It's down to the wire now.  I have my bag packed and the GPS is programmed for Atlanta Airport.  I'm getting up at 4AM so that I can leave no later than 5AM.  There is a time difference of an hour between Alabama and Georgia even though we are right next to each other.  So, if I leave by 5AM, that will be 6AM in Georgia.  It's a 3 hour trip to the airport from here.  Even though I don't leave until almost 11AM, I am not familiar with the airport and have to find long-term parking then make it to the terminal and get checked in.

I'm only taking a carry-on bag with my clothes, personal hygiene products, makeup and cigarettes.  I DO need to buy some gum so my ears don't get plugged up.  I hate when that happens.  It's embarrassing to have to ask people to repeat themselves.

The Princess dropped off Chewlee to spend some time with me since I will be gone for several days.  Chewlee has been upset that she hasn't had me pick her up from pre-school and she had a fit this morning when her mother told her that Johnnycakes would pick her up.  I explained to Chewlee that I was going bye-bye for a couple days but I would see her as soon as I came back.  I guess the Princess tried explaining it to her, too, because she told me she knew I was going bye-bye but that I would come back and she could come to Gramma's then.  She seemed to take it in stride but spent most of her time firmly seated in my lap.  She got down once to dance to some music on Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! 

I deliberately didn't take a nap like I usually do during the day so I could go to bed early and I think I won't have a problem going to sleep. 

On a different note, the Beast was on his John Deere mowing the front yard and the *tree farm* on the property next to the house.  It's ours so he has to do that anyway.  He was going to mow along the edge of the road across from us when he noticed something.  He got down off the mower and was stunned to discover that the whole edge of the road and into the small culvert area is chock full of STRAWBERRY PLANTS!    I know!  I was totally shocked.  When I went outside to look, the strawberries were small but they were definitely strawberries.  There must be somewhere around 200 plants there.  I told the Beast that I might just dig a few up when I get back from Florida so I told him DO NOT cut along there. 

Having already done a post that disappeared into hyperspace and will appear on some alien planet years in the future, this will be kind of short and just hit the highlights.

I have to run out again tomorrow and try to find a nice card for the wedding couple so I won't have to do it in Ft Lauderdale.  Who knows?  I might even find one that won't be a duplicate of the cards they get from everyone else.    I double-checked my luggage to make sure I had what I needed in it and checked my cash I'll be taking with me. 

I got my floors damp mopped after sweeping up (twice in just a couple hours ) and got a HUGE pile of stuff both times.  It was all dog hair and stuff the Beast and Baron dragged into the house from being outside (and going in-and-out, in-and-out, etc.).  I also washed all the rugs so that would be done.  I don't know why, but I really DO like my house to be neat and clean when I leave it for a few days.  I never understood how some people could just leave with beds unmade, dishes unwashed or clean but not put away.  Know what I mean?

When I told the Beast I had to run out tomorrow for the card, he said, *Why didn't you get it when you went out today?*  Well, duh!  I had other things on my mind and never went to a store that had such things in it to remind me.  It's not like I had to hit Walmart again.  So what does he do?  He gives me a list of things to do for HIM while I am out. 

There was no picking up Chewlee again today since it was the Princess's day off.  She spent the day cleaning, too.    I decided it was truly past any really cold days so I changed my quilt on the bed for the summer weight one that matches my curtains.  It'll be easier for the Beast to screw up with all his twisting and turning during the night.  I guarantee you he won't make the bed up but will make a feeble attempt the day I get home.

I know what he will be making himself to eat while I am gone....corned beef hash.  He bought six cans of it.    He might even fry up an egg or two for variety to go with it.  I know he won't go hungry.  He can cook enough things to keep himself fed.  It's not like I am going to be gone a month.  I'm leaving Thursday and will be home Monday evening.  Of course, they are predicting rain for Thursday so I'm going to allow myself a little extra time to drive to Atlanta ... just in case they are right this time.

The stuff I was going to put in this will be in it but it's not the headline.  The poor Princess was hit by a State Trooper as she left work for home.  I don't have all the details yet but she was okay and the fault was HIS.    He hit her passenger side door.  *Sigh*  I guess her having to wait for the windows to be delivered to the dealer works out for her this time.  Now she will have to get the door repaired before getting the new paint job. 

If she had already had the tornado damage repairs done, it would be almost too much to bear.  This is the third time that car has been damaged in a little over a year and not one of the incidents was her fault.   The first time was the guy in the Jaguar that backed into her while she was in a drive-thru line at a fast food restaurant.

The second was all the damage from the tornado a couple weeks ago.  Now this!  After telling me about it on the phone (while they were waiting for the local cops to get there to make the accident report), she said to me, *I think I want a new car.  I feel like this one is a target!*  I know how she feels.

When I get all the details, I'll let everyone know.  On to other things......

Cee called today to make sure we knew where we were meeting up at the airport when I fly into Ft. Lauderdale on Thursday.  There's both an upper and lower level.  Since I am only bringing carry-on, we can meet on the upper level.  She figures she will be there about 20 minutes after my plane lands and I told her not to sweat it because I can have a cigarette while waiting.

I am all packed up now and all the clothes are washed, folded or hung up and put away.  The Beast can go crazy with his underwear and not run out!    Tomorrow I will get serious about cleaning up so there's nothing for the Beast to worry about but his own mess while I am gone.  I MUST mop the floors because I really looked at them and there are all kinds of spots on it that don't really show unless the sun hits it and you see it at a certain angle.  It bothers ME, not the Beast.

I will have tomorrow and Wednesday to get everything done I want to do.  I'm changing my linens on my bed since I didn't get to do it this weekend.  I am even cleaning up my computer room so the Beast doesn't try to do me *a favor*, if you know what I mean.

I didn't have to pick up Chewlee today, which I was grateful for since I had a lot I was trying to do.  I'll do my floors in the morning even if I have to force the Beast to leave with Baron.  He was really busy today so he may not be reluctant to take it a bit easy.

He changed out a faucet on the garage sink and got me a new sink water filter, too.  It's still a Br*ta but it's a slightly different style.  I like it much better than the other one.  They say this one is a 3-stage and the one I had was a 2-stage.  He wouldn't have bothered to get a whole new one except he couldn't find any filters for the two stage one.  Go figure.

He also painted the gutter that extends across the garage door.  I had to give him a hand almost literally.  I filled the roller with paint while he was on the ladder or filled the brush with paint.  He bought himself a shield that you can use instead of having to tape off any area that you don't want to get paint on.  It looks like a huge scraper but the metal is thin so it can go behind the gutter or you can use it along an edge of an area.  It is about 2 ft. across so it made it go quickly.  Once he was able to work on the downspout without being on the ladder, I left him to finish up since I was busy, too.    Never let it be said that I don't give him a hand when I can.    I admit that there are times I'd like to give him a hand off a cliff but I resist the temptation. 

The Beast is starting to really tease Baron by ignoring him when Baron decides it's time for them to go to bed at night.  Baron starts off with a little woof while standing in the bedroom door.  He then makes this really strange noise that sounds like a growl and bark mixed together.  If the Beast still ignores him, he then comes out with a louder bark.  Just one but it sounds impatient.  If he is STILL ignored, he comes out with the most pitiful whine and it always makes me laugh hearing it in my room.  The Beast will usually laugh also and then give in and go to bed.  That is, unless he is watching one of his teams on TV.  The basketball finals are on right now and those are ones that he follows faithfully. 

When Baron finally realizes that the Beast is NOT ready for bed, he will go into the bedroom and plop down on his bed with his face pointed towards the Beast in his recliner.  Then, every once in a while, he lets out this heavy sigh.  When the Beast finally gets up and starts turning out the lights, he jumps up, tail wagging like crazy and gets behind the Beast nudging him along.  Too freaking funny for words!!

Of course, the bad part is that he sneaks up on the bed ON MY SIDE once the Beast is asleep.  That means I have to wake up the dog and make him get down onto HIS bed next to me.  He does it reluctantly and plops down heavily so you KNOW he's not happy about making the move.  Like *I* care? 

The Beast woke me up at 7:30am in anticipation of our trip up to Nashville to see the kids and my son, Marcus Aurelius's house.  It took them a long time to resolve their debt and credit issues in order to be able to finally buy one so it really was a big deal for everyone.  I thought there was an hour's difference between our time zone and Marcus's so I ended up waking him up at that ungodly hour (he likes to sleep in on Sunday's) to make sure he knew we were still coming up and to check to see if the other two kids had made it in from Louisville.  They had come to visit on Friday so this way they would be sure not to leave early for home.

We left here about an hour later and headed up, not sure what kind of weather we would run into up there.  It was overcast by us but only drizzling a bit.  That was pretty much what we ran into here and there all the way to Nashville.  The GPS took us right to their driveway with no wrong turns along the way.  We have found it sometimes gets confused because the roads have changed over the last couple years.  It takes a couple before those changes are reflected in the maps so, even if we download the latest updates, it's still behind in a lot of areas.

We really liked the house.  It wasn't like our first house that required a month of working on it almost daily before we could move into it because of all the work that needed to be done.  My daughter-in-law painted the planked walls in the kitchen and dining area a nice Seafoam green (like a lime sherbet) and it was really an eye-pleasing color.  Her kitchen has a nice island in it and windows to keep it light and airy feeling. 

They took the big room downstairs for the master bedroom and we were making jokes about it being bigger than some of the apartments they had lived in.  They have plans to do things to it but it will take time.  They just have to wait but didn't we all with our first homes?

 I got really ticked off at the Beast for not remembering to give Marcus some cash for his housewarming present.  The extra money would help them with buying some of the paint or a ladder they need now that they own their own home.  The Beast says he will buy a gift card at Lowe's for them and send it to them in the mail.  I reminded him that he'd better check and make sure they have Lowe's up there and not just Home Depot. 

The kids rooms are all a nice size.  They each have their own and my kids had to share rooms smaller than they have in OUR first house.  We managed but I thought it was nice that they each have their privacy.   It is a nice, comfortable house and I am so happy for them. 

We all had a good time.  There was a lot of joking around, laughing and a couple funny moments when the Princess came under fire.  She was telling everyone how *I* spoil Chewlee and everyone jumped on her and started telling her that I was the same when SHE was a kid.   When she tried to say it was NOT, they ALL jumped on her and told her she had a very short memory but THEY remembered.  I just sat there and laughed and told her, *I told you so!*

Johnnycakes pretty much just sat there taking it all in.  Later on, when Doc asked him why he wasn't saying much of anything, he just shrugged and said it's what the Princess does when he's with HIS family, too.  He said, *Ya'll know each other well.  What do you want ME to say?*

Like I said, it was a nice time for us and there was NO alcohol involved at all!    Actually, I think they were all recuperating from their get-together on Friday night. 

We headed for home around 5pm or so, made one quick stop at Publix just outside of Huntsville for our special bread and were happy when our feet hit the floor here.  The first thing I did was take off my bra () and get into my jammies.  Then I got online here to check my email, read my Sunday comics and do this blog.

Love you all.  Going to hit the mattress early because Chewlee dragged me up and down the stairs at the house while we were there.  When no one else wanted to go outside with her, she knew she could get Gramma to go out with her.    Of course, Doc took her out for a while and tried to show her how to use this really long bubble maker but Chewlee didn't really have the patience for it.  She likes her little bubble blower she always gets on her birthday and during the summer (at least here at Gramma's she does!)

I started checking on my clothes for the four days down in Florida and decided that I needed some new clothes.  A couple tops, a pair of shorts and I also bought a new dorm shirt and a pair of sleep pants.  I've come to love those.

I got a couple new White Stag tops that I got on sale.  I love White Stag.  All their clothes are comfortable, fit well, keep their shape and they also last.  I was hoping to find some of their nice cotton knit shorts but didn't find any. 

I couldn't wait to come home and show them to the Beast who was underwhelmed, as usual.  That from the same man who insists I must *oooh* and *ahhhh* over his new clothes when he tries them on.  *Sigh*  MEN!!!!!

I started working on washing the dirty clothes and threw in the new stuff.  I don't like the preservative they have on them (usually it's formaldehyde) to keep them bug free in the warehouses where they are stored.  I will start packing my suitcase as each item comes out of the dryer. 

When I went to Walmart, I also bought some of the travel sized items like deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, etc. so that I won't have anything confiscated like I did the last time I traveled.  They took and threw away a $13. jar of hair stiffener I bought at the Beauty Salon where I had had my hair cut.  I had to buy something else at the other end of my trip and then leave it behind when I flew home.  I hate some of the new things we have to deal with because of terrorists but it IS a small price to pay.

It's evening while I am typing this up and I am still working on washing clothes.    I know!  It's mostly the Beast's underwear and shirts and my lounge wear.  I love it when I don't have to get dressed.  Most of it is cotton knit and some of it is the shorts-type set with short-sleeve tops.  I can go outside in them and I am amply covered and comfortable.

What my family is going to find strange when they see me is this:  When they last saw me, I weighed 110 lbs and was a size 3.  I now am 140 lbs. and wear a size 14 (I can wear most 12's but 14 is more comfortable).  I no longer am at the age where I feel the need to wear tight clothes.      I also had no bust to speak of and now wear a size 36D.  That alone should shock them.  It sure did me when they showed up.  Even Chewlee found them fascinating the first time I wore a top that was a bit closer to the skin than usual.  I had to fight with her to keep her from trying to *see* them. 

I just talked to the Princess and it looks like they aren't making the trip with us tomorrow to see Marcus, Mustachio, Buttmunch and the rest of the crew in Nashville.  She sounds awful.  She had been complaining about a sore throat for the past few days but she was taking something to try to stave off getting sick.  Looks like it didn't work.  Oh well!!!!

I need to go get more folding clothes out of the dryer now and throw another load in.  Weatherman says rain tomorrow and, after looking at the radar, I think this time he may just be right.  We will be leaving early and I really hate riding with the Beast in the rain.  He doesn't slow down and takes such chances at times.  I will be on pins and needles the whole time.  Say a little prayer for me.

Love you all and have a great day.  Love well.  Laugh often.  Smile for no reason at all. 

Be careful what you wish for, they say.  I wished for hotter weather and the gods of weather granted my wish.  It was 92 here in our backyard today and got all the way up to 86 in the house.  Considering how well insulated the house is, that took a while.  We kept the lights off and the fans on and, for most of the day, it stayed comfortable.  By around 5pm, it was stifling.  I finally succumbed to the Latin siesta and put my feet up for a while. 

It's now 8pm and fully dark outside but the temperature is still at 80 degrees.  The house, however, is still at 86 so the Beast has turned on the air conditioning to cool it down a bit before bed time.

I picked up Chewlee from school today, as usual and we sat and watched Sponge Bob while she had a Tootsie Roll pop and some juice.  She wanted to sit in my lap but it was a bit too hot so she went back and forth between her Dora chair and standing between my knees and leaning back on me.  When Johnnycakes came to pick her up, she had to collect her Dora necklace (which she had insisted *I* had to wear), her sunglasses and her sandals before she would leave with him.  She cheerfully told us goodbye before she ran out the door to go home.

While she was eating her sucker, I was keeping an eye on her and she kept it pretty much in her mouth the whole time.  So, tell me, how did she manage to make everything she touched (including me) sticky?    Not just a little.  I had to take a rag and wipe down the arms on my computer chair and wash my hands.  I had to wipe off my mouth due to her sticky goodbye kiss but that much I expected.  It's a kid mystery. 

Bratfink surprised me today by popping up in an IM this afternoon.  It seems her computer is still in the hospital awaiting surgery but the Boy took pity on her and rolled out Voltron for her use until her's returns.  She put a post up right away and there should be another one set for later tonight (tomorrow).  So, if you have missed her like I have, be sure to check out what's going on.

I accomplished very little other than running the dishwasher using a special additive to get rid of the hard water stains.  It's going to require one more treatment, I think, to get it entirely but it's a huge improvement.  The dishwasher is a Bosch stainless steel one, both inside and out.  But even that is affected by hard water after a time.  There's just a thin coat left in some areas but I don't want to scrub the surface to get the remainder off and take the chance of scratching it.  Plus, let's face it.  It's easier to do it the passive way. 

I made us lunch today and the Beast made dinner.  He's pretty predictable so we got a breakfast for dinner (waffles).  His turned out like Belgian waffles only without all the yummy (but fattening) goodies.  I would have liked some ice cream on them I think.  It was THAT hot outside and inside both.

As soon as it cools down in here, I'm probably going to head for bed so I can be refreshed in the morning and try to get more things done.  It's only a few more days before I will be heading off for Ft. Lauderdale and my cousin's son's wedding on the 22nd.  I'm flying out of Atlanta on the 20th and will return on the 24th.  Then my granddaughter, Sheepie, will be coming in on the 26th for two weeks.  The Beast will be leaving for Franklin, NC on the first of June so there's a lot of stuff to get done in a relatively short time.

By now, everyone should know we live out in the country.  We are more fortunate than others since we are probably only about 7-8 miles from *town* or, at least, a shopping/restaurant area.  It's the main north-south road through our area and very busy.  It's six lanes and is a direct route into Huntsville.  Huntsville is the home of Space Camp and one of the areas that still manufactures parts and components for the space shuttle, etc.

It's so nice to live here where traffic is still kind of utilized mostly by area residents.  We still have lots of green and trees.  The downside is spring and the annual application of fertilizer.  For two or more weeks, the odor is horrific.  The farmers are good enough to do only one field at a time so you only have to travel through those areas for a limited distance before coming out of the miasma.  But, about the time THAT area loses the odor, the next field gets fertilized.  The whole *aroma* process starts over again for those of us that drive past, unsuspecting.

I know that doing that is important to the crops that are grown in those same fields.  A natural part of life.  The farmers hereabouts use *natural* fertilizers, meaning usually cow manure.  I'm sure some of it is from steers but I suspect that some of them are using the fertilizer from human sewage.  Not that they are going around and raiding the septic tanks, don't get that idea.  But once, long ago, back when my kids were young and we were still renting, our landlord got a deal on some processed sewage from the local processing plant.  I was getting ready to put in a garden so he offered to drop off some *fertilizer* for me to work into the soil.  My father-in-law was going to come over with his rototiller so I thought it was really great!

But...OMG!!!!!  The smell!!!!  I thought my neighbors were going to kill me.  If I had known, I would have refused any of it.  It wasn't bad until the first time it got wet.  It took almost a month for that to go away.  The only funny part of it all was that I had a huge number of tomato plants that cropped up in my garden.  I ended up with a few more of those than I had planted and the rest I had to pull up like weeds. 

Our landlord said he had thrown some down on the back acre of his property and, when he came back about three weeks later, he had over 200 tomato plants growing there!    I guess that those tomatoes we all eat are the most resilient of all nature's seeds since they pass through the human digestive system unscathed. 

I bring this up because I went past a section of one farm in the area that had just been fertilized (albeit a bit late around here) and the smell reminded me of that time.  Trust me, once you smell it, you never forget it!  When I went past it a couple days later, nothing had been done to the field so I suspect that one is going to be let lay fallow this year and then everything that grows on it will be plowed under later in the summer.  If they end up with lots of tomato plants, I hope they harvest the tomatoes, at least. 

Tonight we sat out on the deck and I remembered the reason I fell in love with this place once again.  We could hear the lowing of the cows in the field across the way from us.  I guess it would be about the equivalent of two city blocks.  They always do that as they are on their way to the barn.  I guess it's in anticipation of whatever it is they get there each day.  They aren't dairy cows so I really don't know if it's just the feed or the hay or a special treat.  But, I love the sound. 

There's almost no traffic sounds at all after about 6:30pm.  The whole area gets very still and quiet.  It's also the time that the hummingbirds come out in numbers to feed at our feeders.  Their last few sips before bedtime, I guess.  They look so cute zipping here and there, then stopping to perch momentarily at the feeders before zipping away into the night.  You don't want to make a sound to disturb the atmosphere of peace and quiet.

Then....the washing machine buzzes inside the house to break the spell.    But the memory lingers on.  We are truly blessed with good neighbors and another new one to move in shortly since their house is almost completed.  We did have one obnoxious neighbor but they were forced out of their house by that awful black fungus I'm sure you read about or heard about on the news. 

A moisture problem resulted from several different contractors, including the one that provided the Chinese drywall that ended up making them ill.  They found a massive fungal problem by accident and moved out as soon as it was cultured at a laboratory.  They now have a lawsuit going but, as we heard, the whole house will need to be dismantled and a totally new one built.  They have no desire to build another one on that land so I think it will be left there and, perhaps, one of their kids will build on it in the future.

It did give us all something to talk about for a while and make us glad we hadn't used the same contractor to build our houses.  Ours was already built but we met the contractor (very nice man and he has a good reputation locally).  We don't get a lot of gossip out here where our neighbors are a bit further apart than normal.  Our little enclave here is closer than the others that surround us.

I will close this for now and get it posted.  Love you all and I wish you a wonderful day.  Here's the other quote about motherhood that made me thoughtful and also made me smile:

I can be bad about reading my email, depending on what is going on around here.  If I get busy washing clothes, mopping the floors, changing linens, washing windows, etc.  I don't always put it in my blog when I do it piecemeal, only when I make a day of it.  So that explains why I hadn't read this missive from my girlfriend, Martha, about *being a mother*.    I'm going to include bits and pieces of it in my blog this week.  Mostly because, as I read it, it really hit home.

I know this section will be clear to anyone my age with grandchildren and even great-grandchildren.  I feel so blessed that I can be a part of Chewlee's life and that she loves to be with *gramma*.  I sincerely wish I could have been as close to all my grandchildren.  Most of them are on the verge of college or have lives that are slowly taking them into other directions.  Their interests are taking them away from family and into a bigger world of friends and activities.  God bless the children.

somebody never had grandchildren.