Mountain weather

 Its amazing how fast the weather can change around here.  Our last post was 21 October and the grass was still somewhat green and the wx was warm enough that I was wearing a short sleeve T shirt on the barn roof.

 
 
 
The photo of the deer off our back porch was taken last week.  It was colder but nothing like it is today.

It was 20 degrees off our front porch this AM and we've had about a 1/2 inch of snow.  We brought the porch cats indoors, and the outdoor cats onto the back porch where they can stay in the cat condo with heating pads.  The high for today is supposed to be 29 so we'll keep them on the porch for awhile.  Two of the cats appear to have an upper respiratory infection so we're treating them.  Not a good time for any aliment in this weather.



We have Maddy visiting us for Thanksgiving.  She came to visit during the summer with her God daughter and decided to accept our invite for the holidays.  We were stationed with Maddy when we were in Misawa, Japan.  She was in the Air Force and worked with Cathy at the base post office. We're glad to have the company and especially now that it's snowing and we're somewhat cabin-bound.  I'm the beneficiary of all this cause both the ladies are preparing what appears to be a smashing Thanksgiving meal.  I've no complaints.
Cathy and I have been racking our brains for a way to get the grand kids up for Christmas this year.  We finally thought of a way.  Our son, Stephen, is gonna loan us his suv that can seat 6 passengers in the rear and we'll lend him our truck for the holidays.  His suv gets better gas mileage than my truck so it should be a bit cheaper on the transport.  Hope all goes as planned.  Well - here's wishing you all a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

Ketch'n Up

Wow - Been a bit since we updated the blog.  Ain't been all that busy - just lazy.   Cathy lit a fire under my shirttail so I finally finished a couple of projects.  Got the shed roof repaired and covered.  My neighbor "Joe" came down and handed the steel up to me so I wouldn't have to keep climbing up and down the ladder. 

 This was quite a project cause I attempted to level the roof.  After years of neglect it had started sagging in the middle.  So I jacked it up with post jacks and reinforced the rafters.  It evened it out a lot but not perfect.  Good enough for me tho.  I also winterized the travel trailer.  Gotta put up the wood wheel covers yet but it's pretty much done for this season.
    Next - I finished Cathy's new purse.

It's quite a bit bigger than her previous purse but she seems to like it.  Since it's all leather, it'll last a long time and it's personalized.  Ain't another on like it, anywhere. 
     We be getting ready for a trip to visit our long-time friends in Dallas, Texas.  It'll be a week-long visit with two days of travel on each end and layover at the Memphis Naval Base.  We'll do some shopping at the Navy Exchange and Comissary on our way home cause we seldom get to visit a familiar Navy Base.  Our friends in Texas are shipmates that we were stationed with throughout our Navy career and we have remained close ever since.  They vacation at our house here in Tennessee during the summer and we visit them in the fall/winter time.  Looking forward to the visit but not necessarily the drive out and back.  Anywho - that about does it for this entry.  Will try to update more often.  TaTa

New Subject (not cats)

Well, we did it.  We found a travel trailer that we liked and bought it.  It's an older trailer but well maintained.  It's a 2000 Rockwood 21 foot trailer that sleeps 4.  The awning almost covers the whole side of the trailer.

When you first enter the trailer on the right is a couch that folds down into a double bed.  The swivel chair can be moved to make more room.

Looking to the left there is a dining table that folds down and the back and seat cushions turn into another bed.  The kitchen has a 3 burner gas stove and oven with a hood vent, a microwave and a double sink.  The fridge is pretty good sized with a separate freezer section. There is also a CD player with a radio.  Naturally it has A/C, a gas heater and water heater.

Lastly, but mayhaps most importantly, at the very back is the bathroom, complete with shower.

This trailer has a lot more storage than what I've gotten used to in previous campers we've had.  It's just the right size for the two of us and it's the newer light weight construction which improves handling and gas mileage.  It trailed really well behind the Chevy and I noticed minimal slowdown coming up the mountain roads.  Really looking forward to getting away and putting it to use.  We had been looking for awhile but we trying to find a truck camper, commonly known as a slide-in but there just weren't many on the market and the ones that were available were either too big or way too pricey.  So we started looking at 5th wheels but by the time we finished adding the 5th wheel towing equipment, we were adding another $1300 - 1500 to the price.  We figured this would be the best compromise and I believe we were right.  Time will tell..

Remarkable Happenings

Let's see now - what's it been, about 2 weeks since Tigger took off with the two kittens.  Well he showed up this morning and low and behold he had the little grey kitten with him.  The little guy seems to be ok, maybe a little thinner but in good health.  I went ahead and fed them some wet cat food and they both had good appetites.  I'm giving serious thought about putting the little grey on our screened in porch with Skeeter and our other cats.

 

I gotta funny story about the little black and white we call Skeeter.  Well, Cathy insisted that we take him to the vet before we got attached.  So Monday we took him in and turned him over to the vet.  They put him in a cage with 3 other kittens awaiting adoption.  He slinked over into a corner and watched us the whole time we were there.  Cathy went over to the cage and tried to pet him but he wasn't having anything to do with her.  He was ticked off and scared to death.  So we went on our way and the whole time we were talking about how dejected lil' skeeter was about being dumped in that cage.  Anyhow we both kept questioning whether we had done the right thing.  Sooooo - the next morning we decided to get him and bring him home.  He was sooooo happy to get back to our porch and the other cats - you could hear him purring from 5 feet away.

 

 

I guess we're both a pair of softies, especially when it comes to kittens.  God knows we have enough of them hanging around.  But we get them fixed and it keeps the population down a little.  So - it's off to a good start for a rainy day.

Surprise of Surprises

Well Now - guess who showed back up on the porch last nite.  Yep.  The runaway tom cat Tigger.  Unfortunately he was alone.  No little kittys with him.  I'm not surprised cause their little legs would never keep up with his.  We ain't giving up totally yet but it's really looking slim.  He didn't stay around long - just ate a little and took off again.  He didn't run away from me like he did when he first came here.  This time I could pet him but not for long.  I went out to search the shed just in case they were staying out there - but none were out there.  If he's feeding them and got them stashed somewhere, it's not close.  Well, well just keep the food out and see what happens next.

Dale Hollow Day

Well - we couldn't resist cause it was such a beautiful day.  Cathy and I spent the day on Dale Hollow Lake and took in dinner at our favorite marina over on Sulfur Creek in Kentucky.  Twas a quiet, restful day and just what we needed.  Of course most of our days on the mountain are quiet and restful but this one was more so. 

While we were on the lake we got a call from our granddaughter, Kaylee who needed help with a science project she was working on for summer school.  She needed to design a "Rube Goldberg" energy project.  So I talked with her for about 20 minutes about "potential" and "kinetic" energy and wound up telling her I would call her when we got home.  When we got home I spent another hour discussing her project and then sent her an email giving her examples of the different types of energy.  Talked with her later in the evening and she had finished her project and was waiting on the teacher to decide her grade.  It never ceases to amaze me how technology has us all connected and impacts our everyday lives.  What did we ever do without the cel phone....
     Yesterday the neighbor gave us a half bushel of tomatoes and a bucket of Rattlesnake beans.  First time we ever heard of them.

The beans start out green and as they ripen, they turn lighter and have purple stripes.  They're easy to shell and the beans are actually interesting colors.  We'll let ya know how they taste soon as we eat a batch.  Cathy says she's going into Jamestown today to do some shopping for the grandkids for school clothes, especially since this is the tax free weekend.  I'm a thinkin' I'm gonna go arrowhead hunting round the mountain and down by the saw mill.  We had a pretty hard rain the night before last and maybe something has washed out.  At's  it for today..

It's A New Day

Boy did it rain last nite.  Today would be a super day for arrowhead hunting cause of the washout in the logging areas buuuuuut I promised Cathy that if the weather was good, we'd spend the day on the lake. 

Does this look like good weather.  If the sun manages to break thru the cloud cover, it should burn this ground fog off but it'll take til 9AM for that to happen.  We'll just have to wait and see.
     Yesterday proved to be a pretty good day in spite of the drive to Crossville.  We shopped at Lowes, donated some clothes to a local church goodwill store, looked for a rollaway bed, shopped at Lowes, had an excellent Mexican dinner, and did I mention that we shopped at Lowes.  We found an 8 x 12 rug that Cathy wanted for the living room and some roll up blinds for the back porch to help block some of the heat from our early morning sun.  Only one little thing that kinda marred the drive.  We forgot that that day was the beginning of the Longest Yard Sale, which runs the length of Rt 127 from Ohio, thru Kentucky and Tennessee and on into Georgia.  Every year they feature this on HGTV.  People set up their tents and roadside stands all along the highway and people come from all over the US to buy junk.  Traffic slows to a crawl as rubberneckers slow down and stop on the highway to look at this stuff.  I am surprised that there aren't more accidents than there are.  Its a real mess and we always try to avoid driving on 127 during those 3 - 5 days, except yesterday.  It wasn't as bad as it could have been cause Friday and Saturday will be lousy with rubberneckers.
      I got a real surprise when we got home yesterday.  I was checking email and got a note from my Mom's youngest sister, Aunt Linda Kay.  The last time I saw or talked with her was when we were teen agers back in the 60's - - no not 1860's --- 1960's.  Anyway she had seen the Whitt family tree info that I had posted on wikitree and wanted to get more info.  What a shocker.  Once I had joined the Navy in 1965 I didn't spend much time back in good ole Illinois so I seldom got to connect with the Whitt side of the family or the Elston side for that matter.  I'm hoping we can reconnect and stay a little closer now that time is of the essence, if ya know what I mean.  Guess that's enough blabbering around the scuttlebutt for one day.  Later ya'll!!

Day Trip

Cathy's got a wild hair and wants to go to Crossville today.  Mentioned it last nite but I wasn't too excited.  I really hate that drive.  Don't know why but it just seems to take forever.  Anywho  it's a rainy, dismal day so why not.  We'll see if she still wants to go and try to turn it into something interesting, like shopping at Lowes Heh Heh!!

New Arrowhead finds

Actually they are called projectile points or points.

 

The first one was probably a knife or thrusting point based on its size.  Unfortunately the hafting end or base is missing so I can't identify it.  Both edges are still very sharp.  The second point poses the same difficulty in identifying because of the broken base.  I haven't given up completely yet since there is a program that allows you to scan in the original point then draw in the shape that would fit or closely match the original.  If you look closely at the top cutting edge of the 2nd point you will notice that it is not as curved as the lower cutting edge.  That's because the person who made it reshaped it probably after it was damaged somehow.  The actual knapping or edging matches on both cutting sides of the point.  

 

 

I believe that I had posted this point not long ago and have been doing some research.  I'm gonna identify it as a Bakers Creek type projectile point.  That will date it Late Archaic to Woodland period or 4000 - 1300 years Before Present (BP).   This point has been worked so thin that if you hold it up to the light you can see light through the edges, which is also one of the keys to its identification.  The first two artifacts were found in a new hunting area for me.  I had a local young man rough cut some wood for me so I could finish putting the roof on my outlying shed.  When I went down to his saw mill, I was standing next to the saw table and looked down and found a crushed point.  I picked it up and showed him and he commented that he came across them all the time down there but he didn't actually go looking for them.  So, I asked his permission to hunt for artifacts on his property and he agreed.  These were the first that I found on his property.  Of course, I agreed to split any fortune that I might find.  All jokes aside, some of these projectile points can bring some tall money.  Not long ago one sold for over $30,000.  But - I don't hold my breath.  I just like the challenge of finding and identifying them.  Neat hobby.

AWOL Cats

Well - we're going into the 3rd day that our adult male and two kittens wandered off.  We haven't seen them since.  It's probable that the male went down to the corner to see what's shaken' with the girls in the neighborhood and the kittens got lost in the shuffle.  Who knows.  I do know that when they all showed up here they were undernourished.  So - Don't know where they're eating these days.  All we can do is hope.  But - all is not lost.  We still have "Skeeter" hanging around.  He's joined our porch cats inside the screened area so he's safe from outside predators. 

  

He's attached himself to our own little black and white that we call Bandit and he fits his name.  These two are always rolling around and licking each other.  I guess Skeeter has adjusted to his new surroundings and is adapting well.  We still hold out hope for the other 3 returning safely...

Unusual Cat Behavior

Yesterday I watched as the adult male cat, we call Tigger, walked away with two of the three kittens.  They jumped down off the back deck, headed over toward our old shed and went inside.  I assumed they were looking for a cooler location.  However, they left a little black and white male, we call Skeeter, behind.  That was early afternoon.  Around 5 or 6 PM I heard small caliber rifle shots from just down the mountain but didn't think much about it cause our neighbors target practice and hunt often.  Anyway later in the evening, when it was feeding time, they still hadn't returned which is very unusual cause they seldom miss mealtime.  Went ahead and fed Skeeter, who didn't seem to be very hungry.  Cathy and I discussed bringing the lone kitten into the house for the night just to be safe but finally decided that we would leave him out on the deck just in case the others returned.  Checked again this morning and they still aren't back.  Now I am getting a little concerned and plan to go on a walk about to see if I can find the missing brood.  In the meantime we're bringing Skeeter in the house for safekeeping.  More later.

Rainy Days and Mondays

Well it ain't Monday but it sure is dismal, as it was on Monday.  It's been raining off and on for the past week.  I really need to mow the yard - it's sooo wet you can hear the grass growing.  Went out this morning at 0700 and took this pic of our surroundings and I feel like I'm in England, waiting for the werewolf to jump out of a bush. Oh - sorry they only come out at night on full moon. 

Ah well - I'll get over it.  Since we couldn't do much else, yesterday Cath and I headed up into Kentucky to Monticello to look at a slide-in truck camper.  Turned out it was too big for my truck but we did find a couple of vegetable farms up there and got some real good deals.  They raise all their own vegetables right on the farm so you know what your getting is local.  I didn't put in a garden this year cause I got tired of putting in all the work and loosing all the crop to bugs and weather.  But we have a kinda love/hate relationship with our uphill neighbor.  He loves to have us plant in his garden and we hate planting there cause we have to go up there to work it.  Not really - they're super neighbors and we did plant some cucumbers and squash up there.  Anyway - his garden is taking some big hits this summer - blight on the tomatoes, Japanese beetles eating everything (specially the beans), deer eating the sweet potato plants (never saw this before) and now that the corn is up and about ready - the raccoons will be coming in full force.  Like Joe says, they gotta eat to.  Well -- we bought about 1/2 bushel of tomatoes for $8.  The locals call them "canning tomatoes" cause they're ugly - kind of lumpy and all and most city folk won't buy them cause they ain't purdy.

We thought they were really good tomatoes and talk about big.  Two of them would about make a pound.  Since the neighbor's aren't doing so well, we're gonna talk with them today and see if they want some of these cause we're going back up to Ky today and get some more veggies.  They got it all eggplant, squash, green beans, cucumbers, corn, a wide variety of tomatoes, potatoes, peppers etc etc.  Guess that's enough blabber'n for today.  Later....

Nursing Male Cat

Ya gotta see this!!  Remember - this is a male cat that brought 3 kittens to our back porch.

 Yup - there's two kittens trying to nurse on this male cat.  Cathy calls him mommadaddy cat.  His nipples are blood red on the tips, kinda like a hickie I guess.  He just rolls over when they start nudging him like they want to nurse.  What a cat.  Never seen anything like this before.  Almost afraid to get him neutered for fear it'll change his demeanor.

Dale Hollow Lake outing

Well - as promised.  I took Cathy out for a day of relaxation and lunch at Mike's Landing in Sulfur Creek Marina. There are about 17 marinas on Dale Hollow and we've found that Mike's has some of the best food at the best prices.

We took a short jaunt over to our usual spot, which is about a 10 minute boat ride.  It's a small inlet that is somewhat protected from all the other traffic, skiers, tubers etc.  Anywho  Cathy read for a bit then took a nap while I read and puttered around.  About 4:15PM we headed out for Sulfur Creek.

Sulfur Creek Marina is about a 25 min ride into Kentucky waters.  It's a medium sized marina with lots of boat parking but the visitor docks are a little rundown.  They're still sturdy enough but the surface is really rough and splintery. Still - well worth the trip.

We had our usual Mike's Landing Burger with iced tea and homemade potato chips.  It was just enough without feeling stuffed for only $6.97 each.  Then we hit the trail again.  Get a load of this boat that was parked in the marina.  It was sooooo long that he had to back it in cause the bow would have blocked the walkway.  Actually he probably backed it in to protect aft end and cabin. It was really close on the sides to.  Either he's really good a maneuvering or he had lots of help.  I wouldn't even attempt it.

And this was the fitting end of a typical Dale Hollow Day.  Catchy Huh!  Hope ya'll enjoyed it as much as we did.....    

Beautiful Day

After putting up the flag and feeding the cats, I noticed that it's a really gorgeous day out.  So I'm thinking that it's a good day to spend on the lake.  I think I'll talk Cathy into heading out to Sulfur Creek marina for lunch.  They make the bestest hamburgers and homemade tater chips on the lake and the price is really reasonable for a marina.  It's located just over the state line in Kentucky and about a 25 minute boat ride from Star Point marina where we keep our boat.  Hum, yep, I think that'll do nicely for an outing.  Cathy really needs a break.  She spent the last couple of days canning and making jelly.

She put up about 8 quarts of tomatoes, 10 qts of peaches, bunches of dill and bread and butter pickles, zucchini pickles, peach jam and some plum/nectarine jam that Patricia had described in her "Mountain Living" blog.  So she's been real busy and on her feet a lot.  I know she could use the leisure time and that's what we're gonna do today.  I'll take pics and write about it tomorrow.

Kittens

These are the little critters that turned up on our porch the other day.  We had put some chopped up pork on the deck for the older cat (tigger) and the kittens tried eating it but couldn't keep it down.  So, we quickly put some milk in a bowl and that was a winner.  They seemed to be able to chew up and digest the dry cat food in the dispenser.  Just to be safe, we opted for softer, canned cat food which really went over well.  Tigger checked it out then stepped back while the grimlins chowed down.  I'd guess that they're about 8 wks old or so.  We're also thinking that tigger is a very young male cause he isn't acting like an adult male.  Time will tell.  I think the vet will be able to give us a good guess on tigger's age.

More Cats

Well - for the past month we have had a male cat, very light tiger stripe, that's been hanging around and eating our free food that we put out.  He's wild but not totally scared.  We haven't been able to get anywhere near him.  Anyway, a couple of days ago I went out and low and behold here he is with three little kittens tagging along.  They're totally wild and absolutely starved.  You could see their back bones and ribs.  So - here we go again.  This is totally weird.  I've never seen a male cat taking care of kittens.  Unless this is a really young male, they usually kill off the kittens to force the female back into heat.  We called the vet and she agreed - it's strange.  But she says if we'll tame them down - she'll take them in and see that they have good homes.  I'll post pictures as soon as I get some.  It's really funny watching this male cat groom and clean these kittens.  It looks like two males (one black and white and a grey tabby) and a female (tortie).  The adult male, we call him tigger, places himself between us and the kittens anytime we go out on the porch and he pushes and herds them away from us whenever they roam too close.  I've never seen anything like it.  More later.........

Canning Time!

Well today was first time canning. Husband went up to the neighbors to hoe our cucumber and squash plants up at the neighbors garden (we didn't get one planted this year just to wet!) so Joe said come up and plant up there. Anyhow Chuck came home with Vidalia onions, green peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers. So today I did 2 qts and 2 pints of kosher dill pickles and 7 pints of bread and butter pickles. I had some ripe tomatoes but not enough to can so just got the skin off and froze them. Tomorrow it will be zucchini pickles and maybe peaches. We got a bushel of peaches (SC) at the fruit stand yesterday and a box of tomatoes and a few zucchini squash. I miss having a garden out back oh well maybe next year.

We were going to go out on the boat today but hubby needed to mow as the grass was getting high and its suppose to rain tomorrow. I was hoping to get out tomorrow on the lake. Maybe next week.

When I get my canning done I want to make some pasta and bread. I got a kitchen aid mixer and the pasta attachments were mailed to me after I filled out their form. I have since gotten the ice cream maker, juicer and meat grinder.  I have made pizza dough with it and cinnamon  rolls the bread didn't turn out so good so will try again this time with bread flour.

Arrow Head Hunting

Well now - It finally quit raining for a few hours.  The sun is out and I decided to take a walk down the logging roads, on the side of the mountain, to see if the washouts from our recent rains revealed any of our ancient history.  I do this periodically, especially after heavy rains but have found nothing for a few months.  Today, however, was different.

 

 

The first picture is the arrow head or point as it lay when I found it and the second pic is after I got it cleaned up at home.  It looks greyer in the first pic because it was dry and in the sunlight.  After I cleaned it up, actually I just washed it under running water and brushed it off, the color changed somewhat due to the oils from my hand rubbing off on the surface of the point.  It will eventually lighten up again.  My neighbor also found one while he was working in his garden just up the road.

 

They're both about 1 1/2 inches long and about 3/4 inch wide.  I haven't identified either to a specific type yet but I'm working on it.  I believe they both date from 6000 - 4000 BP (Before Present) which would place them in the Middle to Late Archaic period.  I have accumulated quite a collection since I got here and really enjoy hunting for them and researching their history.  Most of them were probably used during hunting because most of them have impact damage and were probably lost or left behind.  This area of the mountain has heavy limestone deposits that are loaded with the chert or flint that the ancients used for projectile points, knives, drills, scrapers etc.  Enough pointology 101.

 



Another RAINY Day In Tennessee

I really needed to finish mowing the hill in the front of the house before it started raining again -  but - Cathy said she'd make me a blackberry cobbler if I'd go pick the blackberries --- Guess what happened next!!??!!

 

 

Yep - I got my little bucket and went after some of them delectable edibles.  However, I have some competition.  Seems the turkeys have beaten me to the punch, and based on the height that the berries are missing and the trampling, so did the bears.  They apparently get up earlier than I do.  But more bothersome is the fact that these berry bushes are less than 25 feet from my house.  I know there are bears up here cause I've seen the tracks down on the logging road just below the house but ain't seen any this close yet.  Guess they were here first tho - so I'll share :) 

Ya never know what you'll run into in the briar patch pick'n berries.  Reckon these fellas were after some sweetener of their own.   

 

 

My luck was good tho - they were more interested in the milkweed flower than me.  I still gave them a plenty of room.  Last year, in this same area, I stumbled into an underground hornets nest and boy was that exciting.  I managed to run up hill without spilling one berry and only got stung once.  When I got back on the porch and looked back down to the field it looked like there was a little black cloud hanging over the area where I had been standing.  Enough excitement for one day.  I'm just waiting on my cobbler. 



 

HAPPY 4th OF JULY

Well - we're still at it.  We finished the crown molding in the master bedroom.

I cheated.  I was a little intimidated by the upside down and backward process of cutting the crown molding so I found these corner pieces that eliminate all that confusion.  They are somewhat decorative and really sped up the work. 
Next we tackled the kitchen.  Since Cathy already had her new appliances all we needed to do was get new counter tops, including one for the island, a new and deeper double sink, and a back splash installed.  First came the butcher block top for the center island.  I ordered it from www.Grizzly.com
The actual top was only around $279 for the 36" x 60" x 1 3/4" thick, pretreated and finished Vermont Maple block.  The shipping was around $80 but it was worth it cause it looks sooooo much better than the old green Formica.
Then we got the main counter top replacement.  It is also formica or laminate but in a new textured, granite simulated finish.  It includes a routed edge that the older formica didn't have.  Then we went to Crossville where there's a tile outlet and bought the 3" x 3" tile for her back splash.  We chose not to have one the new counter top.  I think the back splash was the hardest cause I was working on a vertical plane rather than horizontal.  Actually putting the tile on the wall wasn't really the problem, it was the grout.  If you make it too thick, it dries out too fast and is hard to work.  I guess I made it a little too sloppy cause it kept falling off the trowel onto the counter top.  Oh well, it all worked out and I learned some lessons for the future.

The next big project will be getting a steel roof on the shed out back.  I've spent the past few weeks, when I wasn't working elsewhere, reinforcing the old trusses cause they were starting to sag.  The wood was still in perfect shape but the homemade trusses weren't properly reinforced so the roof was sagging in the middle.  I jacked each one up and reinforced then, to include a large gusset over the main joints and it looks pretty level now.  Not perfect but close enough for me.  I have a guy down the mountain who has a saw mill and is gonna rough cut some poplar 1 x 4 x 12's to use as furring strips on top of the shingles for screwing down the galv-aluminum roof sheets.  I have everything but the  1 x 4's and they should be ready within the next couple of weeks.  Joe, my neighbor, is gonna give me a hand with the roofing.
I wonder what I'm gonna do when all this work is done.  But I'm sure Cathy will come up with something.  We've already discussed building a two car pole barn that I would close in later for a garage.  Hum......

IS SUMMER REALLY HERE? THAT IS THE QUESTION!

We have never had to have the heat on in May. What weird weather we are having here and rain, rain, rain and more rain. Can't even get the garden area plowed up its just to wet and this TN clay takes forever to dry out.

We ordered our counter tops for the kitchen last week. Took awhile to save up the money. Chuck ordered a butcher block top for the island and put it on himself. Love it the dark green laminate from 1997 has to go! It makes the kitchen darker. Once the counter top is in we can look for tile for the back splash. We are getting laminate but the 2013 version laminate choices are so much better and choice of edging what we chose looks like granite. Granite just wasn't in the budget for us!

Crown molding got put up in the master bedroom last week and looks great. Going to put crown molding up in the living room/dining area. That area will have to wait till the fall. Outbuilding needs a new roof first. Already got the metal for it and our neighbor will help my husband with that. Hope they get it done before it gets to hot though.

Took the pontoon out on the lake last week for a couple of hours. The lake sure is high comes up into the parking lot. We have never seen it this high since we have lived here. It was a nice sunny 78 degree day. We anchored in a cove and had out lunch and I read a book while hubby fished. No luck catching any fish. Forgot to bring some live worms. Since we are seniors now, we have a lifetime fishing and hunting license only $11!

Computer Illiteracy

Wow, this is insane.  I thought I'd be cute and use a new template on the blog.  You know - make it snappy looking, as they say.  Well - now all of a sudden we're getting advertisements and hilited text that allows you to access an advertisement related to the text.  I know I didn't ask for any of that junk - so where the $@!! did it come from.  My computer illiteracy is showing.  Now let's see if I can fix it.


Well - I found some advertising download on my hard drive that came from some innocuous site that I've never heard of.  Don't ask me how it got there.  Anyway it was throwing advertisements up everywhere.  I uninstalled it but still have some hilited text in the biography section.  I'll keep working on it.  It's just way too agravating trying to keep up with these unexpected, unsolicited internet intrusions.  ARE WE HAVING FUN YET!!!!

 Well - FINALLY- I hope - Spring has sprung!!  Not so sure anymore.  When I got up at "O" dark thirty this morning, it was 35 on the front porch.  But my Dogwood is out in full bloom and all the

 

of trees are leafing out (oaks, maple, red bud, hickory, some walnut etc).  It's greening up quite nicely if I do say so.  A week or so ago, Cathy and I took the boat out for the first time this year.  It was really warm - a nice day for a short cruise.

 

 

 

I got up early this morning so I could get down to Dale Hollow Lake and have the pontoon loaded
before the fishermen traffic got heavy.  I made it but they were starting to show up at the boat ramps.  It was really a beautiful day for fishing or just about anything on the lake.  Anyway, I got the pontoon to the shop to have it's annual check up and prep for the 2013 boating season.  We're having friends visit the last week of May and plan to use the boat a bunch.  I had to laugh this morning when I turned the fish finder on, it said that the water temp was 78.  I don't know what part of the lake it was measuring for the temp but when I stepped off the trailer into knee deep water, it took my breath.  78 my ***.    Well that's about it for today from the great state of Tennessee.  Catch ya later...

Crazy Sleepless Night

Wow - Doc started me on an antibiotic for my sinus infection and it's got me up walking the floors.  Like a dummy, I took the medicine late, about 9PM and went to bed around 1030 or so.  I read for a bit then went to sleep.  Woke up around 2:30AM and have been up ever since.  Cathy has been up twice to see what I was doing but went back to bed.  It's around 6:30AM now and sun is coming up.  Ain't done this in a long time but it's really nice watching the sunrise over the mountains.  Yesterday morning I watched a big old Tom turkey in the front yard strut around.  I was in the process of putting my flag up and was wishing I had my camera.  But as most turkeys do, he spotted me the minute I moved and took off flying into the woods.  I guess I'm gonna have to start toting that camera around just to catch shots like that.  I did happen to catch a skunk along the roadside grubbing in the grass.  I told Cathy that I was going to turn around and get a pic of him and she went ballistic - telling me how we were gonna get sprayed and all.  I just turned around and told her to keep the windows closed and nothing would happen.  I got this pic.

He just kind of went on his way without much attention to us.  Clouds are starting to form up so won't be seeing the sun for very long.  They're predicting showers for today and if it doesn't rain, it's missing a real good chance.  Guess I'll go make another cup of coffee and putter around some more.

Spring Snow

Wow - Just when we thought it was safe to go out in the yard ----DUM - - - DA DUM - - - DA DUM, here it comes again.   We just can't seem to get rid of this stuff.  Enough already.  I'm ready to get my boat out of the slip and get to fishin'.  I'm gettin' cabin fever.  This is what I found when I went out on the front porch to put up my flag.

Ah Well,  I guess it could be worse.  We only got 2 - 3inches of the white stuff.  My sister, who lives in central western Illinois got about 10 inches.  Even the birds have been caught off guard.  However, I still haven't seen any of the hummingbirds yet.  They seem to have put off their arrival due to weather changes, maybe.  Last year they were already here and getting ready to nest. 
On to a lighter note -  When I had breakfast this morn, my little buddy, Bandit joined me for a bite.

He tries to sneak around about it by just barely peeking over the table top.  He does this every morning.  Course, I don't help any by feeding him some of my bacon - he just loves bacon and anything else Cathy cooks up.  Only thing I've found that he won't eat is green beans.  Everything else goes down without hesitation.  He's an ornery little cuss and because he's kinda short, always has a chip on his shoulder.  What he lacks in stature, he makes up for in attitude.  Just another day in the life of the Elston's - I guess.