May 16, 2023

            Well, it is Tuesday, and it isn’t raining. It did rain yesterday afternoon and my favorite wife and I was forced to sit on the front porch with our beverage due to the rain. Actually, it was nice on the porch with the slow easy rain, even our conversations were slow and easy. Ok, I know what you just thought, and even though you might be correct in thinking ole people are slow and easy, I don’t think it is nice of you thinking of us ole people as being, “slow and easy”!

            I should stop entering data right now and leave you without any additional info. One day you are my favorite, and the next day you hurt my fillings!

            I will continue for the other readers, not for that one, and we all know who you are. Ken the contractor did arrive at the Fords homestead yesterday, the first trailer had the metal that will be used as the frame. He returned later with the metal that will be used as the top. He was working on the frame pieces getting them ready to paint when he discovered that his spray gun would not work. He explained that to me and left to get a new sprayer, he is supposed to be here this morning to get back to work. I have a photo of the progress so far.

            What? No, there isn’t anything there yet, but that is where we hope it will be.

            Since the weather was good yesterday until later in the afternoon, I was able to mow the front yard. Interesting, I along with two neighbors were out mowing at the same time. Was I trying to keep my yard looking as good as theirs, or were they trying to keep their yards looking as good as mine? The neighbor who is on vacation needs to have his yard mowed.

            Dave had to work OT yesterday, I picked him up about 5:00pm, he worked 11 hours. They use to pay OT for hours worked past the days schedule, now as I understand it, they pay OT for anything over 40 hours in a week. So, if you work more than the scheduled hours for three days and then mis a day, you get no OT pay. I can see how it would be irritating to work more than scheduled hours and not being sure you will get extra pay.

            I did get some more black berries yesterday; I think a couple days of sunshine will increase the number of black berries harvested.

            Well, that is it for today’s rant. I hope your day is surprisingly comfortable, and as usual be safe.

Contractor is starting.

Senior person who can stay inside and watch the contractor work, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 15, 2023

            Hello to you, my favorite person to read this posting. You are the one and only who reads what I write, and actually enjoys what you read. I did think that you might have made a comment about the umbrella photo being taken in the house, because I did not want to get it wet in the rain, but you let this ole person down by not commenting.

            In past articles I have noted how the government wants to save water by dictating outhouses instead of inside toilets, and removal of all bathtubs allowing for one 2-minute shower every 24 hours. As I understand it, many of you are in favor of one or both of those programs, as they will save water and help the green horn group to stay in power.

            I have learned of another program that your president and green horn group have came up with. It is said that this program will be initiated by the end of this year. This proposed program will, “Due away with all paper items used for mucus discharge (aka blowing your nose) like Kleenex and Puffs”.

Your president and the green horn group want everyone to use handkerchief’s. As we understand it, the average handkerchief can be use and washed more than 200 times before replacement is required. Also, it is suggested that the handkerchief does not need to be washed after each use. It is recommended that the handkerchief be used a minimum of 15 times before washing. During testing, one handkerchief was used 24 times before washing, this person had allergies really bad, and he simply would let it dry after use, then shake it several times, and it would be ready for re-use!

There is also another program that has been going on for quite a while, and it is to do away with all paper used for writing and printing. This would mean no more newspapers, and no more paper advertisements. Everyone has a phone or a computer so paper items like mail are no longer necessary. Kids in school don’t know how to write on paper now, so they are already paperless. It is said that a paperless united states will occur in 2026. 

You don’t believe me? Wait and see, if I am right!

 

            Topic swap: yesterday was a do-nothing day here at the Ford Homestead. We mostly sat around complaining that there was nothing to do. I did in the afternoon venture out into the wet back 40, in an effort to review the berry beds. I was able to collect a hand full of black berries while avoiding the standing water, photo to follow.

            Collecting those berries means that I will need to daily check the berry beds and carry a container with me.

Different subject: the contractor is supposed to be here this morning to start the new carport. It is not raining this morning and it is predicted to not rain until this afternoon. I need to get the Ford’s ole Chevy out of the driveway and get my first wife’s van out of the garage before he arrives. Maybe I will take a photo of the drive before and after the car port arrives.

Well, I need to get going, we hope you have a good day filled with much kindness, and as always please stay safe.

Berry picker

Senior ole person who needs to mow the front yard but… Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 14, 2023

Mother’s Day,

            Well, I gave my wife a big hug at the start of Mother’s Day, and Tres started barking and jumping on my back. Now I am not sure whether he was defending my favorite wife, or if he wanted to be hugged. When I finished the hug, Tres was jumping around in the room like he wanted to play. Tres is too big to be jumping around inside the house.

            On a different topic: we did go out for lunch yesterday with a friend to celebrate Mother’s Day, nope we were not accompanied by any family. The lunch was good but my present spouse’s steak was over cooked. They offered to cook another but she did not accept the offer.

            Altered subject: My first wife and I did sit outside for a while yesterday, we felt a couple drops of rain as we were sitting on the ole swing, and we proceeded to the front porch. The chairs on the front porch are comfortable, and it did not rain. It was nice to have a different perspective (aka, view of neighborhood) as we enjoyed sitting outside without TV type distractions. Speaking of TV, I did get to watch some of the three stooges TV shows yesterday afternoon.

            Swap theme: It is not yet raining today, at least not here at the homestead, and I did not review the berry beds yesterday, it was just too wet. I might put my boots on and check the beds today, I am sure there are some black berries that will need to be picked. Speaking of rain, a neighbor is heading for the golf coast this morning, pulling a big camping trailer. They are heading into some heavy rain and possible storms. We hope all goes well for them.

            Rich neighbors: we have a neighbor who has purchased a new vehicle. He said he wanted to get it for his wife, as her ole vehicle (a pickup truck) had way too many miles on it. It must be nice to have a job and be able to afford new things, ole people on fixed incomes are stuck with what they have, we get nothing new.

            Getting old; I guess I will need to admit that I am getting old, and when we get old, we can forget things. Now I know most of the reading group do not look at the posting early in the day so yesterday’s late email did not mean anything to them. In truth the email was written and should have been sent early Saturday morning, but it sat there on the Ford’s ole computer all day before I understood that I had not sent it. I wrote it early, and then failed to send it.

            Food topic: no one has asked but I did go get a breakfast burrito for my favorite wife and mother of our kids this morning. What could be better than a burrito for the mother of your kids.

            Well, I guess I will stop for now, we hope you will be nice to your mother, and if she isn’t still with us, just think of the nice things she has done for us. Have a safe day.

Mother’s are good!

Senior ole person who just noticed it is raining again, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 13, 2023

            I could start with good morning, but today I am going to start with, “morning”! it is raining and has been raining through a lot of the night, no I have not ventured forth to the free rain gage to see how much rain we have received, I did not want to get wet. Tres did not want to go out in the back 40 to relieve himself, as water is standing there again. I did let him out through the garage door, the pavement was less wet than the ground out back, he was able to relieve himself.

            I was given a gift yesterday by a friend, it is a Texas umbrella and I have a photo of said gift.

 

            Before anyone asks, I took the photo inside the house because I did not want to go outside and get it wet, I told you it is raining.

I just thought, in the olden days they use to say it was bad luck to open an umbrella in the house, I hope I am not in for bad luck today.

My favorite wife and I had thought about going out to lunch today, to celebrate Mother’s Day a little early. Patrick and Karla are going on a cruise starting today so they will not be here for Mother’s Day, Alex has strep throat, so it looks like Dave, Claire and Gabi will not be going with us for lunch. Wow, a lonely ole couple out at the sandwich shop eating all alone, again!

The weather was nice yesterday afternoon so my first wife and I, along with the friend who gave me the umbrella, sat outside conversing about all things, but mostly family. We did get into a few comments about the bible, and now I need to look a couple things up today to help me better understand. You know, I am not always right.

I have another photo which I took yesterday, and it is of some black berry leaves. The leaves on the berry bush usually are flat, but some are curled up, or curled down on the edge. It only occurs on a few of the bushes. I am wondering if it is due to the large amount of rain we have been getting.  Photo to follow.

            Well, I am needing to get something for my breakfast, I hope we have something to eat, ole people can’t afford a lot of food.

            I hope you all have a good day, stay dry and as always, be safe.

Mother’s Day

Senior retired person who has a new Texas umbrella, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 12, 2023

            Yesterday was a fairly good day, I did not see any rain, our back 40 is still very wet but not as much standing water as before. I know you don’t want to know this but since I am creating this posting, I will always publish what I want, and sometimes what you want. Over the years we have had several above ground pools in the back 40. Where these pools were placed, the ground was shall we say, leveled out prior to installing the pool. Now these areas are still a little lower than other parts of the back 40, thus water stands there.

            Varied comment: I did review the berry beds yesterday and I found one Black, black berry, many red berries and a ton of green berries. The one Black berry had been assaulted by the birds (aka partly eaten). 

            Altered subject: I did take a partial loaf of bread out and walk along the back fence tossing the pieces across the fence for the birds to eat. Tres went with me, he had to have a couple pieces of bread too.

            Swapping topics: My favorite wife and I did have lunch with friends yesterday at the George restaurant. The food was good, service was very good, conversations were lively and fun.

            Change of subject matter: I did go to the skin doctor yesterday, all seemed ok, I get to go back in 6 months.

            Another topic: My wife of more than 50 years allowed me to sit outside with her yesterday afternoon. It was a little warm but an occasional breeze did help. We both re-entered the homestead about 6:00 to watch the documentary about the 1953 tornado.

            We are expecting rain off and on for the next several days, I assume that will slow down or stop the possibility of a new carport on the driveway.

            The breakfast burrito and real coffee this morning was good, and my belly fills full. I probably should get up and do something to work off the food, wait, it is too wet outside for an ole person to go out and work, maybe a nap will help the full belly.

Rain reducing the drought!

Senior ole person who must check the berries daily now, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 11, 2023

            Well, we got a total of 2 inches of rain here yesterday. Now that was an ole Missouri type rain. I did nothing yesterday except get the Alex and Dave from work and school and take them home.

            Now I did take a test yesterday, and I passed it with flying colors, or should I say with a blue color. What type test did the Don take, no one asked, so I will enlighten no one, he took a home covid test. My allergies have been very high and I just felt crummy a couple days so I thought I would take the test. Before you ask, yes, I followed the instructions letter by letter, and I have already said, I passed. 

I get to go with my favorite wife to have lunch today, she and some of her friends are having lunch (I consider them as my friends too) and I get to attend. We will need to take separate vehicles, as I do get to go to the doctor today, after eating lunch. The doctor will look at the scar on my hand from the last surgery. I do not plan on any other surgeries during the next couple months. I want to enjoy this summer with out too many doctors, you know, ole people find it difficult to avoid doctors.

The rain stopped around 4:00 pm yesterday and we are supposed to have a dry day today and then get two or three more days of heavy rain. We hope this rain is getting into lake Waco and other lakes, we need to end the drought. I would like to check the berry beds but I would need to walk in some very wet conditions to get to each bed.  

We also wonder if the contractor will be able to work on the new carport this coming Monday, will it be raining or not, who knows.

Different subject; today May 11^th, marks the day that down town Waco was hit by a big F-5 Tornado back in 1953. It destroyed a lot of the down town. For local people, there will be a one-hour documentary with photos and videos about the Tornado, today at 6:00pm, check your TV channels if you are interested.

Well, I hope you have a good day, I hope ole people are nice to you, please be safe in all you do.

Early Lunch

Senior ole retired person who is looking forward to lunch with friends, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 10, 2023

            Wednesday and nothing to do. I did nothing yesterday, well we did go to the concert at school last night, and I mean night. Alex and the 7^th grade group were putting on the last concert for this school year. They did good! This concert started at 7:30 and I am usually lying in bed at 7:30 watching TV. Heck, I did not get into bed until 9:00 last night.

            It is raining this morning and has been on and off since last night, it is a lite rain, and there is water standing in the back 40. I will attempt to stay inside all day today, possibly staying dry and getting a little rest. We are supposed to get rain through Sunday, I wonder if the contractor will be able to work on the carport Monday, or will it be raining.

            Bible study homework is over for the summer, so I have more time to read from the Bible for my personal studies. I enjoy studying when it isn’t required studying.

            I was going to complain about TV commercials this morning, but I decided to be nice and just say, we hope you have a wonderful day, stay dry and stay safe.

Be nice to ole…

Senior ole person who will rest today, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!

May 9, 2023

            Well, I made it through the day yesterday as I worked my ole body to a point of exhaustion. I started the day by leaving the Homestead, heading for the gas station, yep, I needed some gas for the ole string trimmer and a little for the ole pickup. Since I was out and about, I did go to get a cup of real coffee.          

            Arriving back at home, I was able to mix a little oil in with the gas for the string trimmer, and I removed the string trimer from the shed. My goal starting out, was to trim the front yard in prep for a possible mowing later in the day. Completing the front yard, I proceeded to the back 40 where there was plenty that needed to be trimmed.

            In the back 40 there are many objects like sheds, berry beds, flower beds, the back of the house, two trees, a trailer and the fence, which needed to be trimmed. Needless to say this took a while to do. I was finishing with the fence when I ran out of string, maybe 40 feet to go, and I decided, I was not reloading the string on the trimmer, I was done. Trimmer put away, yep, a little trimming left for next time.

It was break time for this ole person, I did eat lunch and I rested in the Fords ole recliner for a while.

Break and lunch time over, I headed out to get the walk behind mower and brought it to the front yard where I manicured the front yard. Now if you had read a previous posting, you would be aware of the fact that I mowed the back 40 on Sunday. Wow, all my grass and weeds are mowed, well not all, the ditch behind the house needs to be mowed, maybe I can get the yard man Alex to do that.

I should note, my allergies were really bad during the trimming and mowing, at one point I got a mask and wore it to reduce the intake of pollen.

Mowing done, tools put away, except for the walk behind mower which I need to work on, I proceed to get a wash job (aka shower) for the Don! Needless to say I was tired and I took a break staying inside the house hoping to avoid the pollen.

I did leave the homestead to go get in line to get the Alex. I was very hot sitting there in the Ford’s ole Chevy, as the sun was shining and I refuse to let the vehicle idol with the air conditioner on, while I wait. Alex came out and together he and I went to get Dave from work.

Back at home I was advised that the flower pots out back needed to be watered, and I was allowed to moved one flower pot to a new location. My first wife worked in the garage all day yesterday pricing items for a future garage sale. I did pick up some of the debris that was generated as she worked, and placed it in the trash receptacle.  

We did ok the building of a new carport; he is scheduled to start next Monday. I did not ask how long it will take, but I assume if he works alone maybe 3 days. This fellow worked alone when he built our patio cover. Another neighbor is also interested in getting a cover as he is going to get his wife a new vehicle, and wanted to protect it. Now they have a garage, but like many garages, it is filled with stuff.

Ole yard man

Senior ole person who needs a break from this blog, Don the Ford

May today be better than your best day, but not as good as tomorrow!