Scooter vs. Gizmo

This morning as I was vainly attempting to tell my body that it was warm under the three layers of blankets covering me, I became involved in feline war number "umpteen". The cats residing in my house - the clawless Gizmo (Liz's cat) weighing in at ten pounds and and Scooter (my cat with claws) weighing in at 17 pounds decided that they were going to have a dispute right on top of me.

There was growling, hissing, snarling and swatting galore. You would think that my cat would have the distinct advantage (weighing more and having claws) but this is not the case. According to my son, Gizmo suffers from what he calls "Little Man Syndrome" and he has to assert himself big time. Now I really don't mind the cats having running disagreements throughout the house, but when they stop on top of me and go at, I draw the line. It sounded like they were "killing" each other. I hope that Scooter was at least successful in getting in a couple of good swipes with all claws extended. They should be sharp because it has been awhile since they were clipped (this means a trip to the vet because I refuse to fight with her - I am the loser in that battle).

I have not seen Scooter since this morning - she is probably on the other side asleep behind my chair, which seems to be a favorite spot of hers at the moment. Gizmo just got up from his station on my desk in between me and my laptop. Makes typing a very interesting prospect. He is much more interested in checking out the bug that is crawling on the screen of my window. The great hunter is brave as long as the quarry is smaller than him and usually of the insect variety.

Even though the day started with the battle royal, it ended on a really good note. It was sunny, with gentle breezes, low temps and humidity (all windows and doors were opened up to take advantage) and quiet for the most part. A neighbor was using some sort of machine that sounded like a giant milkshake machine to do whatever. All things were copacetic in the neighbor hood today.

Monotony of Everyday Life

My niece felt that she had to vent on the monotony of everyday life of a mom. The never ending chores or piles of clothes. Not to mention the ever present search for the matching socks - I swear the prime purpose of washing machines is to eat socks. Even I have problems with this one and there is only one of me.

I have never been a fan of housework and made it known for many years by having a button pin on my kitchen curtain which said "To Hell with Housework" so that anyone who came to my house knew exactly how I felt about it and did not expect too much when they came to visit. Don't get me wrong, my house was clean; just never spic and span "eat off the floor" clean. You would not want to look under my couch, easy chairs or beds because I had colonies of "dust bunnies" existing there.

I think that one of the big reasons that I enjoyed my job so much for all those years was that when a project was completed, it was done and I never had to look at it again. There is nothing about housework that is ever completed - you are always looking at dust on the furniture and piles of clothes or dirty dishes that need to be washed. Then there are the dirty windows, walls etc. that need to be spring cleaned and dust bunnies that need to be rounded up and done away with. Like I said the phrase on my button was my mantra, much to my husband's disdain.

Another reason that I liked working was because Paul could not expect me to keep the house "white glove" clean - which would have been the case if I were a stay-at-home wife and mom. That would have been the demise of my marriage for sure. So I was much better off being a working mom.

My son learned at early age how to wash his own clothes, clean his own room and even cook. He was pretty good at it too. (I was bound and determined that he was never going to expect some gal to do all these things for him like his father expected me to do.) When Terry let his room get a little messy and his father would complain I would tell Paul to close the door so he didn't have to look at it. It would get cleaned in due time and when it was his room looked super good. Bless my son - he was my right hand man. He still is.......

As you can see, housecleaning was a bone of contention at times between Paul and I. I was of the opinion that spending time with family and friends outweighed having a spotless home that did not look like it had a family living in it. I liked the lived in look - guess who won. There were no white gloves in my house.....he soon learned that it wasn't worth the hassle to try and change me. He learned to live with the dustbunnies.

Aerialist Show

This is the final result of the trim job done on the two trees in the back corner of my yard. There is so much more sunlight that comes through. Just maybe I will be able to grow some grass back in that corner now that the sun can shine through. I have tried for years to get grass to grow there without any luck. Cross fingers everyone - just maybe Mike will have more grass to mow back there.





This is the final result of having the tree closest to the house trimmed. It was keeping a lot of sun from coming in my bedroom window. This is the tree that I watch squirrels in and the tree that my cats watch the birds in. I love to watch them staring really really intently at their prey and watching their tails flick back and forth. Keeps the cats entertained that's for sure.






This is the chipper - lots of noise, but it was fast at gobbling up the branches that were taken from the trees. It amazed me just how many branches were cut away and how many were still left. They were big branches too.









This was one of the guys up in the tree. A ladder, a rope, a small chain saw and a couple of small hand saws are their tools of the trade. I like the fact that they have chosen to carry on the "old traditions" when it comes to doing their job. So many of them have gone over to the mechanical age and literally won't climb the trees. More fun to watch when bucket trucks are not involved. This is also the tree that they found a hornet's nest. The bugs were stirred up and had to calm down before the job was completed. Don't envy these guys that aspect of the job.


These trees are in the back corner of my yard neatly tucked in between my two sheds and shows just how ragged looking these trees were. They have been there since we bought the house in 1986 and God only knows how long before that. They needed a "haircut" in the worst way. They will be much healthier in the years to come as well.







This is the before shot of the tree next to the house. It to was in dire need of tending to - we had cut on it in the years past, but like a bad haircut ever once in a while you just have to rely on the professionals to do their job to make them look beautiful.








I just wish that I knew how to manipulate the photos better so that they were in the right order. Forgive me, but I am still learning. Once again it was a sheer joy to watch "artists" doing their job.

One more project to be completed (driveway resealed) and I will be done for quite awhile. I have accomplished quite a lot in the three years since I retired - new windows all around, new shutters (handmade by me), gutter guards, tree work done in the front yard, new roof over the back porch, and finally the trim work in the back yard. And people wonder why I have not done any traveling since I retired.

Traveling - my next two projects: California next summer to visit the family and then New Zealand to visit my pen pal two years after that. I can't wait to publish on my blog regarding the travel.

Boyds Bears

This picture currently is on the top of my page as of today and it is my "happy place". It is a store full of Teddie bears and friends (i.e. rabbits, chickens, moose and a whole variety of animals), most of which are collectibles. I go here when I am feeling "in the dumps" and want to feel better.

It is in Gettysburg, PA and has a panoramic view of Pennsylvania countryside. During the summer the grounds behind the store are occupied by Civil War buffs re-enacting the life and times of that era. It is a good place to go for an afternoon of shopping, eating (very good food available here) and learning.

It now has two new attractions so to speak - an art gallery featuring the work of Thomas Kincaid and a shop featuring Longanberger baskets. I like the art gallery idea but I have never really been a big fan of baskets, even though they too are supposed to be collectors items.

The best time to visit Boyds Bears is during the week because the crowds are non-existent and you can wonder around to your hearts content without bumping into other people. One of my favorite areas of the store is the baby section. The bears and other animals are made from the softest materials possible. So cuddly.

My Crepe Myrtle

This crepe myrtle bush was given to me as a retirement gift by my friend Linda. That was three years ago. It finally decided that it was time to bloom and I must say that it has done a good job. I think that it must have heard my son threatening to dig it up if it did not do something this season.

I am so glad that it listened. She has attracted butterflies galore, which has been an added pleasure. I like watching the wildlife around my home and "flutterbys" are a particular favorite to watch.

The color is called raspberry. It is mostly pink with white on the very edges of each petal. I have tried to take good close up photos of the blossoms, but to no avail. For some reason the white just does not want to show up all that well. Therefore, I must be satisfied with this picture of the full bush, Hopefully it will bloom more and more for many years to come. Thanks to my friend - Linda - for the years of joy that I have to look forward to.

That is the life of a retiree - when a mere flowering bush can create so much excitement and happiness.