i like how the day sounds

sometimes, while living here in the hellhole, in our small town, in the south, in my small existance- i miss out on things. oh, i'm not talking about big things like electricity or running water. but little things.

like for instance, our household has no type of television cable or dish hook-up, so we miss out on the popular shows that folks like to talk about. i have never seen grey's anatomy, true confession. i'm sure it's a great show; my friend,v, never misses an episode. but...as i have never seen it, i can't really miss it! right?

the same cannot be said for music. i listen to pandora when i'm in the house and to sirius radio in the car. i rarely hear a radio station and so don't know what is the current music playing. as a result, i do miss an artist or song that might have been meaningful to me.

recently, while watching an episode of army wives (on the computer!), i heard a song that prompted me to discover the title and artist. of course, i googled the lyrics and came up with greg laswell. i then looked up the title "how the day sounds" on youtube and was treated to the full song and it's very fun video. apparently, the cd, three flights from alto nido, was released in 2008. so, for two years, i have missed hearing this awesome song. not to worry, in the few days since i found it, i have played that video over and over many times! (in fact, it's playing right now)

so if you already knew about this band, congrats to you! if not, please do yourself a favor and (after you finish reading this post) follow the link to youtube and watch the video- over and over!

how the day sounds (i tried to embed the video here but could not get the code)

grateful:

1. for the discovery of this band
2. for the torrential downpour that watered my garden
3. especially for the few seconds that kaye hesitated going through that intersection yesterday. it may have saved her life!

not too hot for this dude

t.willie received a new book in the mail. he thought he'd settle down on the porch to read it. in the 97 degree heat.

he is one cool dude.

(oh, and those are the end tables i got at a yard sale for five bucks. that's cool too)

grateful today:
1. for new friends
2. for old friends
3. heck, let's be real, i'm grateful for anyone that wants to hang with me!

hot as hell, oh, hot as hell!!!

happy solstice! happy first official day of summer!

okay, i'm over it. can we have fall now? i mean, what is with the temperatures?? and the humidity?? it has been SO hot, that you could cook an egg on a sidewalk. (isn't that the saying?)

or you could make 'smores on my forehead

or you could bake a ham on a tin roof

or you could boil water in a dog bowl (ask my dog, he'll tell ya!)

or you could make a pancake with a hand shake

or cook a goat in a boat

or fry some meat on my feet

or...or.....i. feel. woozy........i. think. it's. the. heat.........


i do not like the heat i say
i do not like it-go away
i do not like it in the car
i do not like it near or far

i will not will not
smile i say
i might i might
faint straight away

i think the heat is really stupid
i do i do, and so is humid
they are mean and so not nice
not like winter, with its ice
i do not like the heat, it's true
i do not like it, how 'bout you?

grateful:
1.winter
2. spring
3. fall

days of whine and noses

oh my dog! what a day!

so, ok, t.willie and i had a pretty good morning; the usual stuff, he-playing, me-cleaning. then, after lunch, i really needed a nap, him-not so much! i put him in his crib, he settles down, making me think, maybe he will sleep.

i settle down on the couch and close my eyes. just after i take a deep, much-earned breath, i hear him. he is crying, his pain cry! i rush into his room and he is holding his mouth. "did you hurt your mouth?" i ask. he is crying and drooling and mumbling something. i tell him to stop crying because i can't understand him. so he chokes it down and says "my crib hurt me." i could tell, he wasn't really injured badly. so i laugh and smack the crib rail and say "you mean old crib! leave t.w. alone!" well, this makes him giggle but then he starts coughing because his nose is stuffy from crying.

so, i pick him up and get a tissue to wipe his nose. we go through the nap time routine again, although a bit quicker. he can barely hold his eyes open and i am thinking yes! he's going to nap!

uh uh. after about ten minutes of silence, i hear him again. he is in there shrieking and singing and thumping against the wall. i can tell, there will be no sleeping. and i won't get much of a break. i decide to just rest for ten minutes and then go in there.

so i go and open his door and this is what greeted me:

you may be thinking "hmm, it looks like that kid is naked." well, he was. not only naked, but his clothes had been thrown in all directions and he was in the act of taking the pillow case off his pillow. i know from experience, his sheet and blanket would be next.

i picked him up with a loud sigh and he said "i make you happy?"

"oh yeah, i'm ecstatic."

as the afternoon wore on, t.willie became increasingly grouchy and whiney. he was doing anything he could to make me mad. i would yell at him or smack him and he would start crying with this pitiful, offended look. then he would pinch his nose declaring "i need a tissue, gammie." he was so snotty after a couple of hours, that he took to just carrying a tissue in his hand!

finally, we went outside. but only after applying this burt's bees bug repellent my sister sent me. and also, after t.w. having a fit over which bug repelling arm band he would wear (also from my sister). we were outside for about 15 minutes when he began wailing and shaking his head. he had been playing in his sand box and i realized he had gotten sand in his eyes. so i am trying to gently wipe the sand away, while also trying to keep him from touching his eyes with his sandy hands!

he was getting frantic, so i decided to just pick him up and bring him into the house. i had bilbo hold him while i got a wet wash cloth to wipe his eyes. finally, he started calming down and wanted to go back outside. but he needed his nose wiped again. right about then, i noticed a very large welt on his right temple. a damn mosquito had gotten him despite all the buggish precautions! tarnation!!

at this point, i was exhausted. no way was i taking that kid back outside! he started to complain, but i began filling the bath tub for him. the distraction worked and the before dinner hour went smoothly, as did the rest of the evening. bedtime came early though, this grandma has had it...i'm pooped!

grateful:
1. that this day is over....

smile and the world smiles with you

there is a really great blog i follow called the jungle of life. it is the blog of lance ekum and he is involved with a something called "the levity project". this is what it is about:

"The Levity Project is a social movement creating change through public acts of play, laughter, and celebration. The mission of The Levity Project is to help decrease the spirit of negativity, stress, and fatigue in our society by infusing public spaces with a lighter and more buoyant energy.

The Levity Project is a movement that encourages everyone who participates and observes the events to see themselves as an agent of change in our world. Our goal is to create a global community in which people come together to create an upward spiral of global positive social change."

their new micro-movement is "smiling:video form". here is the explanation:

"We're looking for short videos of YOU, smiling!! Do it by yourself. With your family. With friends. With your kids. And make a short video. 5 - 10 seconds long is perfect! And that's the micro-movement. Together, from all reaches of our world, we can come together...united around the simplicity of a smile...and fun! "

i intend to make a video, with the help of t.willie, and i encourage you to do it too. because, hey, any chance to look goofy, is a chance to look goofy!!

aaaaaaaaaaand, please go on over to the jungle of life and see what it is about, you won't be sorry.

grateful:
1. for reasons to reach out with a smile
2. for air conditioning, seriously, i am SO grateful!
3. that my tomato plants are all growing tomatoes

lunch with a friend

today, t.willie had a friend over. ray is about a week younger than t.w.

we made a tent out of a sheet. they played and watched movies and fought and played some more, and had a pretty good time.

lunch was ham and cheese sandwiches. when you're two and a half, life is good.

(hmm, something tells me that little ray is not as used to a camera as t.w.!)

**update**

after the disaster that was our weekend, things are returning to normal. bilbo baggins brought home a new hot water heater and installed it-YAY! a warm shower tomorrow will be an improvement to the three inch deep, luke warm bath i took last night.

and mom's dryer just needed a new belt and that was taken care of today, as well.

all's right with my little corner of the world...for now...!

grateful for:
1. warm water to bathe in
2. clean clothes to wear
3. friends to share a meal with

it's my potty and i'll cry if i want to!

*we never know the worth of water til the well is dry* thomas fuller


this weekend, my hubby, bilbo, started working on my mom and dad's bathroom. he is ripping out the floor and walls and re-doing the plumbing. he has had to arrange for a porta potty at the house, as they won't have a toilet for a few days.

so yesterday, saturday, he spent the day working on that and my mom and i went yard saleing. we had the BEST time, it was a great day for treasures and bargains. it was so hot and humid that sellers went way down on prices so they could unload their junk quickly!

as i returned home, though, i was greeted by kaye, who told me that there was "something flooding the (enclosed) carport!" i went in to find water seeping quickly throughout the floor. as i went over to the washer and dryer, i could hear water running. OH NO, what the....?!!

i called bilbo at my parent's house and told him what was going on. he is a professional commercial plumber and he knows his stuff. he asked me to check the hot water heater and as i did, i realized it was the cause of the leak. water was just flowing out of the top seal of it! he tried to tell me where to locate a turn off valve but i was having trouble moving it. it was above the tank and out of my reach. so, he said he was on his way home. anyway, the water was eventually turned off and i soaked up what water i could with towels.

since he had to turn the hot water heater off, we only had cold water. i had to heat water this morning to wash the dirty dishes that were in the dishwasher! i washed my hair in the sink with cold water- talk about refreshing!

meanwhile, i had to do some laundry, so i realized i'd have to take it over to my mom's and use her washer. i did one load and put the wet stuff in her dryer. i pushed the button to turn it on and it made a thunk sound. the dryer started humming but i could tell the tub wasn't turning. i opened the door to look and saw that nothing had moved.

sonofa...!!!!! i can not tell you the absolute frustration and dread i felt at that moment! not only did i have to remove the wet clothes, but now my mother would maybe accuse me of breaking her dryer!! i am not too proud to tell ya, i almost cried!

so here is the situation as of right now, sunday afternoon...

i have a usable toilet but no hot water for showers and such

my mom has hot water for showers and such but no toilet

i have a working dryer but cannot run my washer

and my mom has a working washer but no working dryer

between the two households, we have one complete bathroom and one working set of washer and dryer!

oh, it's going to be a looooong week...........

grateful:
1. that the working potty is at MY house
2. that i am on intimate terms with the plumber
3. that we can always go out and buy clean clothes