My World and Welcome To It

 Two in the nest out of four eggs.  I believe I saw three that hatched but I think they get pushed out to make room.  Unless there is one underneath the other two.  I still won't look at the bottom of this bush the nest is in.  If they fell out, I don't want to see them.

 I can't handle the sight of blood.  I REALLY can't handle the sight of a broken bone.  My 35 year old daughter stepped off our back porch on her way to a benefit yesterday morning and broke her ankle.  Her husband came running in to tell me and when I went out, she was fading in and out of consciousness.  I've not seen anybody do that.  Especially not my daughter.  

I got the car next to them and he and I were trying to fit her in the front passenger seat.  The car door was the major obstacle.  Halfway into the car she regained consciousness and perked right up and was able to maneuver herself in the rest of the way.

I actually just thought the reason she was so quiet and unresponsive was because she was in so much pain. We are very close to the hospital and so many people ran out to help me get a wheelchair and get her into it.  Two people who were leaving the ER, two policemen (who just happened to be there gabbing with the security guard) AND the security guard.

The security guard looked at me and said "It's just dislocated.  I've seen hundreds of these."  I sighed my relief.  Of course I was nauseas.

Once she was wheeled into a room, the attending nurse looked at it and said "Oh, it's broken alright." So much for the security guard.  I didn't even think to tell him when I left that it was indeed broken. 

Anyway, about four different females and four different men attended to her during the four hour ordeal in the ER.  One male made the temporary cast (which he had to remove), one who admitted her (she left with us after 4 hours but she was put under anesthesia so they had to make a record of admittance).  And two male doctors. I'm not even counting the orthopedic surgeon (I never saw/met him). Everybody was wonderful - no issues there.  A total of 9 workers had the insurance machine in my head going ker-ching, ker-ching, ker-ching.

After the cast maker (he talked to my daughter and her husband about X-box games, etc...) made the temporary cast (while explaining ALL the new materials that are available today) the on-call doctor said the Orthopedic doctor was coming in to re-set the ankle and he needed to remove the cast.  All that beautiful work!

They had to re-break the ankle so my daughter was put under for that.  The nurse that came to get us said she was a hoot (she was high as a kite on pain meds) and had them all laughing.  I taught her well and most of it probably comes naturally as my entire family loves humor.  It is our lifeline.

To top it all off she was to start a new job today (Monday).  She emailed the person that hired her.  She is unable to drive.  I believe I heard one doctor say they would probably operate sometime this week.  Ugh, the heat!  I really didn't want to go anywhere during our upcoming heat wave.

Oh, one more thing.  On a Sunday morning in August 2025 we ran her to the ER for a dog bite on her hand.  Her husband and I have decided we are not letting her out of the house on Sundays any longer.

 I told my cat Moses that he was getting a little hefty in his mid section and he mumbled something back at me while looking at me like this.  I didn't catch all of it, but I did hear something about stones and glass houses.  Huh.  Whatever.

 As I mentioned in yesterday's comments I am tired of rude neighbors.  I drove to Columbus and back yesterday (250 miles in the pouring rain) and I was a bit tired and grumpy by the time I arrived home. I went to bed around 10:30 and was just drifting off to sleep when somebody lit a firecracker.  I jumped awake and sat up.  Then another one.  Very loud.  I got angry.  I went to my back door.  I turned on my back porch light and back yard light.  I saw my car keys. I grabbed them and hit the panic button.  My alarm started and I turned it back off.  Huh.  No more fireworks.  

 

 About the time I was learning to drive a car one of my brothers just started working in a steel mill and was making pretty good money.  He purchased a white AMC Hornet (I do not recommend) and a 1971 Mach 1 Fastback Ford Mustang.  Well, I guess I don't really recommend that one, either.  The above photo is the closest I could get to what his looked like, although his was dark blue and the tires were always bald  I am not positive his had the spoiler on the back but it might have.  You think I would remember since I washed that darn car so much.

I recall driving the Hornet in the summer of '76 to work at Ponderosa steak house.  And, the mustang in the summer of '77 when I worked at the local ice cream stand.  One time I started the mustang and realized I forgot something and ran back up to my bedroom.  The bedroom window was vibrating.  It was an old house but the car was loud.

I am 66.  The neighbors to my right are in their 50s.  Neighbors to the left, high 60's.  Neighbors across from me in their 70's and 80's.  Except one little house almost directly across from me.  A sweet old lady lived there until about a year ago.  A 26 year old man purchased the house.  Why in the hell he would want to live on a street with a bunch of retired folks - well, I don't know.

He has a loud car.  A very, loud car.  When he first starts it I jump out of my skin.  Then he let's it idle and he revs the engine.  Okay.  I get it.  How can I complain when we had a loud car when I was young? Actually, I never had a loud car. I only drove one a dozen or so times.  

I talked to one neighbor. She is directly to the left of his house.  She said she doesn't mind it, and as long as he doesn't sit and rev it.  I said "But, he does!"  The other day was too much.  It hasn't been hot enough to run the A/C so I've had windows and front door open letting fresh air in.  He started the car (about 3 in the afternoon) and I swear he was idling it in my front yard.  

I finally walked out on the porch and he was sitting in front of my neighbors house (they have a 16 year old teenage son).  He and his friend were outside and this 26 year old wanted to show off.  And, he did.  He squealed the tires and revved the engine.  All the way to the end of the street and then more when he turned onto the next street.  It was so, so loud!  

It might be the way the sound travels directly to my house.  I may talk to more neighbors before I talk to him.  I can tolerate it if he would start it up and go - then when he comes home, park it in the garage and shut it down.  No, he has to rev it four or five times.  Gah!

He drives a very quiet SUV during the colder months.

 Our nest has been two and two for a few days.  Two babies and two eggs.  I do recall there was a few days between her laying two eggs and four.  I left things alone today.  I'll check tomorrow if I can.

 Growing up I just never appreciated a good tasting, fresh out of the garden, tomato.  My Mom and Dad put a garden in every  year for a long time.  I don't recall the last year we had one.  I know it was a lot of work.  I hated to hoe the weeds.  Mosquitoes ate me alive.

I just can't find a good tomato.  I go to farmer's markets and they are selling the same hard, barely pink tomatoes you can get in the grocery store.  The other day I did get a real tomato at a local farm store in the area.  But, their bacon was gray when I fried it up.  That was the second "bad" item I had purchased from that store, so I won't be going back there.  Not even for a "real" tomato.

There is a farmer's market in my town every week.  Rarely do I get a real tomato.  Most stands are run by the Amish and it isn't their produce.  They just get up early, go to a huge market miles away and bring it to our town.  The produce is not picked out of their garden that morning.  Years ago, I did come across a little produce stand.  The lady was Vietnamese or similar and she said she had just picked the tomatoes that morning.  They were delicious.  But, I can't find any of those stands any longer.  People are probably canning or freezing any tomatoes they grow.  

My Mom would can (not sure why the call it can because we used mason jars).  Towards the last  years, she only canned tomatoes and that is the only produce I know how to can.  She rarely let any of us help out in the kitchen.  I think we just got in the way and she didn't have the patience to teach us. She would get mad and preferred to do it herself.

We even have a few "honor system" produce stands here and there.  Not many, as they are getting ripped off and will stop eventually.  I stopped at one a few years back and left my money in a box where the sign said to place it.  I'm sure they got ripped off as they were near a busy highway and some degenerate certainly stopped and helped themselves to either produce or the money box or both.

The deer eat everything we grow in my neighborhood.  My neighbors have become very creative as they continue to grow produce in their back yard.  I have to sprinkle a powder (ox blood) around my flowers to keep the deer away.  After it rains, I have to reapply.  My sister planted 25 tomato plants when she first moved into her most recent house and the deer ate every one.  A few years back she and her daughter had a big garden and the groundhogs went through and took a bite out of each tomato, leaving the rest on the vine.  All that work.

I can remember one year we had SO many tomatoes that my brother, his friend and I had a tomato fight in the garden.  It was the end of the season.  The stalks were all brown and dried.  We threw them at each other.  They were rotting on the vine.  I was a teenager.  I didn't appreciate our garden fresh produce back then.  I remember  another year, my Mom made me take a big brown paper bag of vegetables and leave it on our neighbor's doorstep.  Just to get rid of some of it.

My Mom never grew lettuce, onions, peas, radish or broccoli. I think those are the early  plants?  We had plenty of cucumbers, corn, tomatoes and green beans.  I figure most young adults and children have no idea that a cucumber has prickly little bumps on it when first picked.  I can still remember how it felt to pick a cucumber and rub the dirt and prickles off of it before putting it in the basket.

We never had a fence around our garden.  It was huge compared to our neighbors. In fact most of our neighbors didn't even put in a garden (this would have been late 60s through the 70s).  I only remember one time my dad was taking a gun down to the garden to shoot a pesky rabbit and I cried and asked him not to.  If he did shoot the rascal, it wasn't when I was around.  

One year we grew pumpkins.  We never did that again.  We had pumpkins coming out of our ears. I can remember them in our house lining up and down the upstairs hallway.  They were everywhere.  I'll probably go out and about today searching for a real tomato.  Mayonnaise in the fridge ?  Well, Miracle Whip.  I grew up on Miracle Whip.  Check.  Bread in the cupboard?  Check - fresh from the grocery store bakery (not the commercial loaf).  Salt and pepper?  Check.  It probably won't happen.  But, I can dream.  I got lucky a few weeks ago but like I said - the other products in that store are questionable.

 I just checked.  We now have four eggs for this third clutch.  I hope the fourth one doesn't get pushed out of the nest like the last one did.  Or, I think he did.  After all four were born, one disappeared before the others got really big before they began to fly.  She should have added on to her house before laying that fourth egg.  I could have helped but I know her. She wouldn't ask.

 I take Milton (old dog) outside to do his business.  I sweep the back porch (pine tree in neighbor's yard, I always have needles on the porch) while he is busy.  All probably less than 3 minutes.

I return to my desk and I see this.  I keep a glass of ice water on my desk at all times.  I drink from it often as I am always in the kitchen refilling it.  I know that I probably took a sip not long before taking the dog out.

I stare at the toy on my yeti cup for a minute.  I go to the basement stairs and holler down to my daughter. "Did you put the plastic toy lizard on my water?"  She walks over to the bottom of the stairs and looks up at me.  "What?"   I repeat my question.  She says "I have no idea what you're talking about."

I walk back to my desk and look at my cat sleeping in the dog's bed.  (He thinks he is a dog).  I had Milton outside with me.  Currently, nobody else in the house.

How did that toy get there?  It didn't help that I was currently reading an article about quantum physics and how it may be related to a form of after life.  (I don't know how I get down these rabbit holes. I just read something and I have to follow it up and pretty soon....I'm in way over my head.)

A few minutes later it hits me.  I had JUST wiped my monitor down with a dust rag before taking the dog outside.   The little toy must have been on the top of my monitor or somewhere that the cloth could catch it and deposit it right on the top of my cup.

I don't need any mysteries in my life.  I'll spend all day until I get to the logical reasoning for it.  If I don't figure it out, I'll lay awake at night wondering what the what.

On a lighter note.  For the past 2 days I have had to put drops in my left eye. Pataday.  I haven't used this medicine for months.  My eye hurt.  It didn't itch.  It was blurry.  But, instant relief.  It gives relief for hours.  My right eye is a bit dry (because I keep fans on me at all times, probably) but it does not ache like my left one is.  Eye appt next month.  I'll ask the doctor about it if I am still having issues.

I was always missing my eye when I put drops in.  I don't do it often enough to do better.  I have found out that NOT closing the other eye helps my aim.

 Three new eggs.  This is the third clutch.  Not sure if it is the same mama or a different one.  They all look alike.

I grabbed a  photo just after the rain, once I made sure Mama was not in there.

I have great luck with the pink polka dot plant.  I have at least six of them.  I started with one.  I like it.  It may be my favorite.  I am struggling with getting my spider/airplane plant to propagate.  I still have the rubber tree quarantined.  I got that one May 24th.  He looks good - I've not seen any issues/pests with him.  He has some new growth.

I also have about six umbrella plants started from one original plant. 

I have started with the golden ivy.  It is not taking off,  yet.  

I have my outside flowers planted.  I'll make sure I get a photo of them.  I've spread the ox blood dust around in an effort to keep the deer from eating them.

I am so happy - my peach/orange lilies are blooming this year!  I purchased them two years ago, neglected them that winter.  Green plants came up last summer, but never bloomed.  This year - beautiful!  I'll get a  photo of them, also.

Currently reading:

 still, - the Viking book.  

A biography of Zsa Zsa Gabor 

and a book about Krakatoa.  

The Viking and Krakatoa books are dry and detailed and hard to not fall asleep while reading them.

 I was reading an article on retirement the other day and it listed a few things retirees should cut back on.  One was eating out.  What?  It is getting expensive.  But, that is all everybody wants to do.  Let's meet for lunch, let's meet for dinner.  I really don't want to go anywhere else, either.  

So, I only drink water when I order in a restaurant.  I rarely order dessert or an appetizer.  I also have started looking at the less expensive items on the menu instead of going for the filet mignon or fancy fish.  Chicken is just as good and so is meatloaf.  I always take cash - screw that plastic card charge.

I meet a group of women I worked with back in the late 80's to mid-90's.  We average about once a month (mostly on a birthday, or holiday).  I also meet with a group of retired ladies (from most recent job mid-90's to 2024).  Once a month with them, also.

Family -  always somebody wants to meet.  About two times a month.  Then my son-in-law's band plays at wineries, bars, craft brew houses and festivals.  That is about three times a month.  I do purchase bottles of wine, but that is for gift giving later at the holidays or special occasions.

So, dining out - is between five and seven times a month.  That seems like a lot!  I've started to keep a running tab of it and will start to make some changes where I can.  I am not currently in dire straits, far from it.  But, you never know what is right around the corner.  

 Jars.  Do you recycle them?  My city gives us a hard plastic bin to use to place our recyclables in. But, do they make it into the bin?  I was using them to prop new plants but I got tired of that and now I just shove the prop into the dirt and say "Good luck".  (Prop is a quick way of saying a plant propagation - the growing of new plant from seeds or an off-shoot).

A few of them I use for doggy treats.  I hate trying to re-zip dog treat bags (they never line up for me after I open them).  If I can even get them open.  I place the dog treats into a jar with a lid.  Then, I can't get the lid off the jar.  Big sigh.

 Reading the book on Vikings, I discovered that ancient notes (post-it notes) written in the old language from the times was a way the Vikings communicated with one another.  Bathroom humor was common even back then.  The one that made me laugh was one a wife would use and give to a clansman to give to her husband down at the local watering hole.  It said something like "Grog, you come home now."

Reminds me of the old Andy Capp comic strip.

 I know this image shows three of them, I have not taken any photos since this set.  But, I peeked this morning and there is only one baby bird left.  He is so big.  He looked at me and I just backed away and wished him luck.

I was lucky in the area of allergies growing up.  But, I think I'm having some issues now.  I was outside most of the evening at an event and my eyeballs hurt.  They feel scratchy, swelled and I have some blurred vision.  I've taken ibuprofen twice today for a headache so I'm just going to skip any meds, drink some water and go to bed.  We'll see when I wake up.

I believe the first Agatha Christie book I was introduced to was "Ten Little Indians" or "And Then There Were None".  I was hooked.

 I am having lots of luck with the pink polka dot plant.  I have quite a few started and I will be giving them away to friends and family if they are interested.  My daughter got me the cute little planter.  She gave me a set of 5 of them (different colors) and when I line them up they look like one of those trains for children to ride made out of big barrels.  I'll be moving the plant soon as it will outgrow this planter very fast.

And three of the second batch of baby birds are still in the nest.  I am keeping my distance because they are so big (I think the fourth one was pushed out to make room) I am worried they may try to fly to get away from me if I move any of the branches to get a picture.  I will just peek at them through the branches and wish them well.

The Viking book is going slow.  It is very detail oriented and my mind wanders.  I have to keep going back and re-reading.  I copied the map from the book so I can reference it and I also get on Google maps and look at the locations (well, how they look today anyway).  Denmark, Sweden, Norway.