I can’t remember the last time I got away for a couple of days at the farm for a little recharge time. Mr. FixIt is doing really well these days and I’m feeling a little braver in going off on my own for a little bit. Not too far, though. I’m only eighteen miles away, so if he needed me, I’d be there in a whipstitch. And, as he said...he has plenty to do to keep himself busy while I’m gone as there is never a shortage of work around the Ponderosa.

I don’t always practice what I preach. I called out someone on my page yesterday for saying something mean to one of my friends that holds a different political belief than me. Then, in the same post, I turn right around and said something snarky to someone about their comment on my own position. Why do I do that? Why do I engage? I don’t know...I just can’t seem to help it when I feel strongly about something. Mama always said my mouth would get me in trouble. 

Are you crafty? Have you ever worked with glitter? If you have, then you know you cannot work with glitter indoors without finding it in every crevice of your home...for the rest of eternity. It is simply impossible to get rid of.

Remember those body washes and facial scrubbers with those little tiny micro beads in them? Entire city water systems were shut down in an attempt to remove the sediment left behind that consisted of...tiny micro beads.

When we bought our new recliners, the plan was to take the old ones over for the the grandkids to use. But, it was raining....for a whole week. Then it was too cold. Then we had to mow. Then they were working shift work. Then Covid started spiking like crazy. As time stretched on, I couldn’t imagine how I was going to fit the Christmas tree in the family room with all this extra furniture. Finally...yesterday was gorgeous and the kids had the day off. They came out to pick up the chairs and we had a little socially distanced visit sitting on the tailgates of our trucks.

OMGosh! The longer I have this new kitchen toy, the more I absolutely love it! I was skeptical when I saw the picture of the golden brown, perfectly roasted, crispy-skinned chicken in the little cookbook that came with my Ninja Foodi. I mean, who hasn’t had trouble getting a product to come out looking like the photo on the box, right? Well, I am here to tell you, I made the BEST roasted chicken last night for supper and it was a “piece of cake”, so to speak.

One of my bonus granddaughters lost her beloved Lulu yesterday when she got hit by a car. Fur babies are such a part of our hearts and as much a member of the family as their little two legged siblings. It broke my heart to hear her tears over the phone as she is such a strong young woman. I know her heart will heal with time, but Lulu will always be a part of her heart. 

No, no...not me. I’m not going anywhere, don’t worry. Last night, Mr. FixIt and I watched the Veteran’s Day tribute to the final episode of MASH. Oh...I really loved that show. The first episode aired on September 17, 1972. I was in my second year of radiology training. But, I don’t really remember watching it until the late 1970’s, probably because I spent the middle of that decade in England. 

Yesterday was probably the last day till spring with the thermometer hitting 80 degrees. Rain was scheduled to arrive in the wee hours this morning and with it come the more seasonable temperatures. This late stretch of warmth afforded us the opportunity to finish up a few more projects around the Ponderosa. 

West Virginia is lush and green with annual rainfall that rivals a tropical rainforest. Consequently, plants grow like crazy here and if you don’t stay on top of it, you can soon feel like Jack and the Beanstalk. Such was the case with the North end of our house. We have a huge hydrangea bush that took up a full third of the wall and wrapped around the front corner. There is an old television antenna and, unfortunately, a combination of wild grape and Engelmann Ivy climbed it to the top with abandon. The base of some of those vines were a full three inches thick and woody.

I was up bright and early yesterday...padding into the kitchen, wiping the sleep from my eyes. I hit the button on the coffee grinder, filling the water reservoir to the whirring sound of the burrs. As the coffee drip, drip, dripped, I stared out the kitchen window at the beautiful, crisp morning. 

I carried my coffee into the office and quietly closed the door behind me. Mr. FixIt was still snoozing and I didn’t want to disturb him. My laptop is not terribly old, but I don’t use it very often anymore. I do all my writing on my iPad. Every time I need to start that laptop, there is invariably 20-30 minutes of updates that slow it down. But, once it’s up and running, everything works great. 

I’m in transition. It’s not quite winter, not quite fall...and it feels a little like summer. We went out midday and started mowing. I really thought it was behind us, but you could definitely tell after the first swath..it needed cutting again. At this time of year, I always hope it’s the last mowing of the season and...hopefully...this was it. As I was coming up through the near field, I had to stop and take a picture. The sky was absolutely perfect, the temperature was 78, and the trees beyond the two-lane out front still have some color clinging to the crowns of the trees. It was the kind of beautiful that takes your breath away.