Month: June 2012

  • Who Designated MY House As A Playground?

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM


    The Princess went back to work today so I got Chewlee.  Sheepie and Teach were supposed to come over to see her (and me) but ended up on a search for Teach's sister's boyfriend who had disappeared.  He got off work early and was supposedly heading home but no one could find him.  He wasn't answering his phone either.  However, he likes to party with friends and he might just have turned his phone off and gone out with them as a last minute thing.  I'm sure he's just fine.  This isn't the type of area where people *disappear*.

    I missed the little stinker (Chewlee) and she was in rare form today.  She helped the Beast bathe Baron and got herself good and wet.  That made her happy as heck because it kept her cool.  It was 102 here today and she didn't want to do her Slip N Slide even.  She didn't want her top changed either.  She told me it would dry on her so it was okay.

    She's started this talking loudly and almost non-stop at times.  I asked her WHY she was talking so loud and she said, *Because it's fun on the playground.*  I told her that my house was NOT a playground and she looked at me and said, *To ME it is!*  I knew in some ways she was right...she does think this is her personal playground.  I told her that I didn't have any swings or slides or other playground items so she was to lower her voice and talk like a lady.  She told me that she wasn't a lady...she was just a kid!  But she DID start talking softer for the rest of the day.

    She and Baron were running through the house and just having a fine ole time.  Baron always does this *happy* run after a bath.  And it's really a happy run because he will stop at your side for a minute, give you a *kiss* on your cheek and then he's off again, running.  He loves when Chewlee follows him and will look behind him to make sure she hasn't stopped.  If she does, he makes a turn and goes over and nudges her.  The Beast said to me, *Let them tire each other out.* 

    Lovey had disappeared on us for two days and guess what?  She was locked in our closet the whole time.  The poor thing was scared, hungry and thirsty.  She was found when the Princess went into our bedroom for something and heard her.  I told you the Beast was hard of hearing.  He never heard her pitiful mews.  I haven't been in my bedroom the whole time the Beast has been sick so I didn't have a chance to hear her.  How she got locked in there, I have no idea.  However, there was no smell in there of cat poop or piss.  I'll have to inspect it better tomorrow.  Right now, we are letting her feed and drink ice water.  Afterward, she will probably sleep under my desk.  Maybe.  She might not like a cozy cubby after that experience, the poor thing.  But I was relieved that she was found.  You always worry that something terrible might have happened to her since she is an indoor/outdoor cat.

    I love you all.  They are saying we will still be up around 100 or so tomorrow but a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon.  I'm praying that we DO get them.  Be careful.  Stay hydrated and cool.  Use a good sunscreen if you spend any time outdoors and a hat if you have one that will cover your neck too.  You sure don't need THAT area burnt. 

  • Did Anyone Say *Hot*?

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM


    It's been hot, hot, hot over most of the country today with some areas reaching record temps.  Nashville broke their record with heat of 106 degrees the Weather Channel said.  My son, Marcus Aurelius, and his family live there and I hoped they were staying cool.  That kind of  heat puts a strain on any air conditioning system.

    We had a temperature of 102 degrees and it sure didn't help the Beast.  He said he was sick of being sick.  Cuh!  THAT I can understand.  I have been sick one way or another since January.  I'm STILL not healed.  He's been on the new medication for two days now...he only has two more pills to take.  He'll see the doctor on Thursday morning and our regular doctor on Friday, I think he said.   We shall see what happens.

    Poor Bratfink had some really scary weather.  It started out hot and then the temperature dropped 40 degrees in just a half hour.  That's when the storms swept in, complete with some small hail.  That's a sure sign that a tornado was near and, sure enough, they turned on the sirens.  Bratfink was glad for the cooler temperature but worried about just WHERE the darn tornado was sighted.  It didn't hit them, thank goodness...at least not the last time we spoke online.  I've been watching the Weather Channel off and on and I know they got another storm that went through their area with some really HIGH winds (80-100 mph).  Even without a tornado, that can blow out windows and knock down trees, limbs and electrical wires.  Lots of people have lost their electricity.  I've been keeping them in my prayers that they get through this without any damages.

    We have a high risk of fires in our area.  Low humidity, high heat and steady (but low) winds.  It's been dry, dry, dry here although they claim we should get some storms tomorrow.  Well, we have a 20% chance anyway.    I need to gather our cherry tomatoes and more of our regular ones.  One of our neighbors came over to pick some of the ones we had that were ripe and even gathered some for us.  Sheepie and Teach are coming over tomorrow (and so is my Chewlee) so we should be able to get a lot done, including gathering some of the ripe berries growing wild on our land next door.  Figures that the ones that are neglected do the best, doesn't it?  Weird.

    The Beast pretty much has laid around the past two or three days.  He's stayed in his sleep pants pretty much.  His whole schedule (he says) is totally out of whack and he has to ask me what day it is....LOL.  I always say, *What does it matter?  We don't work and Walmart is open 24/7.*   Hell, what else do you need to know?

    I took a look around my computer room and decided it needs vacuuming.  I'll have to do that first thing in the morning.  Tonight I have to put away some clothes I folded.  I've been doing a load almost every day so the piles are small.  I've also been doing a lot of praying this past week for family and friends that are having mostly health problems.  Some are doing better now, thankfully, but I will continue to pray for them.

    Love you all.  Gonna jump in the shower and cool down a bit.  I keep my room a bit warmer than the rest of the house.  I hate air conditioning in a small room.  It always seems to make the room a fridge no matter what temp you have it at so I just use a fan but I keep the window open with the fan in it since I smoke.  I know...I know...don't lecture me.  It's just a fact I mention.  I try to keep the smell out of the rest of the house this way.

    Stay cool.  Drink lots of fluids.  Be careful if you spend any time outside.  Heat stroke is no fun.  Watch your children closely and make sure THEY also stay hydrated.  Use a good sun screen if you are going to be outdoors.  Wear a hat to protect your head.  Tell those you love that you do as often as you can.  Life is short and you never know what tomorrow will bring.  We have today; tomorrow isn't promised. 

  • Some Sad News...And A Beast Update

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM

     

    We found out that the Beast's urine test showed that he had a yeast infection.  He actually said to me...*I thought only women could have a yeast infection*.  I said to him...*Do you have a urethra?  A bladder?  Then you can have a yeast infection.  It's just unusual for a man to get one.  Ours is so close to the outside of our body that it's more easily invaded.*  Can you believe he actually thought it was only for women?  Sheesh!

    I talked to the doctor's nurse who gave me the instructions for him to take the meds.  She said, *He's to take two of them today, then one a day for the next three days.*  However, the instructions on the container says, *Take two pills a day*.  The Beast was arguing with me about the instructions and I said to him, *Think about it.  There are five pills in there.  How does take two a day make sense to you?  I am giving you the instructions just as the nurse gave them to me.  You heard me because I repeated what she said to me while I was on the phone right there in front of you.*  He gave me that look that makes me want to smack the shit out of him.  It was like he was saying, *Should I call the doctor myself and make sure?*  I get that kind of stuff from him all the time.

    I think the Beast is starting to go deaf.  He's at least lost a LOT of his hearing.  You should hear how loud he has to have the volume of the TV to hear it clearly.  And he wonders why I don't watch TV with him.

    My brother, whom we call Uncle Icky (a nickname he's had for years and years), should be starting radiation treatment on Friday for his throat cancer.  We were informed it's class 4 but it hasn't metastasized (thank God!) so they are hoping that he responds well to the radiation and then some chemo and they won't have to operate on it.  That's the hope.  I talked to my brother yesterday and I have to say he was very upbeat and positive about it all.  I know a good attitude is beneficial and he DOES have an inkling of what he may go through.  His wife, Patti, went through chemo and he was at her side constantly.  She died of a rare form of leukemia before they could attempt a bone marrow transplant from her twin sister.  But, like I said, he's got some knowledge of what he may go through, which is why Buttmunch is up there with him now.

    My sister, Cee, should be getting her schedule for the tumor in her neck tomorrow also, I believe.  Hard to keep track of these days with all the upset caused by the Beast's being sick.  This has been a really shitty year for the Brat Family, that's for sure.

    The Princess isn't working because of what's going on with Johnnycake's family so I don't get Chewlee until she goes back to work.  If everything is as dire as we've been told, that probably won't be for a while with his mother in the hospital.  I'll have to make something for the family.  It's the least I can do.  Maybe some of my pecan cups to snack on?  It's labor intensive but what else do I have to do?

    Love you all.  Stay cool.  It's only 96 degrees here right now but the humidity is only at 23%.  Fire risks are very high although the wind is only at 6 mph.  Bratfink is suffering much hotter weather.  The heat index by her was at 110 degrees although the actual temperature was only at 103.  All dangerous, regardless.  Stay hydrated.  Drink lots of fluids but water is really best.  Watch the kids since they come down with heat stroke very easily although they tend not to show it at first.  Watch your animals.  Make sure they have plenty of water, too.  They suffer from the heat, too, remember. 

  • TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM

    Today was doctor day.  I'm down to seeing the doctor at the Wound Center now every two weeks since I am almost healed.  It's going to seem strange when I finally don't have to worry about changing any bandages or applying special creams or honey (yes, honey from New Zealand that has been irradiated to kill off any spores or whatever).  It looks like creamed honey and is just as sticky as you might think.  It smells like honey.  I told the doctor that it makes you want to put it on your English muffin or toast or something.  He laughed and said the rep that came to sell it to them actually took a taste of it to show that it was not the least bit dangerous nor were there any possible bad side effects.  Now that is a great rep!

    I kept busy all day folding clothes, making up gravy from the roast drippings.  The Beast fed the dog the last of the pot roast since there wasn't much left.  He didn't toss out the gravy this time and I added it to the new roast's drippings after I did my *thing* but before I thickened it.  Took less to thicken with the gravy added from yesterday.  The dog loved the pot roast and haunted me the whole time I was in the kitchen.  I know he was just hoping for more.  He even followed me into the computer room and had to make sure I hadn't brought in anything to eat.

    He doesn't beg but what he does is lay down close to you while you eat and he waits to see what you do with your plate when you are done.  I scrape any leftovers that he can eat into his dish but the Beast will put his plate down on the floor.  It makes me mad for a stupid reason.  I just don't think it's a good idea for the dog to get used to eating off a plate.  The next step is him thinking he's entitled to any food on a plate with no one in front of it.  Makes me worry about someone going to the bathroom, especially if he's hungry.  I may be wrong but that's just the way I feel.  He is NOT one of our kids.  He's a D - O - G.  DOG.  Not a people.  Period.

    Since I am usually always up late, he comes to my computer room door and will usually whine a bit when he wants to go out.  I get up, let him out and then wait for him to come back to the back door.  He is impatient when he wants back in so he uses a paw and hits the door so it bounces a bit in the frame.  If my computer room door is closed and he needs to go out NOW, I swear to you, he tries to open the damn door!  I know it's him when he does it but I won't be surprised if he actually manages it.  Heck, I had a friend whose cats used the toilet to do their things AND they also could open a door.  Of course, cats use their paws with much more agility than a dog so I would be astonished if he DID manage to open my door.  It won't be for lack of trying though. 

    The Beast surprised me today.  He was annoyed that what came via UPS didn't get here yesterday like they said but, once the package was opened, I told him it was a nice surprise and it was just fine.  It threw me for a loop that the package said *Perishable*.  It was hot tamales he had ordered.  Oh, not REAL Mexican tamales.  That would be too much to expect since he doesn't like them as much as *I* do.  But these are the tamales hot dog vendors that were around during the summer (when I was a kid) sold.  Oh, how I loved when the hot dog vendor took his place on the corner near our house.  I could hardly wait. 

    For a quarter, you could get a slice of heaven on a poppy seed bun (hot dog) with all the trimmings....ketchup, mustard, pickle relish, onions, tomatoes and peppers if you desired.  Or, if you had a dime, you could get either a tamale roll or bunch.  The bunch was just a tamale that was divided up into four sections.  I preferred the roll because it seemed like more although the vendor said the weight of each was the same.  All of it was perfectly steamed and you would start drooling just standing near their stand.  Once in a while, our dad would treat all of us kids to a hot dog or tamales, whichever we wanted.  What a conundrum!  Which did we prefer?  I used to get a tamale ... A LOT.  Dad saved some money on me.  Not that I didn't like the hot dogs; I did.  I just found I preferred the tamales when I was given a choice. 

    I got out our steamer and made us up some tamales for our lunch.  Melt in your mouth and just the right *bite* to the filling.  We have two unopened packages of 10 and six left from the one I opened today.  He said they were supposed to be a birthday surprise for me.  I told him, *If you had told me that to begin with, I would not have let you have any.  You ATE two of MY tamales!*  I was joking, of course.  I'm actually surprised he shared them with ME. 

    The Beast is better but still not well.  He IS going in to the doctor's office on Friday (our regular doctor, Lex) to get blood drawn and to pee in a cup so they can run a test to see if the bacteria is all gone.  He's a bit afraid it was a staph infection he might have had and, if so, that is so very resistant to antibiotics that he might well have to go on more but a different kind than the cipro he was taking.  Only time will tell.

    I have so many problems with this damn wireless internet bouncing in and out on me that it makes getting my blog posted a nightmare at times.  But...it's up and running (seemingly) smoothly right now so I think I will try to get this done now.  Love you all.  Please stay cool and well hydrated over the next few incredibly hot days we have ahead of us.  We are expecting temperatures over 100 here tomorrow.  I'm going out early to pick some tomatoes for us.  If a lot are ready, I will get the Beast out there to help me and probably make up some salsa or something with the overflow.  Be good.  Drive carefully, please. 

  • It's My Birthday And I'll Cry If I Want To....

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM

    I'm kidding.  Just being a bit nostalgic but that's what (ahem!) old people do especially when another birthday rolls around.  The Princess dropped off Chewlee this morning but hung around for a bit to show the Beast how to make a smoothie (she existed on them while she was preggers) AND to wish me a Happy Birthday.  She really didn't have to add...*you old person!* but that's the Princess.    I knew SOMEONE was going to say it.  She, at least, said it with a smile and that little vocal twist that says *I'm kidding you, you know.*

    Bratfink was, of course, the first to wish me a Happy Birthday on her blog.  The Beast, who remembered I had a birthday coming up last week, forgot that it was TODAY.  If the Princess hadn't said it, he could have gone the whole day and never realized it was today.  Then, a few days down the line, he would remember and do the apology thing.  For quite a few years, I spent my birthday with my family in the Chicago area.  I had a lot more fun with THEM than with the Beast, trust me.  But the family has kind of drifted away from the reunions because we never could find just the right place to hold it that would keep the kids from complaining once the games that were held for them (INCLUDING prizes).  The adults did just fine.  Give us food and drinks (and that just might include alcohol in one form or another) and we could sit around and just talk and joke and generally catch up on things.  But, the kids grew up and started having their own lives and didn't understand the real importance of keeping your whole family (aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers and sisters) close.  Somewhere down the line as the kids start having kids of their own, they will restart the annual family reunion and will miss all us *old people* at our table.  It will be a shock for them, as it was to US, that THEY are now the *old people*. 

    I miss my get-togethers with the family while I am visiting.  I wasn't able to go up two years in a row because of the Beast and his bladder cancer surgeries.  I intend to go up sometime within the next few weeks.  Until the Beast feels better, I can't even set a definite date.  But, I WILL go up and meet with my girlfriends from high school, too.  I deserve it and I WILL have it. 

    Time to go see about keeping Chewlee entertained.  The Beast got her an electronic reader similar to Nook or Kindle but much cheaper.  He's got a couple kid's *Learning to Read* books downloaded on it.  Chewlee isn't fascinated with it like she is mine because hers doesn't read to her like mine does.  You can make that choice on my Nook if you want.  I didn't check to see if she brought her Leap Pad with her but I hope she did.  It really keeps her interested and it's all a learning experience.

    She was cute today.  When she realized it was my birthday, she made me a birthday *card* complete with cake and candles on it.  And lots and lots of hearts.  Even hearts inside of hearts.  Then she gave it to me with a kiss and wished me a happy, the happiest birthday EVER!  So sweet.

    Love you all.  Stay cool in this hot weather.  What happened to the cooler weather we were promised anyway?  Oh well.  C'est la vie! 

  • Early Ramblings....

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM

    Today the Beast decided that what he really needs is fruits, perhaps made up as smoothies since his stomach is bothering him.  Since he threw out our blender because he thought it was leaking just a little and was responsible for some crud he found underneath it, that meant buying another blender.  In fact, he decided he needed one made specially for smoothies because it needs a stronger motor in order to chop up the ice.  As he said to me, *That means we can't buy anything cheap.*  Yeah, right, Beast.  It means you spend more money we don't need to until you spend us into the poor house.  Sheesh.

    So out he goes to buy that and some fruits plus yogurt and anything else that pops into his mind.  He came home with a blender that probably cost somewhere near $100 from the looks of it.  He also bought apples, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, lemons (?) and several cans of pineapple.  He got a couple large containers of yogurt and more cottage cheese that he buys but seldom eats.  I think he plans on putting it into the smoothies, which is okay with me.  It's all good to my way of thinking.  The containers of blueberries are the largest that I can remember ever seeing.  He knows they are high in antioxidants so that has to be why he got so much of them.  He's always diagnosing his own problems.  This is when he reminds me most of his mother.  Next he will be taking a bunch of different vitamins and turning himself toxic.  One can only hope....**insert eyeroll here**.

    He's stopped taking the pain pills...temporarily....because he says it's the only way he can tell if his dangle-down (as Bratfink refers to them) is healing or not.  I told him his pain when he is trying to pee should tell him that without more suffering but he will do what he wants anyway.  I am the same way so I should understand that.  I mean, I do what *I* feel is right but I do some research on things.  He just guesses with a heavy leaning towards what he wants things to be, not what it IS.

    Oh, he also bought cherries but those aren't for the smoothies.  They are just for eating and I grabbed up some of those immediately.  Delicious!  He picked some that were perfectly ripe and sweet both.  Amazing but I am grateful.

    We are eating some leftover matzo ball soup for our dinner...IF he eats.  Knowing him with his complaint about his tummy, he will just have a smoothie or two.  Whatever floats his boat at this point.  He had said he was going in to his doctor today but he decided he would wait until he had finished up his medication for the infection.  I was a bit angry because I told him he should be much better after 10 days than he is.  I also told him that, although he IS better...somewhat....since he won't go to his doctor, I don't want to hear his complaints.  Especially now that he says he's not going to take any pain pills for a while.

    Since my internet is bouncing again, I'm going to get this posted while it's settled.  There's no telling when the next bounce will be.  Love you all.  Thanks for stopping by. 

     

  • Late Again!

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM


    The Beast was always known for his quick wit when we were kids.  Although he could be cruel at times (I used to think unintentionally), he usually elicited a few laughs.  His puns were real groaners.  Lately, when he gets up (every two hours) to have something to drink or nibble on (second time is pain pill time), he seems to be trying to get into this same type of mind frame.  It's not working well partly because I have been around him for so many years that he's kind of worn that part of my funny bone out.  I know how cruel he can be and I kind of am waiting for the other shoe to drop and for it to be aimed at ME specifically.  Right now, he's aiming it at some of the newscasters on the channels he watches that try hard to be politically correct and usually fall short of being able to be taken seriously as reporters.

    The first time he tried it, I honestly thought he was sleepwalking.  He used to do a lot of that when he was younger but I thought the infection might have hit his brain or something like that because much of what he said didn't make sense to me.  Then I realized that he was TRYING to be funny.  It made me kind of sad at the same time it scared me a bit.  But he's continues to do it nightly.  He's just a bit better at it the past few days.  But it did make me push him to go into the doctor's office tomorrow and insist on speaking to him.  This infection is still not under control or the pain would be gone by now.  He might have to try to urinate while he's there (another problem that should be gone and has been in the past).  Besides, I would love to be able to sleep a whole night through and so would he, I know.  He says he is definitely going in tomorrow and I am going to encourage him.  I hate to think of the consequences if the bacterial infection he has is one of the resistant ones.  It could kill him and that scares me.

    In other news, I seem to have inadvertently caused an upset for Sheepie that wasn't intentional at all.  When she was here and we were talking, I told her that she should be aware that not everyone was happy that she and Teach were living together.  I tried to make her understand that it was a normal reaction that parents have because we would prefer our kids were married before they live together but that's the way things seem to go these days no matter WHAT we feel.  She must have taken it that the father wasn't happy she was there at all and that part I don't know.  I never wanted to give that impression to her that I knew exactly what he was thinking, just a reaction he relayed and, as a parent, I understood it.  I wasn't happy when the Princess and Johnnycakes moved in together but I knew it wasn't MY life or MY decision to make so I just let the chips fall where they would.  I'm sure that's what Teach's parents feel, too, so let's not kid each other.  Better to be up front and just go on from there.  There's no dislike or anything to go with an opinion.  It's just that and life goes on.  Sorry, Sheepie.  I didn't know that would make you unhappy.  I love you much and want you to be happy.  I know you seem very happy and so does Teach.  Please tell Teach's parents that I apologize if I got it wrong or misread them. 

    I can be a real idiot at times that way.  I tend to forget that many people have more layers to them than I even think to look for.  I tend to take people as they seem to be and not read things into their actions most of the time.  It can make me look like a real dummy to lots of people.  With as often as I have been *burned*, you would think I would have learned by my age.   Then there are times I read more into a person than there is and look like a jerk when I am wrong.  I just can't seem to win.  I should find a cave and just stay there.

    Got to go.  It's raining heavy here and my internet is still on again, off again.  Makes me crazy at times.  Love you all.  Be happy.  Hope you have an uneventful work week. 

  • Me? A Vampire? HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!

     

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM


    The Beast swears I am becoming more and more like a vampire with the hours I keep.  I told him what he doesn't realize is that my day has become a series of naps and *up* time.  Since he has been up every couple hours during this bout with the bacterial infection, he's been glad of my *vampire* habits because he waltzes in my room and *visits*.  Actually, he spends it complaining which makes me want to kill myself at times because you get tired of hearing the same thing, over and over again.

    I suppose I could just shoot him and put him out of my misery but....they won't let you do that.  It's against some law or other, dammit!  So I try to play a game I can pause or just stop playing when he comes in and I look at him while he's complaining and turn off my mind for a while.

    I sometimes DO stay up longer during the wee hours of the night.  I often read the news as it pops up (headline type stuff), go through my mail and get rid of the spam that has managed to get through the filters (I think they turn them off at night!) or I just play a game and chat with the other people that are up.  When I notice it's gotten light outside, I will go back to sleep for a few hours if I can.  Usually, if I am not in the throes of my second wind, I manage to fall asleep quickly by then. 

    The Beast is totally amazed that I can sleep with my TV on.  In fact, if he turns it off, I wake up immediately.  I got into that habit a few years back to be able to sleep without the noise of trucks waking me when the Beast was up here and I was at our home in Florida.  We had a 16 year old that was either in school or working at the Mall back then so one of us had to be there except for short periods when I drove up here to visit with the Beast who got lonely.  As in any house, when it's late and very quiet outside, you start to hear all kinds of noises.  I would get up, walk through the house to make sure the doors were locked and windows, too.  Sometimes I would flip on the outside lights to scare away any person or animal that might be bold enough to be walking around MY house!  Sometimes I would startle an animal that was rooting away in the flower bed or eating some of the oranges that might have fallen off our trees.  We had a lot of wild pigs around our house since there was a sanctuary for many wild animals only a couple blocks away.

    After a while, I came up with the idea of keeping the TV on low to cover those stupid background noises that kept waking me up.  It worked and that noise bothered me less than the unexpected one or the trucks that sometimes drove down our streets that took advantage of a short-cut that went past the sanctuary and then down the street alongside our house.  Hell, I used that short-cut myself to get to the Interstate.  It cut a few miles off the route if you knew it was there so I couldn't blame anyone for using it.  It was also a good route for bikers who would open up and speed with their loud mufflers once they got past the houses.  THAT noise even the TV didn't cover but I would recognize the sound and just go back to sleep.

    Here, at this house, we often get big trucks that fly down the road that is just a long block away that has a tree barrier between us and it.  They only use this road late at night since there are no cops and we have long stretches of road with little or no traffic.  It's rural, after all.  Mostly large farms with cattle and hay they grow for them.  We also have a few horse farms and one that has donkeys even!    The Beast has scoped out the various fields the cattle are moved around for good shooting spots if the economy crashes.  Yeah, right!   He might be able to shoot one but after that?  Just moving it for butchering (which is also not another of his skills!) would be beyond BOTH of us.  If he wants meat, he'd better aim for squirrel or something else that's small and light. 

    Time to get this posted.  Love you all.  It's dark out so it's safe to come out of my coffin!  BWAH-HA-HA-HA! 

  • Sheepie Comes To Visit....

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM

    Sheepie and her fiance came to visit today.  They kind of surprised me as I was napping when they got here.  She looks good and happy.  So is her fiance.  We talked and joked about how she had to dress him because, when he golfs and dresses in shorts, he just has no clue about matching colors.  If it's a shade of blue, then he will put a baby blue plaid with a turquoise shirt.  She gagged and made him change that.  Now she watches him like a hawk. 

    She was unhappy that Chewlee wasn't there but I told her I usually had her and told her the days I normally do so she is coming back next week to see her....probably on Saturday because we have her all day then.  I told her by then the blackberries and blueberries should be ready to be picked so it would work out well.

    I couldn't believe that Sheepie realized I had a birthday coming up soon although she thought it was next month instead of next week.  She said she and Teach (the fiance) would be back bearing at least a gift.  I know what it will be, bless their hearts.  A liter of Mudslide or vodka.  **Grin**  My favorites.

    The Beast dragged himself out while the pain pills were still working and made a trip to Walmart to pick up a few things for us.  He's still not well (and is complaining to me about all the things he has wrong).  Even the inside of his nose got some kind of blisters and then scabbing afterward.  I told him keep some vaseline on it and his lip where the big blister was.  That's one area I can see is healing, slowly but surely.

    Later, he got a taste for some pudding and made TWO of the big packages of vanilla pudding.  I was surprised it was vanilla, actually, because he's such a chocoholic.  He told me he really had a taste for butterscotch but couldn't find any.  I love it, too, but I know how tough it can be to find.  You can usually find it in the instant type but not the stuff you cook.  We aren't fans of instant pudding except as an ingredient in some recipes.  When he brought the bowl in to me, he had this shit-eating grin on his face that he gets when he thinks he's done something to surprise you (or when he's been caught in a lie).  I gave him the praise I knew he was looking for (I don't want to discourage him from doing nice things for me, after all) and ate it all up.  There's more of it sitting in the fridge, too, but one serving will do me for a long time.

    He was sad to find out that his favorite restaurant closed down last week (Charley's, which is a national chain I think).  I believe they are either all franchises or at least, partially.  We found out to our detriment that the Los Arcos here sucks and that is a chain.  It's really sad how many of these are closing due to the sucky economy.  Some do well, others just die.

    We are going to Red Lobster in Gadsden (I think it's there.  If not, we will drive up to Huntsville.) for my birthday.  I told the Beast I have had a yen for some seafood and that's the only chain I would trust here where we aren't close to the ocean.

    Love you all.  More tomorrow when I didn't just wake up from a late nap and the Beast isn't walking in like he owns my room.    Be good.  Have a great weekend. 

  • Yakety-Yak! He Couldn't Shut Up!

    TALES FROM THE BRAT FARM


    I should have suspected that the Beast would be in a strange mood once he wasn't feeling pain.  He drove me nuts last night.  I was playing on Pogo when he came in the first time.  I was just about ready to shut down my computer because I was feeling tired and didn't want to catch a second wind and be up all night.  He came in and started to talk and tell me ALL about how wonderful it was that he wasn't having all that much pain since he got his pain pills.  It was THIS doesn't hurt, THAT doesn't hurt, yak! yak! yak!  I was glad he wasn't in pain but I told him twice that I really needed to get some sleep since we were going to have Chewlee for the whole day in the morning.  The Princess had to work a double.

    It went in one ear and out the other on the Beast.  He said to me, *What?  You tired?  You are getting more and more like a vampire so why do you need sleep NOW?  It's only 1am.*  I just raised my eyebrow but he didn't get the message and kept yakking away at me.  By the time HE finally felt the need for sleep, it was after 2am and guess what?  I had gotten my second wind.

    I stayed up and did my daily challenges (and did the ones for Bratfink that she wasn't fond of...we do that for each other and it works out well).  She likes some games I don't and vice versa.  We get two new challenges every day for which we get 1000 useless tokens.  Well, we can dress up our mini's (avatars) but other than that, useless.  About an hour after that, coffee cup in hand, the Beast was back in here, talking, talking again.  I swear, he went from one stupid subject to another and stayed in here ANOTHER hour before he finally went back to bed.  I know he was up about an hour after that, got dressed and ran over to Hardee's (they open at 4am here) and picked up their two dollar special.  It's a biscuit and sausage gravy and it works for us but I was finally sound asleep by then.  Thankfully, he was kind enough not to wake me.  I slept until 8:30am so I got at least four hours sleep.

    All day long, he's kept it up.  He isn't the least bit reluctant to take the PAIN pills if it hits him but I can tell he's definitely feeling much, much better.  He DID rest today (everything but his mouth, which he continued to use to bring me up-to-date on news, political faux pas and Baron's antics now that he's sure the Beast is going to live).  He is once again *dogging* his every move.  My ears are tired of hearing the Beast talk but it IS better than the screaming.   

    Tonight it's an early bedtime.  I am definitely going to be in bed VERY early tonight even though we don't get Chewlee for the next three days so I COULD stay up late and sleep in.  But I'm more tired than I want to admit.  I will  probably end up getting up around 4am or so since I don't seem to need a whole lot of sleep these days.  With all that's going on with the Brat Family these days, it shakes you up and you hate to waste any time sleeping.

    I got a bit of a shock yesterday, too.  During the last few months, I've had my cell phone number changed and we started using Mag*c J*ck for our house phone.  It occurred to me that my bestest friend from high school days (we'll call her Christina) no longer had a working number for me and I planned on calling her.  We are the kind of friends that may not talk to each other for six months or more but, when we talk, it's like was just saw and talked together last week, know what I mean?  We spent about an hour on the phone, catching up on each other's deeds and misdeeds and those of our other good friends.  Since I will be going up to Chicago in a couple weeks, I promised her that I would let her know the dates and we will get together then.  We usually spend a couple days together, one of those days with other girls we went to high school with, too.  We usually go to a restaurant together and just have fun talking and joking.  Especially about feeling young but looking older. 

    It seems that Christina has the phone number of my ex-sister-in-law that we girls decided to keep after the divorce and she called her.  My ex-SIL didn't have the phone number and called my sister (I mentioned this in brief in yesterday's post).  Kay then called Christina back and that's how she got my number.  She brought me up to speed on one of our friend's that had breast cancer but didn't choose either mastectomy or lumpectomy.  Strictly chemo and radiation.  She was finally pronounced cancer-free and seems fine now.  Christina is going in for tests every six months because of a family history of cancer and she has fibroids in her breasts.  The radiologist that reads her mammograms was complaining because he said in his whole life, he's never seen breasts so dense because of the fibroids.  He says it makes it tough and they have to take more than the normal number of x-rays. 

    Cancer is so prevalent these days, or perhaps it's just we can detect it better.  It's an awful disease and I wish we had more effective ways of treating it than chemo (which destroys healthy cells, too) and radiation therapy.  They both make you feel so much worse before you can (hopefully) get better.  It almost seems little advanced from the days of witch doctors with the more remarkable advances in other medical areas, or is that just MY feeling?  With both Sister Cee and Brother D. having it now, it's scary for the rest of us.  My godmother and aunt (one and the same) is dying from breast cancer that spread quickly to other organs.  She's the type that got a mammogram like clockwork every year and it seems so unfair.  She's another person I must visit before she dies.  I've always loved her special.  I love her laugh and her sense of humor.  I will miss having her in my world.  It will be a sadder place without her.

    Chewlee was in rare form today.  My cane became her hobby horse today.  She named it, talked to it, took it for *rides*, fed it and was a bit rowdy while galloping all over the house.  I knew the Beast was trying to listen to his news and political chat shows so I made her come into my computer room to watch her cartoons and calm down.  She came in and stood her ground and told me, *Grandma, he NEEDS me!*  No matter what I said, she just keep repeating, *He NEEDS me!*  I finally got her to corral the *horse* and be quieter.  So what does she do?  She starts playing (rather loudly due to her laughing) with Baron.  When the noise got really loud, I went out with every intention of yelling at her and find out that most of the noise is coming from THE BEAST!    He was bouncing the dog's ball hard on the floor to make it bounce high in the air and Baron was jumping up and catching it.  Chewlee was laughing loudly at the antics of them both and the Beast just got a sheepish look on his face when I came out and was preparing to yell at Chewlee for the noise.

    Well, it's late and my computer is doing the wireless bounce really bad.  I'm going to have to carefully time it to get this posted.  Love you all.  Be good.  Stay healthy.  Learn to laugh and do it often because it's healing.