October 23, 2010

  • The Beast Starts His Countdown To The Trip To Florida


    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM

    I got a bit of a shock today hearing something (or someone) underneath the house today.  I couldn't think of any reason for the Beast to be under there but I was wrong.  When he finally extricated himself and came into the house, he said he was finishing up the one thing he hadn't when he was doing all that work under the house this past Spring.  He had one hole to finish covering up around the air conditioning ductwork that let cold air under the house. 

    I figured that was just his normal thinking with the really cold weather coming up shortly.  But, he added, *I wanted that done so if it gets colder while I am in Florida, you won't have to run the heat a lot when it's windy outside.*  It made me grin but I tried to hide that from the Beast because I don't want him to know how much I am looking forward to that even if it means that Baron will be here (and very unhappy) with me.  His true master and best friend is the Beast.  He's just not happy unless he can crawl in the Beast's lap at night and share a nap (or two) with him ON THE BED!  He knows I won't let him do that with me.  Oh, I don't mind if he sneaks onto the bed at night after I am asleep but to just jump on the bed and lay his head down on a pillow (then spend a half hour scratching himself)...no way, no how.

    The Beast also got the tank ready for spraying the trees.  I knew he wouldn't leave with that undone since it will be the last spraying until next Spring.  He HAS to do it before the ground freezes and the sap stops moving down inside the trees.  Then, hopefully, after his Spring spraying of the peach trees and the general spraying once more for the fungus....JUST IN CASE.....we are hoping for a really nice crop of fruit from all the trees.  I mean ALL the trees, even though it will make me nuts with all the canning and freezing I will have to do in a short span of time.  Think about it.  We have several different types of cherries, apples, pears, plums and (OMG!) peaches.  At least the peaches will ripen at two different times with the Alberta peaches being the earliest to ripen.  The apples include both eating and cooking types.  Some are best for canning, others for apple butter or freezing for pies later.  The pears are types for eating, cooking and canning.  Now what makes the difference between cooking and canning, I have no clue but I will by the time they are ready.  Someone told me that the cooking ones are really for baking or frying.  Having never heard of a fried pear, that would be different if true.  Baked pears I've had.  I just didn't realize that those needed to be firmer than, say, a Bosc pear.

    Since he kind of flits around when he gets tired of one job, he also started to go through his tools and he cleaned up his tool boxes that he takes with him.  That will occupy him for days, knowing him.  He's not really sure just what he might be called on to do so he keeps thinking of other things he might need.  I've been through this before with him.  He'll also throw his welding tanks and tips in before he leaves.....just in case.  If he gets really *into* his preparations, he'll also throw in two different sized copper rolls, too.  *Sigh*  The man can really be anal.  I keep telling him that he's got a buddy there he can get some of that stuff from but he doesn't always want to wait if it's a quick kind of repair he can make.

    Me?  I'm going to be keeping up the wash to make sure his socks, skivvies and tshirts are all clean and ready for him.  He's only got a couple pair of jeans he likes to wear so those will also be a priority.  I can see me whisking them off him to throw in the washer as he's trying to undress for a bath.    Hey, when he finally decides he's going to leave, I won't get much notice so I want to be prepared so it's quick and easy.  The incredible part of this all is another AC contractor we know (the gal that bought our company) thinks she got this one job she's been waiting on for several months and she offered the Beast a good amount of $$$ if he will just supervise the installation of the equipment.  It might actually work out that, as he finishes up this one job he is going down there for, the other will be ready for him to supervise.  Wouldn't that be fantastic?

    Now, if you wonder why she would offer him good money to supervise when she is very capable, it's two-fold.  One...the Beast is nothing if not a great organizer for big jobs.  Two...jobs he supervises come out right and have great start-ups.  That's half the trick of not having a job that requires a lot of service calls.  If the start-up goes well, there are fewer problems that show up with the equipment.  There's also the fact that the poor thing (who has two teenagers) just had twins.    I know!  I really feel for her.  She's the bread winner for her family (her husband is a likable but not ambitious man) and he works for HER these days.  He's more the guy that runs around picking up and then dropping off the supplies for her various construction jobs all over the place.  He's perfectly happy doing that and his life is good.  You have to admire a gal with that kind of drive and ambition.  She's only in her early 40's (I think she's 41 or 42) but...OMG!  TWINS??? 

    Chewlee was in a rare mood today.  Very mellow.  She didn't even care that there was no gum in the candy jar and went for the Sweet Tarts instead.  Then she wanted to sit in my lap while we watched Penquins of Madagascar on Nik and then Dora.  She ate three pickle spears and really hoped to eat all I had left but she pooped out (and there were two more left...LOL).  I tried to get her to eat some FOOD but she told me no, she was going to eat with mommy and daddy. 

    I'll have her all day tomorrow, including tomorrow night since the Princess and Johnnycakes are going somewhere and I will probably end up keeping her all night.  When Johnnycakes came to get her today, she was ready to run outside (and started to do so) until I called her back for her *tee-tee*.  She then ran out the door and just yelled out *Bye* when Johnnycakes said to her, *Aren't you going to say goodbye???*  Even HE laughed over that.

    Time to go now.  Love you all and I really hope you have a great weekend.   Remember to mark November 23rd on your calendar and say a very special prayer for Bratfink then.  That's the day her surgery has been scheduled and we all want the results to be only the very best for her, right?