A lazy day for me….except that I spent ABOUT an hour and a half weeding and harvesting vegetables for tonights stir fry. That was enough work for a Saturday. lol The stir fry had kale and mustard, baby beets, the last of the snow peas, carrots, celery, garlic and onions, and some cherry tomatoes thrown in as an afterthought. Oh, and a sweet potato. It was rather good. And I cooked rice in my crockpot for the first time, and it came out perfectly. I may make a habit of that.
I did some reading from the Sustainable Living book…a thoughtful article by the Ehrlich’s, Anne and Paul. Another article by a man named Colin B…B…Beanis (?) -don’t have it in front of me–about his experimental year of living no-impact in Manhattan. apparently he has made a movie of it as well and it debuted at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival (or will). And another article (or part of) that I cannot remember just now. My beloved has the book in the bedroom – trying to catch up on his reading. The class is on Tuesdays. Later we watched that hilarious Kevin Kline/Tom Selleck movie “IN & OUT” Interestingly enough, I came in here and started reading my favorite blogs and saw Mary talking about Debbie Reynolds, who is also in the movie.
The visit yesterday with the new doctor went well. He ordered an MRI for me, which I scheduled for Monday morning at 7:15 AM. Then, later in the day, around 3 PM, the other office called. Yes, it was MS Snippypants. She very politely said “Ms Kelly, I have your appointment with Dr Rogalsky set up for Friday July 17th at 1:30 in the afternoon.” I said “Really?” (every bit as politely as she). And then I said “Thank You.” And I hung up. Monday I have to call the other office and let them know the appointment is set up. NO way am I passing on this appointment-it’s too soon to lose. lol
Anyway, I was quite taken with the young man, and it turns out he has had surgery on his shoulder that Dr Rogalsky did and thinks he is one of the best in the area. Good enough for me. One bit of troubling information is that when I had him look at my thumb that isn’t working right, he said he thought it may be the beginnings of rheumatoid arthritis. No thanks, I said. That wouldn’t be my idea of a good time… He said the tendon isn’t slipping over the joint (or something like that). He advised me to take Alleve for the anti-inflammatory because it’s very inflamed. So I got some and started it yesterday.
Feeling very grateful to be finally getting somewhere with this knee thing. It’s causing all kinds of problems in my hip and lower back… I have problems there anyway, from the Ubiquitous Event. This is antagonizing it. I need to go to the Chiropractor again, but am hesitant to go until after the knee surgery. The more I think about it, maybe I really should go before that…
My darling kitten that keeps doing the disappearing act did it again. She finally came home today, and is sleeping her life away on the back of the couch. Hubby says the 4 kittens have upset the balance around here, and he’s probably right. She seems to get along with them just fine, but…
Okay then. Time for a font and color change, and a new look to the Country Living blog.
What do you think??
Filed under: Uncategorized
I’m thinking about changing the look of my page here. Try a new look maybe, new font…something. This month, on the 21st, will mark one year of my blogging life. Wowwsa…
I don’t like the look of this. What…what!!??? It changed by itself. Apparently it didn’t like the look of it either. LOL!!!
Trying new things is always fun, to me. I have lived an entire existence of changing things, reinventing my life, and searching , searching, searching. (How weird is this?? It changed by itself again).
I read about people and hear people talk about how change scares them, and I barely relate to them. Maybe about a few things…but mostly I love change. I hate boredom. I get a rush off of the excitement and adrenaline that come with the unknown.
Maybe I seriously need therapy. 
I am getting my grandson this morning. Running a few errands. Picking up a coin for a sponsling who will celebrate 16 years tomorrow at the noon meeting. Visiting another sponsling who has a bunch of yellow and lavender irises for me that she ripped out of her yard. Trying one last time to contact this doctors office concerning my knee.
Living my life fully and up to my armpits in it. Loving it. Lots of things could be better. Finances and bills. But the beautiful thing is that no matter what, I don’t have to drink over any of it.
I took an interactive quiz to see how many planets it would take to sustain us if everyone lived the way I live.
YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I thought I was pretty eco-groovy… turns out it would take 4.6 planets. Not good. Check it out for yourself at consumerconsequences.org It’s eye-opening, to say the least.
Red is good. How long will it last?? Noone knows. One line maybe? Or one paragaph? Let’s see…. ooooo…2 lines at l;east.
Now, if I can get red AND bold at the same time, would it be even better??
Yessirreee…I think it would.
Okay. This is getting silly now. I have things to do. And people to see.
Off into my day, in a Howdy Doody kind of a way!
Have a grand Thursday, boys and girls, and remember…life’s a dance…when you know the Steps!
Namaste.
Filed under: Uncategorized
It’s a beautiful morning here. I spent about 25 minutes out in the gardens…picking and eating a handfull of cherry tomatoes, weeding the edges of the squash beds and the okra. Worked just until I started to sweat. lol It’s getting hot again, supposed to be in the mid nineties today. I’m taking the day off, mostly, except for a little house-straightening and vacuuming of course. 
I woke up tired and used up and am still feeling a little blah, but it’s getting better. Last night I slept fitfully, every time I turned over or stretched I twisted that darn knee and the hurt woke me up.
The class last night was great. One new person, but mostly the same circle of women and my husband. (Curious how he always manages to be in the middle of THAT.) lol We had some lively discussions about things like looking at the problems and not just the band-aid fixes we are so accustomed using. Like seeing that small changes in attitudes and practices can generate movements at the grass roots level where change always starts. The Michael Pollan article called “Why Bother?” was very thought provoking. For me, I have to bother. Trying to keep my beliefs and ideals on track with my actions and behaviors is the main thing. You can act your way into right thinking, but you cannot think your way into right actions. I heard that in the rooms. I have to always be willing to move my feet. Practicing, acting as if, and being willing to do something new or uncomfortable over and over, until it becomes a habit is the way I institute change into my life. It’s true for me that if I…”pretend to be something long enough, you [I] will be.”-Kurt Vonnegut
So…I plant gardens and I recycle and I live more simply and I plant trees and I use less electricity and I conserve water and I try to leave the earth a little better than I found it. In whatever small ways I can. And if I can live more fully and more peacefully and more frugally…and stop being such a mindless consumer…then perhaps it will leave a mark. Perhaps not. But I will sleep better. And maybe, just maybe, I can be an example to someone else, who can be an example to someone else, who can be an example…well, you get it. Because if we don’t start paying attention, we’re going to lose the only home we have ever known.
Think I’ll run the vacuum and then watch a movie. I bought “What Dreams May Come” at a Goodwill 1/2 price sale the other day. Robin Williams, a big bowl of popcorn and a glass of iced tea. I’ll be riding high…
Namaste.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Japanese Beetle Traps, Root Beer Floats, Sustainability
This is me today. I am a troll. And not a cute and cuddly troll like this one either. A mean and whiny and snarky and cranky troll. Who is hurting beyond belief. Waiting for today’s mail, and if nothing has come from the doctor I am calling somebody. I hate the inefficient way that doctors offices (especially these clinics) handle things. I feel like getting in bed and leaving the covers pulled over my head. I want my mama. I want these pain pills to take the pain away (and they don’t) and I want this knee fixed NOW (and it’s not) . And I hate it when I don’t get what I want, when it concerns my body. I’m supposed to be the boss here!
…15 minutes later…
I walked outside and checked the henhouse for eggs. 2. Two beautiful brown eggs. The mail hasn’t come yet, and I walked around a minute and checke the Japanese Beetle traps we put up yesterday. The freaking beetles are buzzing and flying all around them and there’s already about 2 inches of beetles in the bottom of every bag. It’s a beautiful day out there, about 82 degrees. It occurred to me that a root beer float would probably make me feel better, so I detoured through the garage to the freezer and pulled out a big tub of vanilla ice cream and brought it in the house.
I was right. I love root beer floats. We have a local burger joint in Wood River that makes its own root beer. Mine is just stuff out of a can, Barq’s Root Beer. But it is really good. I may take a nap after I finish it. lol I really feel like crap. Only now I’m smiling, ’cause that’s what root beer floats do–they make your tummy smile.
We have a class tonight…the first one in this session. The book is called Choices for Sustainable Living and the first articles are about Easter Island and one by Micheal Pollan called Why Bother? and another by Howard Zinn, a playwright I adore. They are good and thought provoking and should make for good discussion. The second article is called Making Other Arrangements, and talks about how we refuse to look at how we need to change the way we live, instead focusing on How can we get around the problem? I enjoy these classes…courses developed by the NorthWest Earth Institute. I need to finish reading this lesson….
I hope that I feel up to going…this sucks.
But the root beer float was sure good….
Namaste.
Another beautiful day here on the Prarie about 66 degrees and sunny this morning. I’ve been out and taken the garbage to the street for pickup, picked a couple of peaches, about 8 cucumbers and fed the chickens on my way back in the house. I’m out of juice and will make only a small batch, as the water pump has stopped working [again] and it’s really hard to clean up that mess with no running water. I hate to even start the small batch…but–I am down 24 pounds now, and not going to stop the juice. lol This time I have cantaloupe, peaches, carrots, celery and kale for the juice. I have some beets too, that I’ll have to go out and pick. That should make for a colorful and sweet juice mixture.
Not sure what was going on with me yesterday, but the whole day just slid by in a blur. I was so tired all day long. Guess my body was just screaming for some rest. I was in bed by about 10:30 and slept all night. Very unusual for me.
The kittens are particularly rowdy this morning. Maybe they know that the hot summer weather is on it’s way back. Supposed to be in the high 80’s today and low 90’s rest of the week. I think the air conditioning kicked on maybe twice all day yesterday. It was nice.
I’m going to a sponslings house this morning to talk a little more about Step 5 and get onto 6. I have some errands to run too, so I’ll get that taken care of on my way there or back. Was thinking that maybe I’d get my tabletop rottisserie out and roast a couple of cornish game hens that are in the freezer for supper. It’s a little unit my sister-in-law gave me and it works like a charm for roasting chickens and such.
We almost gave a kitten away the other day at the bbq. But my hard hearted husband at the last minute decided we shouldn’t give G-Rod away to the people who were going to take him. So, he made up some excuse about him still being too small and needing his littermates. He told the guy that the kitten would cry all night long becasue he wasn’t used to sleeping alone. LOL When they were gone, he looked at me and said “WHAT?” I just smiled and said nothing. Then he said he didn’t trust them to take care of the kitten. I said, I know…I knew this was going to happen. And he always tries to make it be me that’s the sucker for cats…lol
Alrighty–I need to get going on this day.
Namaste.
Wow…a busy busy weekend, topped off with computer problems. Well, at least it seemed to be computer problems. Turned out it is an eletrical problem (like that’s better, right??) lol I was on the phone to Wild Blue becasue ,my modem had no power to it, so it dropped my connection on Friday evening. I didnb’t think too much about it, as there were storms moving in quickly and so I just sighed and turned everything off and unplugged it. Saturday mornihg, still no computer access, but it was again raining and so by later in the afternoon, I noticed [finally] that there was no power to the modem. I checked all the connections, unplugged nd plugged things. Shut things down and restarted them…all to no avail. So, I call Wild Blue and the tech support woman runs me through a copuple of things and then says, I will have to set you up with a service call. It will cost you 95 dollars for the call. Hold on—all the while I’m like “WHAT?!?!?!?!” “NINETY FIVE DOLLARS??? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?!?!?!” And she very calmly says “NO, not kidding. Look at your contract.” That was rude–me? look at my contract?? LMAO…. So I say, hold on, let me fool around a little more here…and I kinda jkust hung up the phone. So, I screw around for about another 20 minutes, get over myself some, and start looking for the service order that the guy who hooked me all up laft, because he wrote his personal number on ity and said, if you have any problems, call me. Don’t go through the company…Well, naturally, the paper is not where I KNOW I left it, and I can’t find it anywhere. Sigh…..I don’t know what I did with it…I distinctly remember putting it in that start up booklet that he gave me. I don’t know why I would have taken it out, as I haven’t had any problems since the installation.
So, I say a little prayer and think, I have to call them back and make an amends for being a tad snarky. I hate it when that happens. Of course, I also know that the odds of EVER getting the same tech person are a gazillion to one. So, I dial the number, and this time I get a very mellow woman from somewhere in Mississippi, named Rose. I tell her what has happened and that I had jkust spoken with someone named Ann and that I wasn’t very nice about the 95 dollar service call and I had fiddled with the darn thing, and guessed I was going to have to make the service call appointment. And I was sorry. And she laughed this tinkling little melodious laugh nd said, “Oh, honey. It’s no big deal…you were nicer than about 60% of the other frustrated people who call.” Then she proceeded to run me through another set of diagnostics. Then she laughed and said–I think it might be your outlet. And I says, well, the washer is plugged into it too, and it works. And I tried switching the plugs in the outlets. And she had me unplug the modem, plug it ibnto another outlet in another room, wait 3 minutes, unlug it and then take it back to the laundry room where it’s hooked up, and replug it into the outlet. And VOLIA! it started up and worked just fine. A little later, though, it started shutting down again, and hubby looked at that outlet and said it needs to be replaced. So…this morning, I have a heavy duty extension cord plugged into the kitchen and the modem plugged into that…and here I am.
Yesterdays bbq was just this side of rained out, so we managed to cook the burgers and dogs outside and eat inside and on the front porch. It turned out well, and I am whipped. I just finished cleaning up everything this morning. It was a small group of about 15, and the last of them left about midnight. The “boys” shot off fireworks in the front yard and it was like watching kids blowing things up. lol
Looking forward to a restfull Sunday. Hubby is at his meeting (well, probably on his way home now) and I am just here….enjoying the silence.
Namaste.
This is a picture of my baby…and his 2 cousins from about 3 years ago, maybe 4. Today is his birthday, and he turned (GULP!) 38 years old. He is an absolute blessing of a son, even though he refuses to celebrate his birthday the way his mommy would like him to. (Translated: with her.) lol When I said …how about…he said, it’s only a birthday. Sigh…I invited him over for the bbq on Saturday, but he probably won’t come. He works entirely too hard and on the weekends when he’s off, he wants to do NOTHING. Sit in the family room with his big screen tv and just relax. He says it’s not relaxing if he has to do things. So, happy birthday, my love. And so there. lol
Thanks everyone for the concern about my kitty. I turned around this morning and there she was…looking absolutely NO worse for the wear, and a little exasperated that I was making such a big deal over her being gone. She ate and ate, and drank and drank. She lay down beside me on the sofa and let me pet her and then she went back outside and darted off into the woods. Tonight when I called her, she came back and has been in the house ever since. Once again, my emotional attachments to these animals got me all worked up over nothing. I’m grateful she’s okay…maybe she had to come back to teach me even more lessons about attachment. Sigh…the kittens are driving her insane and she wants out again. I keep telling her to hang on and they’ll all be asleep, but she seems adamant. lol
I go tomorrow for xrays on the knee. 2 people today have told me they don’t like the ortho guy the doctor is referring me to. I think I will go see him, and listen to my gut. If I don’t like him, I’ll go somewhere else. I did get a couple of other names, so at least I have options. It’s hard when you move somewhere and don’t know the medical community…
The weather has been so beautiful, low 80’s and mostly sunny. There is a chance of showers on the weekend, but only 40%…that means 60% chance that it’ll be nice, right??? Someone said to me…What is it with you and this glass half full thing all the time? lol (Just lucky, I guess.)
Got the grass all mowed today, cleaned up around the garden beds and even did a tiny bit of weeding. Wasn’t too hard on me…sitting in the car, and getting up and down from the chair hurts more. My beloved gave me that look when he got home…and just shook his head. But the grass needed mowing and I needed to move. One of my sponslings called and said “WHAT ARE YOU DOING???” Because I didn’t answer her call, and it went to voicemail.
I very calmly said, I just got up (it was true) and laughed at her when she said, “Knowing you, you’re out mowing grass or something!!” And thought to myself, Not yet. LOL
Life is good, the yard looks great, and I ate the first peach off the tree this afternoon. There are some gorgeous apples out there too….
Namaste.
It’s been a day of rest and work, fun and tears, joy and pain. Isn’t that life? One paradox after another….always the two sided coin, flipping through eternity.
My sister came for a visit and stayed for supper. Then my beloved took her home on his way to a meeting. She is threatening to come here and TAKE CARE OF ME when I get my knee done. OMYGAWD!!!!!!!!! No way. I would probably have to kill her. lol I love my baby sister, and she really means well, but there is no way I could take THAT.
It’s now Wednesday July 1st.
Lost the satellite connection last night and had to shut her down. Sigh…maybe it was just God doing for me what I wouldn’t do for myself. lol I was in bed by 10:30 and sound asleep about 15 minutes after that. Woke up this morning feeling rested, although a bit out of sorts. Feeling almost flu-ey or something….throat a tad sore, stomach upset. Going to have lunch at a friends house at 11, and then to the dr appt at 2. It’ll be a busy day, because I also have to stop sometime in between all this and getting himself from work to pick up some groceries for the womens potluck and my house too. We’re having a summer salad buffet, and I have some of the stuff I need, but need to get a few things from the store. Also need to stop by the meeting room and check the supplies, I guess.
I have seemingly lost my favorite cat…she has been gone for 2 nights now, and I suspect that she had a run in with the coyotes or the big dogs that come out everytime the dog up the street is in heat. There are a couple of German Shepherds, and some kind of pit bull mix…she’s always been very careful around any dogs but her own, but I cannot explain her absence for this long. I’m not giving up hope that she could return, but my heart is heavy. Perhaps she has taught me all she can, and it was just time for her to move on…
Looks overcast out there today. Not supposed to rain, but who knows? The weather is [naturally] calling for showers and thunderstorms on both Saturday and Sunday. It’s been unseasonably cool…quite delightful, actually, after that searing heat we were having. Yesterday barely made it to 80…This morning, at 8:30, it’s only 67 degrees.
It’s enough to make a girls head spin….
Alright, campers. I have things to do, like feed the hungry masses of kittens so that I can get going to town. Have a wonderful Wednesday, this first day of July.
I have some beautiful Native American flute music playing on the CD player, and am going to sit in the quiet a moment and reflect on the joys of my life. Even though, out there somewhere, a little cat is not coming home…
Wakan Tanka…take care of all the lost and homeless and hungry creatures in the world….
Namaste.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazing Universe, Blackberry Lilies, Squash Blossoms
It finally rained last night. Big thunder boomers and lots of sheet lightning forced me to unplug all the computer equipment. It really did help to cool things off and today has been in the low 80’s..a blessing, with breezes, as well. It’s been a morning that included our Sunday morning meeting and then lunch at Olga’s Kitchen and then off to the Marina in Alton where they were having an antique boat show. I wasn’t up to walking much, so I sat in the car with the windows down and read while my beloved walked around lusting after ChrisCraft and all sort and sundry water apparatus. The knee is worse every day, and I cannot wait for Wednesday to come so that I can see the doctor. Getting old ain’t for sissies….lol
Tonight I am going into town again for another meeting. A dear friend is celebrating 10 years tonight and one of mine is getting her 6 months as well. I have been out in the yard, and dug up a clump of blackberry lilies for her as a gift. There is nothing she likes more than flowers from other people’s gardens, lol. SO –I have made her a lovely card, have a 6 month coin for her, and will bless her yard with beautiful, odd blackberry lilies from my yard. She’s a miracle on so many levels…
Here’s a picture of the lillies from my backyard…
When the season is over and they go to seed, the pods crack open revealing a seed head that looks exactly like a blackberry. They are way cool, actually. (Little things like this always excite me, lol)
Hubby is off at Beaver Dam, doing a little fishing and walking. I am here, looking at all the housecleaning I need to do tomorrow, making cards for my friends and reading and resting. All in all, the perfect way to spend a Sunday, in my book.
It’s time for me to make juice again, but I’m not doing it until tomorrow. I now have beets and cucumbers in my garden that are ready for eating/picking/juicing. The corn is up past my shoulders, the green beans have grown at least 6 inches in the past few days, and the squash is loaded with both flowers and fruit… Growing food is the most amazing thing in the Universe, surely.
Alrighty…guess I’d better go look for a quick and easy something to make for supper. I think there is a batch of bbq’d pork for sandwiches. That with chips and salsa, sounds like supper to me!
I’m going to go sit in the yard, where it’s cool….ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…..
Namaste.
Filed under: Uncategorized
June is flying past like it has wings. It’s been horrendously hot the past week…so glad things stayed nice for the gathering at my house. Whew!! This is crazy. It’s still 80 degrees at almost midnight…it was 80 degrees when I woke up this morning at 8. The heat index has been so high there are weather advisories out. I got my fill this morning…
I wanted to share a little thing..well, a poem actually, that was read at the Solstice Celebration on Sunday. I really loved it… It’s called The Summer Day..by Mary Oliver
Who made the world ?
Who made the swan and the black bear ?
Who made the grasshopper ?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth
instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous
and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms
and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open,
and floats away.
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention,
how to fall down
into the grass,
how to kneel down in the grass
how to be idle and blessed,
how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done ?
Doesn’t everything die at last,
and too soon ?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life ?
And, really—what is it you plan to do, with your one wild and precious life ?
Namaste.
