Bits & Bobs...and a Bit of a Rant....

 I haven't done one of these in a while and it perfectly reflects my current state of mind.

*Everything the past three months has been chaotic. In every part of my life.My Cra's performance has been spotty at best. Hopefully I have that all fixed now for a few months anyway. I know in the next 6 months I'm going to need tires and new brakes tho....

*One of my grandsons has been staying with me for a few weeks while he and his little family have searched for a new place. They have found a tiny home and decided to try the tiny home lifestyle while they only have the ONE child. I'm sure there will be another in the next few years and they may decide they need more than a tiny home at that point, but for now they are good with it. I think it's going to be a HUGE adjustment-for everyone. For my part- I have enjoyed having him stay with us and making life just a bit easier and more interesting!!

*My son also moved back in with us...his also is a transitional deal tho. He works out of town and stays with his girlfriend  when he has work to do down there.  When he doesnt have work scheduled, he comes home and stays with us. As with my grandson, life is easier and there is so much more laughter for us all when he is there.

*My Granddaughter is a precious teenager who has been diagnosed with ADHD. The past couple of years have been a struggle for us all. The doctors finally have put her on a medication in hopes it will tame the ADHD. It's rare girls get it- but having had two sons, a daughter, and several grandsons with it I saw the signs early on. She's only been on the meds for about three weeks, but I could tell a difference four days in. Happily we all are all reaping the benefits of her newfound calmness.The only thing I'm not happy with in her case, is her eating ...she is picky beyond  belief...there isnt a single solitary vegetable she likes- the only way she even eats potatoes is in the form of french fries or tater-tots.She likes some meats, (if you call it that)- meaning she likes Chicken nuggets, bologna, and hot dogs. Recently tho- her mom and I made us a lovely steak seasoned with Lawry's and a splash of Teriyaki sauce, grilled to perfection(medium-rare-more rare than medium) in the airfryer with a baked potato and small salad. Granddaughter had a burger and fries.She saw how much we was relishing our treat(Ribeyes) and timidly asked if she could try it- we gladly said yes, and she asked for a bite to be cut in half, then in half again  before she would try it. We did, and the moment it touched her tongue- she was in love. Her eyes got wide as saucers and she said "OMGosh!!! Next time yall make this I want steak TOO!!!" She doesnt know what she is missing by being a picky eater. I can say that there is one more food she loves- Cat-Head Biscuits. She and my son will eat an entire pan of those by themselves in 15 minutes. LOL.... I still struggle with her eating tho- I feel like she needs to eat more nutritional foods and less of that  other stuff.....I insist she take a multivitamin every day- it helps but it's not ideal in my eyes. She and I have went rounds because I also insist she try one spoonful/bite of everything me and her mom cooks. She's such a drama princess tho- she will take a bite of whatever I insist on and before she even closes her mouth to chew she's already gagging and running to spit it out.  The doctor says she will outgrow it.... I beg to differ.

*Work has been a trial since after my birthday in February.Every month I say well, next month will be better- not happened yet. I'm struggling- I looked into early retirement, but doing the research I realized that by the time I get all the paperwork taken care of , I'm going to already be retirement age...that's next year.  So I'm just going to wait. In the meantime, I'm still looking for that property to put my/our retirement home on- and The kids as well. One on each side of me- or a MultiGen home.  Either or. Whichever God sees fit for us. I trust Him.

*My daughter has health issues and has been fighting to get disability benefits for the past three or four years. Today is the hearing before a judge. Im praying she gets the help she so desperately needs. Every time this comes up  and she is denied, I see her spiraling further down in depression. She can't get a job because of the medical issues, she cant get any kind of help because the agencies require you to look for a job if you aren't already claiming disability benefits. She is stuck in limbo between a rock and a hard place. She feels useless and like she is a burden, I tell her that her keeping out home fires burning and overseeing what needs to be taken care of there is her job and it's just as dang important as a job that pays money. She cant do most of the physical stuff- but she can oversee the plan for everyone who lives there to fairly take part in and help out with what needs to be done. I can tell you what a blessing it is to have her there doing all the bill paying and keeping account of what we need and being there to oversee the repairs when someone comes to do them.  She is such a blessing she just doesnt realise how big of a blessing she is!!! God will see us thru this- no matter what the outcome today. I have Faith.

* The family reunion is coming up the Sunday after Mother's Day. There is a LOT of family drama going in that issue. Granny C started the tradition about 35-40 years ago. She and Papa C had 18 kids and soooo many grandkids!!! Last count(about 20 years ago- there was 167 cousins-first second and third cousins- I don't even want to get into the once/twice removed column......

There are only 3 of those 18 kids remaining... Bud(Joseph), Freddie(Jr), and Mary.  And like most families that big there is some drama.... We cousins have been trading off the hosting positions for years, but somehow since his elder siblings have passed away, has taken it upon himself to take over...not actually doing anything- but to rule on everything.

Well, he called me and(yeah- I'm airing a bit of dirty laundry, but I'm very much not happy right now. The event is a week and a half away.) and....)he told me that he's "going to make a decision"  That Sunday about whether to continue holding the reunion or whether to dissolve it. 
Say WHAT??? I told him "Honestly Uncle, respectfully, I dont think it's solely UP to you. I also asked him why does he think it needs to be dissolved. 

He said : 

1) The younger generations didnt seem to  be as interested in doing it.

ME- Who cares? Us elder cousins look forward to these get togethers- for most of us it's the only time we get to see the cousins we grew up with!!!! Let it dissolve naturally one we die off and the younger generation doesnt care.

2) He's not going to be around much longer.

ME- And? Its not like it all falls on HIS shoulders to run the event! 

He doesnt cook anything to bring. (Yes- we all still cook all our family favs from scratch this ONE EVENT and we make a LOT of it.)   He doesnt help with Clean up- He's elderly and the young uns and us elder cousins wont let him because of his health issues.  All he does is show up, crack jokes and tell whopper fishing and hunting stories, Eat, and watch over the place like Lord of the Manor. Then he shuffles off and goes home. He doesnt even collect the key to the building nor does he bring it back to them afterwards. Why in the Hell would he want to take that away from us at ANY point????

3) People arent coming because they are mad at so and so and if they coming I aint going. 

ME- well whoop de doo.... who cares? If  someone is mad then dont come if they gonna start trouble- just realise we are old school and whoever starts trouble at Grannys Reunion is gonna get their ass handed to them. That was Grannys one rule- Dont you come and stir up no $h@+ cause you'll get your ass whooped and booted out til next one.(Ironic huh?) Come- or not- if you do- avoid whoever you mad at- things will be back to normal by next one. Pick a corner and stay away from each other. End Of.

4) We only had 17 people there last year- we used to have 87!!!!

Bullshit- I was there the past two years and we had well over 60 ppl there both years. That 87 was ONE YEAR- I told him that not everyone can show up every year- they have work, they get sick, they live far away( what- I'm gonna get blacklisted because I didnt come for 12 of the 13 years I was living in England and couldn't make it? TRY IT!!!!  I dare you.)

Whoever shows up is whoever can make it that year- whoever cant has a reason that's enough for them to not show up.  End Of.

He said- well, we'll see Sunday. 

I was pissed and as I was driving and was getting distracted, I told him I would call him back the next day to resume our discussion. I called, but he didnt answer.... 

Honestly, we may lose the venue- but no way are we letting the tradition die just because of one grumpy old goats  "decision". 

..........Ahem...okay- sorry about the rant.

So anyway.... 

I got my baby sister playing the game me and my daughter play together for years.

Ranch Simulator. It's got two maps- a Mountain one I like to call Montana... and a Desert one I like to call Arizona. 

Me and my daughter have been playing it since it was in Beta....... We gave a lot of input into how it works and what we think should be added into it- or done away with or just modified a bit.  We can build, we can hunt, we can grow things and take care of animals. Or we can just ride around and do a whole lot of nothing. 

You can also have a pet. I've tried the dog- and the cat- and both have ran off...... never to be seen again.

there is a slight possibility that it may or may not have been because I got a bear to chase me into the horse corral(empty) and then kept it there for hours teasing it so it would roar and swipe at us.......

as I have said before- I dont play games like other(ie normal) people do- I play to keep myself entertained. And I think both Sis and Daughter like it as much as I do- and the best part is- we can invite each of the other two to either ranch and have fun together!!! Have done every day since Sis got it too!

Happy Days!!!!

P-52 or P-12... Food for thought

 Does anyone remember my P-52 Blog I used to have?

I might start another P-52 as a regular feature on this blog. I really do miss my Photo-walks every week- and there is so much more going on here to be able to photograph!!!

Even a once a month P-12 post would make me happy!!!

Gun Control...US vs THEM

 So Evan suggested a post on a few "debates" I wound up in with Brits while living over in the UK about  Weapons in the US and what we should do to "fix" our weapons issues and stop the shootings..... Oh Really?........ Well, Let this Southern Girl educate you Brits on that little issue ... but it's not just us Southerners but as I've never lived anywhere(with the exception of the UK) so I really cant speak for the rest of the country other than the South... but-

Maybe Evan will oblige for his neck of the woods in a sort of He said/She said type deal.....?

So ......when I was living in England there would be news stories about the shootings here and yonder in the States and the Brits would start spewing comments/opinions about "Gun Control", Regulating Weapons Sales, Banning Weapons. blah, blah, blah. I called BS everytime cause we all know us Southerners like nothing more than a good old fashioned bout if fisticuffs...especially when it comes to our guns.

Inevitably they(the Brits) would hear my accent and turn it on me.

And that's how the fight started.

They wanted MY opinion- they got it. 

No- you don't even think about taking an American's weapons away from them. You are going to have a whole country coming after you tooth and nail- owning/possessing a weapon  is our lifeblood- our God Given Right in our eyes.... especially in the South. 

"Gun Control" to us means having it close enough to use in the event of an emergency and making sure we have enough ammo to be useful in a siege of ANY sort- human or outer space aliens or hellish demons. It also means EDUCATING everyone in the household on proper handling of said weapons.  It's the American way- it's in our blood and one of our most basic rights. We in the South start educating our kids early. My Granddaughter started going hunting deer with her daddy at 4 years old.  She got her own 410 at age 6 and shot her first deer in the first season after. And yes- her stock on it is Pink Camo pattern- she's a girly Girl. LOL. 

"Regulating Weapons Sales"... Yeah- we HAVE that now-  You have to go to the shop, fill out the paperwork to go thru the red tape ppl.... and you wait...... and wait.... and wait. Then, when it's finally approved, you get to purchase the weapon of your choice. It's basically a cooling off period if you ask me- so you don't get pissed off at someone and go out and buy a weapon and shoot them.  Once you have your weapon after the waiting period- it changes from  heat of passion, to premeditated IMHO..... That's not how it really is, but kinda- Gray area, I think.

"Banning Weapons Completely" except for Police and Military.... OMFG... are you serious?

There will ALWAYS be a way for criminals to obtain weapons- you can get anything off the BlkMkt-so I'm told. I'm a Law Abiding Citizen and I do things the proper way. But you will NEVER take my weapons from me unless you pry them from my cold dead hands. If you ban weapons- all you would be doing is  giving all the criminals free reign... they will be the ONLY ones with weapons- and in addition, you will be turning all us Law Abiding Citizens INTO Criminals because aint no way in hell we gonna give you our weapons willingly, and if by some miracle you get them anyway- we will turn into one of the criminals who obtain our replacement weapons off the street or the BlkMkt.

The Brits can't call the kettle black- HUGE color-check- they banned knives as well as guns except for gun clubs and Special units of Police and Military) and their knife crimes are thru the roof. That was just a transfer of dangers in my estimation. And yes- they STILL have gun crimes as well- not nearly as many- but the numbers are growing on that as well.

So in conclusion- take care of your own dirty laundry before you start trying to tell us what detergent works best for you- and we'll do the same.

Container Garden Update-UPDATE-

 I already have a few of the Yellow Summer Squash plants peeping up thru the soil!!!!

No sign yet of the tomatoes or peppers tho.

I just got some cantaloupe seeds to plant too-  Only 3 seeds- it may or may not work.... We'll see.

Gun Control Post- Coming soon....

 I'm just reminding myself... 

This week is full to the brim with Maggie's repairs (there's a post upcoming for that as well),  some family matters going on and a weekend visit with my bestie of 60 years upcoming, but Monday should be the perfect time to sit down and type it out, Tuesday at the absolute latest. Promise.

Heard It In A Country Song....

Slow go the days, Brother, fast go the years...

Tim & The Glory Boys-SLOW GO THE DAYS

So True....

Gone Fishing

 Pretty sure I'm going to go buy my fishing and hunting license today after work. Surely there is someplace that sells them on my 54 mile journey home.

Meanwhile, back at the Ranch- I finally got my  container garden started yesterday after I got home and changed out of the monkey suit and into more appropriate clothing.

I planted tomatoes on each end of a trough shaped container- and i planted bell peppers in the center section of the same container. I had two round barrel type containers that I planted yellow summer squash in.  We'll see how those do.

I've also got a couple of apple seeds and a couple of orange seeds planted in a small container(same size and method as in England that grew the lemon trees......) and we'll see how those do as well. if everything works out we may have an orchard and a garden to plant when we find our new place....yep- still looking. 

God will provide when the time is right. I have faith.