way where the gray cat lay. This cat did not seem to care that the mocking birds were there but the birds were upset that the cat was there.

Our old cat was named Bandit and the mocking birds would get after him. These birds would dive at Bandit’s back in an attempt to get him to go somewhere else. Bandit learned to lay down and roll over on his back when the birds began to dive at him. That would put a stop to the birds for a while.

Bandit had learned to ring the doorbell quite by accident. When he wanted in the house he would come to the front door and scratch at the door hoping someone would hear him. One day he jumped up on the ledge which put him close to the doorbell. When he began to scratch at the door he would hit the doorbell button which rang the doorbell.

One day, he rang the doorbell and when we went to the door we were surprised, he had a full grown rabbit, dead, which he was wanting to bring into the house.

 

Darn, I have been in left field and have not discussed, “overpopulation”.

 

In my next posting I will attempt to stay focused and present the facts about overpopulation.

 

I hope your day is filled with delight.

 

Don Ford 

 

Nothing to write about 06.23.14

 

                Today is Monday, June 23^rd, 2014 and I have nothing to write about. The weekend was kinda lazy with some needed rain Saturday night and Sunday morning. Here, at “The Ford Homestead”, we received ½ inch of rain over about ten hours.

I describe that type of slow easy rain as a Missouri rain. It is not in a hurry to get here and not in a hurry to leave. 

                Late Sunday afternoon I could hear thunder to the north of us. Observations from the front yard indicated dark clouds in the direction of the thunder. Being an inquisitive senior, I proceeded to the front room where I tuned the TV to the local weather channel.

                The radar indicated heavy rain with some lightening over Waco, but nothing over Hewitt. Hewitt had sunny skies while the storm raged over Waco. We later learned that Waco received over 4 inches of rain in a very short time period, while we remained rain free for the same time period.

                There is a set of Siamese twins in the neighborhood. I must say I was somewhat surprised at this discovery, but I guess we should, “expect the unexpected”.

Now that I have written that, I am wondering if one can expect the unexpected. If it is unexpected can you expect it? I believe one can, “expect to be surprised” but is being surprised the same as expecting the unexpected?

Whatever; I have a photo of the Siamese twins.

Siamese twin squash, along with tomatoes, jalapenos and black berries. I should have placed a ruler in the photo so you could get a better idea of the size. Both black berries are close to an inch and a half long, the odd shaped tomato is at least 6 inches across. My first wife wanted the tomato plant that produces this type of fruit. I am not sure of the name, it may be name antique.

                Odd shaped tomato or not, they still taste good.  

                Notice that I accented the photo by using a yellow towel and a red towel which helped contrasts the color of the fruit/vegetables.

                You are possibly thinking that, “The Reverend Mr. Ford” is a master of many things and photography is just one of the many. I like the term, “Maestro”. 

 

                Odd, there was nothing to write about, and I wrote about it.

 

I hope your day is fruitful.

 

Maestro Donald R. Ford

Money Making Idea 06.19.14

 

                As I was watering the flowers the other afternoon, a woman walking her dog came up my side of the street. As she walked past my mail box, she restrained her dog from urinating on the post. She smiled and said, “Nice Grass”, which surprised me as I though the grass was hidden behind, “The Ford Homestead”. Then I realized that she was referring to the grass in my lawn.

                Seniors living on a fixed income need to find ways to attain additional income, without disclosing it to the IRS.  A small cash crop in the back yard is ideal for extra income.

                We here at, “The Ford Homestead” have found a way to openly have an additional cash crop that the man will never find. We have purchased a pool for the back yard _{twelve easy payments}. It looks innocent enough, but we are stocking it with shrimp and crawfish, also known as crawdads.

                I am sure we will be able to corner the market in a few months and my present wife may be able to stop picking up aluminum cans from the road side.

Below are before and after photos from behind, “The Ford Homestead”.

 

                We will allow the grandkids to swim in the pool as long as they don’t hurt the shrimp and crawdads.

                _{For that one person that believes we have grass, pot, marijuana growing in the back yard that was a joke.}

On a totally different subject:

                As you may well know, I occasionally ride with friends from the local Honda shop on Thursday evening dinner rides. This past Thursday the ride was going to the Tokyo Store. We had been fore warned that the food was good and the service was slow.

                The ride to the store was good to a point, but everything changed when the lead bike turned onto a very dry and extremely dusty gravel road. Someone later said it was a five mile gravel road. It seemed like 20 miles to me.

                We arrived after 8:00pm at the store. I think it use to be a store and that is where it gets its name, it is actually a bar.

This old building must be experienced to be believed. The old wood floors were very weak and the wood was uneven, it gave way when anyone walked on it. You did not need to be intoxicated to be staggering on that floor. When anyone walked by your table the table would move. They have patched holes in the floor with old license plates.

Jason, Wayne and I ordered our food with in about 2 minutes of each other. About 45 minutes later, Jason and I received our food. Wayne’s food arrived at the table about 10 minutes after I had finished eating.

A few of us left the store heading for home a little before 10:00pm. As you may know that is way past my curfew bed time. I decided to put my denim jacket on as it has protective plates in the arms and back just in case I would go down.

The jacket is too warm to wear in the day but not too bad after the sun goes down.

The ride toward home was good with little traffic and no deer on the road. All went well and we all split up when we got to I-35 near the Cracker Barrel. I took the on ramp and got out on I-35. There was a lot of traffic and as usual it was running a little over the speed limit.

Break lights ahead and the traffic was coming to a very slow crawl. At times we were stopped then move slow. It was as if I was walking down the interstate. I was in the center lane of three lanes and I had large trucks all around me.

There was plenty of hot exhaust from trucks and cars. I had the jacket and full helmet on. I thought I might have to sneak between the 18 wheelers to try to get to the shoulder of the road to get my coat off. 89 degrees with a coat and helmet is hotter than well, let’s say it was hot.

Then I was bless with a flatbed trailer next to me, and we were on a bridge. I could feel a cool breeze. Since we were sitting still I pulled my jacket open and allowed the air to circulate.

Darn, the traffic moved a little and the breeze was gone.

I spent 25 minutes in this, hot stop and go traffic. I went past the new Baylor stadium and did not see it, due to the trucks around me.

I arrived home about 30 minutes later than I should have due to the traffic. My coat, helmet and I were all soaked from sweat.

 

I hope your traffic is light and your shrimp are large.

 

Don Ford

Attentive to details, 06.17.14

               

 

                As many of you know, I am very attentive to details. The smallest details seem to garner my attention. If I were going to define my ability to see things that others miss, I would say I am, “Absorbent”.

                Some of you know I have been trying to exercise a little each morning by taking a walk before it starts to warm up. Yesterday afternoon I decided I would get my bike off the hooks where it has been hanging in the garage for longer that I like to remember.

            I put air in the tires in preparation for a ride the next morning.

Yep, I decided to occasionally substitute an early morning ride for walking. When riding, one gets to see more scenery in the same amount of time as walking.

Below is a photo of the, “Ford Man Bike”.

 

                This morning I brought the, “Ford Man Bike” out of the garage and readied myself for a brisk morning ride. I was not able to ride the bike, something was wrong. The bike refused to go.

 

                What a conundrum, I could not ride the bike.

 

                I sat there in my “Man Rocker”, Observing the bike and Absorbing the information. Yes I do know the difference between observe and absorb, and I can do both at the same time.

 

                Did you see anything wrong with the bike? Anything that might keep it from going? Do you think the white wall tires makes a statement or just says, “Old time looking bike”?

 

                If you were unable to see a problem with the bike, look at the pedals.

 

                I did go for a ride this morning, while I was riding the right peddle came lose and I had to walk part of the way home. Luckily, it is a downhill ride the last block or so and I didn’t have to walk all the way home. I put the pedal on backwards for the photo opportunity. 

 

Happy Tuesday!

 

Don Ford

 

A perfect moment by Don Ford

 

                A Robin is hopping through the grass in our yard, she came within a few feet of me, seemingly knowing that I would not harm her.

There is a gentle breeze moving the air which helps make the heat more bearable.

This being Father’s Day, I was thinking about all the blessings I have had throughout my life, and there have been many. Some people may consider what I define as blessings to be good luck, in the right place at the right time, he/she gets all the breaks and they are correct. They have been blessed. 

I looked up at the blue sky and mentally was thanking the Good Lord for my blessings. I have always thought that I have been bless due to prayers from family and friends. I know it has nothing to do with me deserving these blessings.

As I brought my gaze back down to street level, the wind seemed to stop, all was calm. The sun had been shining brightly, when it seemed to have declined in intensity, similar to the amount of light one sees during a solar eclipse.

There were no cars in sight, no people moving and no loud sounds. There were no akes or pains, no concerns for a while.

I thought, “This is a perfect moment in time”. All was well at this moment in time. I sat here motionless, drinking in the moment, wishing it would not end. It was almost as if I were dreaming, a perfect moment in time.

 

                Thankful

Does size matter? Yes. 06.16.14

 

The photo below may not be of a perfect Blackberry, _{(I am not writing about a smart phone)} although it is one of a very few blackberries in the world that could be considered almost perfect.

It is well know that the fertile grounds of, “The Ford Homestead” produce many beautiful flowers and outstanding fruits or vegetables.

I should note that we have eaten the tomato that was featured in a previous posting and it was delicious.

I have placed a ruler next to the blackberry so you can get a sense of the size of the berry. Please ignore the diet coke with ice in the short glass behind the blackberry, it was placed there to hold the ruler in place.

The berry appears to be one and three eights inch from end to end _{(1 3/8”)}. There are many berries on the plants and although the birds are helping themselves to the berries, there are enough that both the human and bird population can share.

 

On a totally different subject: the following photo was taken with my flip phone and I was sitting in the Man Rocker while Molly, “the long tailed cat” lay dangerously close to the rocker’s rocker. Did that make sense?

Before you get upset and call the animal rights people, I did not rock on the cat’s tail.

 

We hope you have a Berry Nice Day.

 

Don Ford

Not Excellent but good 06.14.14

 

This ride started about 10:30am and I was riding alone. I like to ride alone but I like to have other riders with me when I stop for a break or food. Riding alone I do not need to be concerned about the other rider/s, you know, am I going too fast or too slow.

The temp was a mild but sticky 84 degrees. I should note that the humidity was actually higher than the temperature. 

Prior to this ride, I had failed to fill the gas tank on the wing, following my previous ride.

The fact that the power was off for eight hours here at, “The Ford Homestead”, on Friday 13^{th (see previous posting)} cause me to need gas for the generator.

My gold wing serves as my reserve gas for lawn mowers and generator. When it is full I have 7 gallons of gas. I syphoned what I could from the almost empty wing, for the generator, on Friday 13^th.

I filled the tank on the wing this morning prior to this ride ^{(6 gallons)}. The information that the tank was full prior to the ride will be used later ^{(if I don’t forget)}.

Once I was out of town on the smaller country roads, I noticed different smells. Yes there were smells of the cattle lot as I passed but also smells of mold or mildew. I also smelled fresh cut grass or possibly hay. There was more fresh air than odd smells.

There was a couple cool spots when I dropped off a big hill or as I rode past a large tank. The tank or lake was large enough to affect the air temp but not what I would call a large lake.

            At one point in the ride, I was on a straight road and I observed a buzzard having lunch. I honked my horn a couple times as I approached, not wanting this bird to fly into my windshield. This buzzard flew in the same direction I was going. As I rode under him I could see part of his lunch hanging from his beak.

            As I rounded another corner I scared up another buzzard along with a large hawk or possibly an eagle. The hawk or eagle was as large as the buzzard but it had brown feathers and its tail feathers were white. 

            Most of the ride was uneventful, enjoyable and quite relaxing.

            I arrived at the Bunk House a few minutes after high noon.  The parking lot was almost empty, possibly 4 vehicles park there.

I parked near the building ^{(in my usual spot)}, hung the helmet on the bike and placed my gloves and long sleeved shirt in the trunk. The long sleeved shirt is used to keep the sun off my arms when I ride.

After entering the building, one walks up a ramp built for handicapped people and seasoned bikers like me.

I ordered my food and drink and sat down at the table.

The normal process after ordering food and drink is fill your glass with ice and your choice of drink, pick a table that allows one to see most of the customers and be seated.

When your food is ready someone will bring your food to you, usually this person calls out the number on your ticket, you raise your hand and the food is brought to your table.

I looked at my ticket and it was number 13. That would have seemed ominous if it were yesterday ^{(Friday 13th)}.

 

Side note; I learned a day late that Friday 13^th was a biker friend’s birthday. Wayne was 29 _(plus) again. 

            Lunch was good and the tea was very refreshing. I sat there a few minutes after completing the meal, just observing the clientele. Most were either red necks like me, farmers or ranchers.

            I refilled my glass with ice and tea and headed out to the bike.

As I walked to my Honda a group of Harley riders came onto the parking lot. They dismounted their bikes and milled around _{(most were looking for their smart phones to see if they had received a text message during their ride)}.

As one of the Harley riders was walking past me toward the door, I said to him, “it don’t seem fair”.

He asked, “What’s that”?

I replied, “One Honda rider against 20 Harley riders”.

He laughed and said, “There are only 16 Harley riders, does that make if better”?

He then noted that he has owned two Honda Gold Wings prior to this Harley and he thought the Wings were much more reliable than a Harley. I didn’t argue. 

Evidently these Harley riders were all hungry, they just walked past me looking at their phones and did not throw any rocks. 

 

Having filled my belly, I headed for home.

I decided to fill the tank on the wing so I would have reserve gas at the house if needed.

My fun ride to lunch and back cost me $20.00 for food and gas, not counting the $18.00 of gas I put into the bike at the start of the ride. 

                      

Everything cost money except sitting on my Man Rocker, _{and that cost money too if it is happy hour.}

 

Different topic: our first tomato from the small garden.

 

Have a good day.

Don Ford

 

 

Friday, the 13th 06.13.14

 

It all seems to have started about 1 minute after midnight, Friday 13^th, 2014. My first wife came to bed about 12:02 and woke me as she got into bed. She noted that it had been raining, “like pouring it out of a boot”. This caused me to listen and there was much loud thunder indicating lightening in the area. I reached for the remote and turned the TV on to see what the storm situation was. The storms had appeared to be south of us when I went to sleep, earlier that night.

                The TV weather indicated a large storm with lots of lightening covering Waco Hewitt and other surrounding towns. I decided to get up and look outside. The back yard looked like a pond ^{(tank in Texas vernacular)}. I went to the front door and the street appeared to be a river at flood stage.

                About 12:30 the lightning was subsiding, that is when, “the power went off”. I got a flash light and worked my way into the garage where I keep a battery powered lantern. I had not charged it in over a year. I was pleasantly surprised, the lantern worked. I set it up in the bed room as a night light and I crawled back into bed.

                At some point during the night I thought about not knowing what time it was. I retrieved my cell phone, set the alarm to go off at 6:00am just in case I was to over sleep. The phone was placed by the bed.

                I woke before the phone alarm went off and rolled out of bed. Knowing the power had been off for 6 hours. I decided to get the generator from the shed and power the fridge and deep freeze.

                What was the first thing I saw when I walked out into the dark world? It was a,                  “Full Moon”. 

 

Think of this; a full moon, Friday the 13^th, major storm, 4.5 inches of rain, and a power outage. Was it a coincidence or does Friday the 13^th have something to do with it?

                The ground was very wet and somewhat difficult to pull the 100 pound generator through the grass. Once the generator was on the driveway, I started the generator and ran a couple extension cords to the fridge and deepfreeze.

                My spouse and I sat outside waiting for the power to come back on. One thing the power outage accomplished, it got several of the neighbors outside talking to each other.

                                                                                                                                   

I hope your Friday the 13^th is    

 

Don Ford

^{I would have finished the last line but I was negatively influenced by Friday 13th.}

What's next, a lion 06.12.14

                Some of you know that a full grown deer, a buck with horns, ran through the front yard one morning as I stood there coffee in hand, amazed. We have seen Turkeys in the tree at a neighbor’s house, there were horny toads and roadrunners here when we first moved in.

                Yesterday morning as I sat in my favorite man-rocker, sipping on a delicious cup of coffee when I was surprised and startled by a big hawk chasing birds. This hawk was diving after a bird when he/she flew within 15 feet of me. It happens so fast that I could not have gotten a photo even if I had a camera in my hand. It was not a small red tail hawk, it was large and fast.

                Later in the day, after taking two naps, I had decided to mow the front yard. I mowed as usual, first in one direction, then I re-mowed in another direction. I believe this extra time put into grooming the yard helps make it look manicured. I did make one mistake while mowing, I was going to mow one notch higher but I forgot to raise the mower.

                Once I had finished mowing, I took the leaf blower and blew the grass off the drive and from the street back into the yard. I was approaching the neighbors drive when I saw it. It was a snake, about 4 foot long, crossing the street. It was coming to our side of the street.

                I checked to be sure it was not a rattler, and it wasn’t. I called my present spouse to bring the camera. I then called the animal control office. He removed the rat snake.

                So what’s next, a lion?  

 

Have a surprise free day.

 

Don Ford

               

Ghost or poltergeist? 06.09.14

 

In traditional belief, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living.

In folklore and parapsychology, a poltergeist is a type of ghost or other supernatural being supposedly responsible for physical disturbances such as loud noises and objects moved around or destroyed. Most accounts of poltergeists describe movement or levitation of objects, such as furniture and cutlery, or noises such as knocking on doors.

            The other morning just before 6:00am I was in the kitchen getting ready to prepare my morning repast ^(breakfast) of cereal, when I heard a noise at my computer.

Under each of my computers I have fans that are powered by the computer. These fans are there to help cool the computer and only run when the computer is turned on. These fans are rather noisy when they first come on.

One of the fans came on and ran for about 6 seconds. I walked in to see if I had left something on, neither computer was on.

I have a small battery powered clock in the computer room and it was off by about 20 minutes one day. The clock was running, the second hand was moving at the correct speed. I reset the clock to the correct time and the next day it was off by 3 hours. The clock was still running and the second hand was moving at the expected speed. The clock has stayed on tome since…

I found a beat up old penny on the drive way where I have swept many times. There was no logical reason for the penny to be there.

A few days later I noticed something in the flower bed next to my, “Man Rocker”. ^{(I have decided to call my rocking chair a, “Man Rocker” as it sounds more masculine.)} It was a very old and worn penny. I could not see any marking on the head side of the coin, I could faintly see the tell side of the coin.

A couple days later, laying in front of my, “Man Rocker” I found and old rusty screw. There was no reason for this old rusty screw to be there. ^{(See screw photo below)}

Either someone is playing a trick on this senior citizen, or there is a ghost or poltergeist trying to tell me something. 

I am betting on a poltergeist since they make noise and move things around.

 

I hope all your spirits do not come from a bottle.

 

Don Ford

As big as my Thumb 06.05.14

 

            Yes, it is true, things are bigger in Texas. 

I have also heard that things go better with Coke. 

What I don’t know is, “what things go better with what kind of Coke”.

 

I digress; what is as big as my thumb?

Get your mind out of the gutter, I can’t believe the thoughts that flash into your head.

 

I have a photo of my thumb that I will post below.

I don’t think my thumb is that unusual?

To be open and honest with you, and to stop your imagination from running away, I will show my entire hand in a photo below and you will be able to see what I have displayed.

 Recent studies have shown that only 20 of these berries are needed to make a cobbler. The problem is keeping the birds away from these huge berries.

 There are two blackberry vines at, “The Ford Homestead Gardens” and one produces large berries as seen in the photo above. This one berry was large enough for Alex and me both to have a bite.

            Alex considers the blackberries as his garden while he considers the onion patch to be his sisters.

            Gabi graduates from the 1^st grade today. This is the last day of this school year.

I have explained to both Gabi and Alex that they will be required to work this summer, doing such tasks as washing dishes, vacuuming, mopping and mowing the yard. This will allow my present wife and me to take well deserved naps during the day.

Does Gabi know how to drive the mower? See the photo below and you will have the answer.

 The motor stopped a couple times while Gabi was driving, finally I remembered that the seat has a shut off switch and if Gabi raised up just a little it would shut off. Once I remembered, I explained to Gabi if she needed to stop just raise up off the seat. ^{(She was not mowing, just driving the mower, and I was close by)}

 

I hope your summer vacation is… 

 

Don Ford

Stalking is illegal in some situations 06.03.14

 

 

            Heck with all the seemingly illegal things that some political figures do, why would stalking be illegal?

            First, I want to go on record as saying, “I am not now nor have I ever stalked in an illegal manner”.

            As Alex and I were enjoying the shade behind, “The Ford Homestead”, I was contemplating the noon day sun and how it would provide the power through my solar panels to charge the battery in the shed.

It was then that I thought about the small solar charger that I had laid on the hood of my present spouse’ vehicle, to collect some sun light which charges the unit. The unit can then be used to charge other devices like cell phones.

Since my spouse’ vehicle was gone I wondered where my small charger had been placed. I searched the garage and office space to no avail. I asked my first wife if she had laid the unit somewhere and she had not.

My assumption; my spouse of 45 years drove off with the unit on the hood of the vehicle and it is permanently lost.

Back to my original thought, “Stalking”. As I said, Alex and I were enjoying the early summer like heat in the back yard and I was attempting to reacquaint myself with an old camera. This camera has a telephoto lens so I can’t get too close when taking a photo. The automatic focus on the short lens stopped working, but the telephoto sill works.

It is common knowledge that I, am an excellent shutterbug so working with a telephoto lens is no big deal.

As I stood there, camera in hand, I saw a squirrel run across the roof at the back of the house. I was wondering where he/she was planning to go, as there is no tree at that end of the house. This squirrel jumped from the roof into a bush.

Molly, our attack cat, was observing the same squirrel as she ran to the bottom of the same bush. She stood there like a statue, as she stalked the squirrel.

My thoughts, as I was aiming the camera were, we will see Molly with a squirrel sandwich in a minute. The squirrel made a good decision and stopped at the top of the bush, briefly surveyed the situation, and jumped back to the top of the house.

In the photo below we see, Molly the stalker, observing the squirrel, but not moving.

            Someone asked, why should the squirrel be worried about a cat, possibly the following photos can answer that question.

 She has no fear of climbing and;

she can conceal herself fairly well.

 

If you are out on a limb, don’t use a saw. 

 

Don Ford

Appreciate your blessings and you make room for more. 06.01.14

 

Even though I am very thankful for the many blessings I have received throughout my life, this article is not an original thought of mine. I saw part of a TV show which I totally agree with and I decided to attempt to express the thought.   

The fellow on TV said, when you are grateful for the good things in your life you open yourself up to receive more goodness. He said he was referring to God and blessings from God but he did not want to turn anyone off so he would use the word Nature.

He use an example saying; if you had two houses that needed some repair and you gave the two houses to two families.

When the first family visited they always complained about the roof leaking, a plumbing problem, the yard is too small and so on. They were not happy and did not appreciate what they had.

When the second family visited they were happy that they had a roof over their head, a porch to sit on and a yard to play in. They appreciated what they have.

If you acquired a third house and it was in excellent condition which family would you give it to?

The family that did not appreciate what they have would find things to complain about in the new house.

The family that appreciated what they already have would be more thankful and appreciative of an even better house. You would naturally help the family that was appreciative.

I believe the Lord will bless those who are thankful for what they have.

I think we should be positive about all parts of our life. When you think in a positive manner you will knowingly or not, work towards those positive thoughts.

Having faith and being positive are basically the same thing. Good things happen when, “you have faith”, and or, “think positive”.

 

Have a positive day.

 

Don Ford