August 8, 2024

            I think we have another good morning started, I have taken a neighbor and friend to his doctor’s office. This is a scheduled visit not an emergency, so don’t get excited. He gets shots in the eyes and that makes it difficult to see and or drive, so I drive him. He will call when it is finished and I will go back and bring him home.

            Different subject: camera #4 is starting to be blurry, I guess I will need to replace it, yes, I have a spare for the replacement, but the camera base is slightly different so I will need to drill a couple holes for the new base and camera. Work on a short ladder, I don’t like work.

You did not ask if the new voltage regulator in the shed which controls the amount of charging the battery gets from the solar panel is working, so I will not tell you it is working. You didn’t need to know that! 

New topic: There are tree trimmers at the end of the block and I assume they will be removing limbs from trees where the trees have grown around the electrical wires. I am not sure if they will go behind our house in the ditch, but they should. My trees are not around any wires.

We sat outside yesterday and it was hot. I did bring the mister to the drive way hoping that the fan would blow the mist in our direction which might cool the air a little. The big fan is too powerful even on the slow speed and the mist seem to vanish.

I will get the Alex from football practice today at noon. They are having pizza after the practice and they are wanting contributions for something. I was told that they want each player to give them 20 phone numbers to call for donations, and if a player doesn’t give them the numbers that player will be punished by having to do extra exercises. If that is true, I think the school needs to remove who ever came up with that idea and they need to have a lesson for all the school employees as to what donations are, and when people are forced to give money or even phone numbers, that is not a donation! Even I am smarter than to do something like that.

Another matter: My computer would not connect to the internet this morning for some reason, but it is working now, I know it is old like me and it don’t want to work all the time.

We hope you are having a good day, please stay safe in all you do, and be nice to that one person again today.

Donations?

Senior ole person who needs a rest from all this work, Don the Ford

 

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

August 7, 2024

            Good morning to one and all, we hope your day is starting well. This morning, I allowed Tres to take me for a short walk and I have watered the potted plants out front and back. As I watered the berry beds I was surprised when I heard a small sound. It was kind of like a chirp or a squeak. I stopped watering and it took about 30 seconds for the sound to stop. I looked all through the vines and found nothing. I began watering and the sound came back, but I still did not see anything. I assume there was something small in the vines, but I could not see it. I went to the other side and started watering and the sound came back. I got down on my knees and there is a glob of grass clippings that looks like a bird nest that had fell from the tree. I moved the grass a little and saw some tiny animals in the ground covered by the dead grass. That is when Tres jumped in and removed one from the nest and I could not stop him. I cover the nest backup and kept Tres away. I think they may be rabbits. Now you know the excitement for today.

            I worked on the unit that controls the amount of charging the battery gets from the solar panel. Now I cut wires, I measured wires, and I soldered wires. All that done I installed the unit, and it did not work. After I finished crying and feeling sorry for myself, I decided to look at the directions again. OH, I made one mistake, the two connectors that I soldered to the wires had to be removed and switched, I had them backwards. I guess I should have looked at the instructions more than I did. It works now.

            I have some photos taken this morning of blooms. The first two or blooms that are on a plant we call the moon plant, they bloom at night and fall off during the day.

            The next blooms are on a plant that we call Four O’clocks. Someone said they only bloom at 4:00, but that is not correct.

            I guess I should stop for now, but I won’t, I saw two airplanes yesterday appear as if they were going to crash into one another. One was a jet and one was a single engine small plane. Now the small plane was much lower than the Jet, and the jet was heading south while the small plane was going east. Both planes appeared to be the same size due to the much higher altitude of the Jet. Just for a couple second it looked as if they would collide, and then the smaller plane went under the big jet. I thought it was interesting…

            Well, I need to get going, we hope you all have a good day, and as always be safe in all you do.

Bloom watcher.

Senior ole person who needs to get my back taped up, Don the Ford

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

August 6, 2024

            As this day starts off, I see it as a good morning, and we wish everyone a good morning. Why did the Don start off with that comment? Allow me to attempt to answer that question.

            Yesterday morning I thought, “wow this is a good morning”, it turned out to be an odd day. I had a couple small plans for the day, and they were all demolished when I learned that I had no internet and no home phone. I tried unplugging things and then restarting them, to no avail. The router supplied by the company I get the internet and home phone from, was dead.

            I called to see if there was anything they could do to get me back online and after they checked the connections from their end they said, you need a replacement. He said I had 3 options; I could take the dead router to their store in Waco and get a replacement, they could ship me one and it would ship in a day or so, or they could send a repair person to our house the next day, arriving at the same time I needed to get Alex from football practice. Well, I decided to go to the store.

            The store opened at 10:00am, I arrived a few minutes after 10:00 and I was number 12 in line waiting to get served. There were 8 service desks, but only one person working. The customer he was working with took about 30 minutes, which meant I and the other people were waiting.

            I waited for approximately 1.5 hours, and I had to leave to go get Alex from football practice. I dropped Alex off at home and I went back to the store. I was now 15^th in line to be served. They did have a couple more people working so I only had to wait another hour to get served. The problem wasn’t the people who were working, it was the company did not have enough people working.

            I took the new router and headed for home arriving a little after 1:00pm. I installed the unit and there was an app that showed up on my phone with some instructions that I could not make work. The app wanted to send me a text message with a code to help activate the unit, but it wanted to send it to my home phone number, I can’t get text messages on the house phone. Then it wanted to call me on the home phone with the code number, which wasn’t working, and it would not call me on the cell phone.

            I finally called them again and after a long wait I was able to talk with a human and he was able to get everything back online and working.

            Different topic: we did sit outside yesterday, and our neighbors came over and sat with us. It is always good to have friends to talk with.

            Two more topics: our trees both the oak and the pecan have a sticky substance on their leaves, maybe you can tell me why do they have this sticky stuff?

            I have a photo of a plastic pipe that I installed years ago to keep people from running over our water meter. Now the meter had been run over twice, one time it broke my line the other time it broke Steves line. Now the plastic pipe is easily seen and should keep cars away from the meter. I have a photo which shows that there has been tires rubbing against the plastic pipe.

            Well, I guess I will end this for now, we hope you have a good day and please stay safe in all you do.

Better day!

Senior ole person who needs to get started or he will not get done, Don the Ford

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

August 5, 2024

            I will say good morning to all, even though I have no internet or home phone here at the Fords Homestead. Oddly enough we do have TV, and yes, our cell phones work because they are not through the company who is supposed to provide our internet. I have called them and find out that it is the modem that has gone bad. I have a choice of going to their store in Waco, taking the ole unit back and getting a new unit, or wait until tomorrow for someone to bring me a new one. I guess I will go to their store, which opens at 10:00am. 

            I don’t know when I will be able to send this email, but it will be late.

            Changing the topic: I did check the solar panel yesterday and what wiring that I will need to do to attach the voltage regulator. After some studying, I have learned that I will only need to cut one wire, attach a couple connectors, and it should start working.

            I need to get Alex from football practice today, yep, the 9^th graders have started practicing.

            I have watered the potted plants this morning along with the black berries. I need to put our trash can and the neighbor’s trash can up, they are on vacation and I kind of keep and eye on things while they are gone.

            I guess I will stop now, I need to get ready to go exchange the router. More about this tomorrow!

Not Happy!

Senior ole person who don’t like a lot of unexpected change, Don the Ford 

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

August 4, 2024

            I would like to start out with, “Good Morning”, but I know there is that one person who said, “he says that every morning”. Yes, I guess I do say it every morning, and also, I mean it every morning, so Good Morning to everyone!

            Let’s review yesterday: we did venture into Waco, hoping to get a sandwich for lunch. As we passed the Booze store, we noticed it was still closed, more about that later, we drove on to the sandwich shop where a good friend had arrived about the same time we did. Now I did have a different sandwich yesterday, I got the Turkey club with bacon, it was good but not worth the price. My favorite wife had the usual sandwich. Our friend sat with us and we had lively conversations about when she was a kid and young person, she had some adventures.

            Lunch over we headed over to the Harbor store and I got one item at 15% off, and I found another item that I want to get, it is a regulator that connects between the solar panel and the battery that powers the light, fan and tools in the shed. Basically, the regulator keeps the battery from over charging. I might stop by the Harbor store again today (Sunday) on our way home from the Cracker store in Bellmead. I have another 15% discount coupon and I might get the regulator.

            We haven’t been to the Bellmead Cracker store for a long time and we thought today might be a good day to go. We used to go there every Sunday, but now that we have a Cracker store in Hewitt, we don’t need to drive that far to get our crackers. We hope some of the people who worked there in the past are still there.

            Now back to yesterday’s venture into Waco: there is a booze store near the Harbor store so I decided to go there and see if I could get a bottle, hoping they were about the same price as our usual shop. It was good that we went there, the bottle was about $2.00 less than our regular shop. I saved some money!

            We did sit outside yesterday afternoon, we went out a little later than usual, and it was a quiet time to relax.

            Today, no real plans for today other than the Cracker store for lunch and the Harbor store on the way home. Maybe we will get to take a couple naps later in the afternoon.      

            That is all for today, we still hope you have a safe and wonder filled day.

Crackers be Good.

Senior ole person who needs to take a break from this data entering, Don the Ford

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

August 3, 2024

            Well, it is morning, and now it seems to be a good morning, so we wish you an extra good morning from “The Ole Fords of Hewitt”. It was a stressful morning for the Don this morning, as he started off with watering the front flowerpots, even though the lawn sprinklers had run. Then the Don allowed the Pot hound Tres to take him for a walk. Returning from the walk the Don headed out into the back 40 and provided water to the berry beds and to the flowerpots. I did get a couple more flower photos. The yellow blooms fold or unfold different from the others, which are the same type flower.

            After what seemed to be hours of labor (aka about 30 minutes) he came into the Homestead and helped his favorite wife make the Ford’s ole bed.

            Now that strenuous work finished, he procured himself a breakfast sandwich from the freezer and warmed it in the microwave. Sitting at the fords ole desk the Don wanted to get the computer running and he wanted to print out a coupon for the Harbor store as he wanted to get an item for his favorite grandson. This item is a metal container used to keep handguns in, and it has a cable to secure it to something solid. Now Alex does not have a gun, but he does have a few dollars saved up and I want it to be secure for him.

            All the above was stated to say it took forever to get the printer printing, as I had not used it since we got the new router. Yep, I had to set up the printer to work on WIFI and that is not easy. The screen on the printer is about 1.5 inch by 1.5 inch and I had to enter the password using arrow keys. Now I had to have my glasses on to even see the small screen and after several attempts, yes, I was stressed out and almost cried, but I was successful. Now I have a 15% off coupon to use, and a smile on my ole face.

            We plan to go into Waco today and follow our normal Saturday schedule, but I might try a different sandwich at the sandwich shop. I will check to see if the booze store is open when we drive by, and if not, I will go to another booze store. Also, I want to go to the Harbor store and get the afore mentioned item and maybe a tarp. We will likely go to the cheap store as there is an item there that I want to get. Back at home, I hope we can rest for a while.

            Well, I guess that will be it for now, we hope you have a good day, and we encourage everyone to stay safe in all we do.

Bloom photographer.

Senior person who hopes you have a day filled with kindness, Don the Ford

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

August 2, 2024

            It seems to be another good morning here in Hewitt, and if you aren’t in Hewitt we still wish you a good morning. My pot hound Tres took me for a short walk this morning before the sun was up. It wasn’t bad walking in the morning shade.

            Today’s thoughts listed below:

            No one asked so I will not comment on the fact that my back is not hurting from the cutting that was performed a couple days ago. Later today I can remove the bandage, per instructions, wash the wound, and then rebandage it. Since I can’t reach or see the wound, I hope my favorite wife will help me. 

            My big plan for the day it to get our yard man Alex over here and get the front yard and back 40 mowed. This will be the last Friday that we will be able to access Alex as football and school are beginning. My favorite wife is making chicken noodle soup for our lunch as me and Alex like the soup.

            I have another comment, and it is about the acorns. The squirrels have been eating the small acorns and dropping the shells everywhere. I do not like acorns, and the three Red Oak trees in our front yard are already loaded with these acorns. As we walked this morning there is a Live Oak tree that hangs out over the street and there are even more acorns on the live oak tree.

            Yesterday was a day of rest for the Fords, even though I did water the flowers in pots and the three berry beds, we were able to get out to supper yesterday afternoon and returning home we did sit outside for a while. When we have a choice of sitting outside or inside, we choose outside. I guess one would say most of our discussions are about trees, flowers, grass, weeds, heat, lack of a breeze, the fact that the neighborhood is very quiet, and the lack of traffic on the street. Now you can see we have very interesting conversations.

            Well, if I stop entering data now, I can take a short break before getting our yard man Alex over here. Even though Alex does the mowing I do the POOPA-LOOPA pickup and look for other debris in the yards. 

            Two photos; first, they said we could have a bright sunrise yesterday due to the Saharan dust in the sky, I didn’t see it. Second, blooms that start out a dark red turn pink when they are in full bloom.

             I know, you are tired of the photos of blooms, but I am not.

            We hope your day is filled with goodness, that someone will be nice to you today, and that we all have a safe day.

Get the yard man!

Senior ole person who needs to get going, Don the Ford

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

August 1, 2024

            We have entered into a new month, and the main thing to remember about August is, “the Don has a birthday in August”. By the way, we here at the Fords homestead wish you a good morning. I should note; several times when I attempted to enter good morning, I enter God Morning, so now I am also wishing you a God Morning.

            Let’s see if the Don survived yesterday’s cutting on his back. Well, he seems to be entering this data into the Fords ole computer, so he may have survived, or this could be robot program (A I) doing this entering.

            After reviewing what has been entered, I will say it is the Don and not “A I”, as the Don makes mistakes that the “A I” would not make.

            The Don did survive the cutting at the skin doctor’s office (aka Dermatologist) and had not had any pain at all. I did not feel any pain during the cutting. Now I need to keep it clean and bandaged for a while. I have a photo of the bandage on my back, but I will not post it.

            Different story: we did go to the Tax office and get the handicapped signs for the vehicles. We had to wait a while after arriving as there were other people in line ahead of us. We sat down and there was an ole lady sitting close to us and she liked to talk. We learned that she will be 80 years ole shortly, she spoke with a loud and low voice. She noted that she had to feed the horses as her husband knees were getting bad.

            We were called up to the desk about the same time she was, and they took care of us, but the lady that had been telling us her life story, and another ole lady on the other side of us were both rejected as they did not have the correct information. We knew how that felt.

            It was about 11:00am as we were on the way home, so we decided to stop at the booze shop and get a bottle. The shop was still closed. I wonder if they are on vacation or why they aren’t open.

            Back to yesterday: Later in the afternoon my favorite wife and I did sit outside for a while. It was hot and at times there was a good breeze, but at times we had the big ole fan on.

            I guess that is it for now, I plan to take it easy today, you know with all the cutting on me, I will need to take several naps, and I am tired due to Tres taking me for an early morning walk. We hope your day is fun and safe, please be nice to at least one person today, I heard that you forgot to be nice yesterday.

Ole back is ok.

Senior ole person who did good through the cutting yesterday, Don the Ford

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