Morning

It is early morning and I hear this computer, birds and my ringing in my ears. It is 67 degrees outside this morning.The computer making noises is not a good sign. My next computer will be like mom's and I will use it in Allison's Room.
I guess mom told you that a leaking kitchen faucet turned into no faucet at all; she called the plumber and it may take 2 days before he shows up; I could replace it but I am not into crawling under a sink at the moment; I will leave that to a 30 year old.

Dust Devil

Good Morning, 

I am up early and I have gone to plan "B" today; Plan "B" goes into the garage where Dennis clears a space for new entries from Eli's Room. It is an all day job and it will be dusty; it requires a box cutter, a trash bag and trash can, a driveway, a broom ans dust pan.I have to clean and create a space and path to the rear of the garage. It will be another temporary location; I have many.

7:15 AM
I came in to take a break; I am hot but OK; I will rest for about a half hour.

In the Pool

We just got out of the pool. It was refreshing.

Alexander Rossi

Good Morning,

I watched the Indy 500 and NASCAR yesterday. I did not do much of anything; I looked around and measured the pool temperature and it was 78 degrees because of the great sunshine we had most of the day. Today it will be the same so I plan to lay sod up next to the road.

I hear birds and humming in my ears. Did you see the ant moat I made. I had to use the heavy pot to keep it balanced; the top part is a cup from Tide Laundry Soap; it is glued together with acrylic paint that is not watered down (strait from the tube); I had to poke a hole in the soap cup but the pot already had a hole in it. I had to put water in the top but most of the time rain will keep it filled.

Alexander Rossi

10:00 AM

I just cleaned the pool and put the steps in; mom said the water temperature was 79 degrees; she said she was going in at 80 degrees; I have to check the pool and see if it is balanced; I am pretty sure it is. 

I was going to sod but the pool was too inviting. Besides it is a Holy Day or Holiday and one should check out the pool if the grand kids are going to swim in it.
8:30 AM
I forgot to tell you I put up the white fence around the air conditioner and in ground pump; I had to reset all the posts but it worked out well; it does not look new but it looks up as it did before; I have to put new screen into the fence to keep the grass clippings away from the air conditioner..

The Pool Memorial Day 2016

 The White Fence around the Pump and Air Conditioner

Ant Moat

Amish Woodpecker Log

This Ant Moat has water in the top cup 

so ants have to swim to get to the Hummingbird Nectar.

Day Off

Good Morning,

Today is the sun day and I am going to take the day off or do as the bible says and do nothing. I am not going to tithe anyone but my son or daughter. I will do this in the form of gifts.

My wife is now capable of helping anyone with any physical needs; I proposed helping my daughter and she said fine. My wife needs that kind of companionship (mother and daughter stuff).

 Today on TV there is going to be 2 fast car races. and I think I will watch them both.

Next week I will take some sod from around the yard and place it around the man hole on the street ( I will lift if from different places as to not shock the yard). I will level the area and put the sod in place so the mower will blades will not touch it.

The Dirt Washed into the Trench and Shut-off Valve

The dirt washed into the trench;
I may seed this to keep it from washing away.

 Shut_Off Valve

Street View: I am not moving this soil as it needs rain to settle this.

Lawn Tractor and Cart

Good Morning, 

I feel good and it is dark out; I do not hear birds but a cat eating and ringing in my ears; I will do more washing dirt into the ditches but it is iffy because some of the places where they dug a ditch is where the man cleaned out the septic tank and there is no sod there; I will do what I can with that; maybe level it out. I will use my lawn tractor and cart to haul more dirt and fill in areas where washing will not work.
Now I hear the birds outside.We had to put a Sun catcher on the sliding door as the small birds were flying into the glass slider. We took the one from our entree window and mom got a suction cup from the bath tub and placed them on the slider.

9:30 AM

I just came in from filling low areas (ruts); I am all done as I cannot get dirt from places that need extra dirt; I will have to play it by ear.

We had 3/4 " of rain yesterday and this morning I just measured another 7/8" of rain when I went out to get the mail.

When they dug in the yard out came a lot of bricks; mom said put the bricks around the Gladiolas.

Wash Ditch

Good Morning,

I feel good, it is 65 degrees outside and 70 degrees inside; I washed the dirt into the ditch with a high pressure garden hose; washed it and it worked as planned. When it rained yesterday the high part (peaked) of this photo (not the tire tracks) sank into the ditch; yesterday I washed the tire track section into the ditch; I will take a photo at daylight to show you what I did; I have a lot to do and I will do a lot today. I will get a longer hose from the shed. There are tire tracks on both sides and I will wash that into the ditch; the ditch witch cuts a narrow width area and it leaves the sod in place so it is easy for me to wash the sod of compacted dirt (tire tracks) into the ditch.

7:00 AM

I just washed what I could do; now I just wait for warm weather and fill in with dirt what is left to do.

Example Ditch without Sod

power wash dirt

Washed Sod on this side

I just came in and I washed the other side this morning (tire tracks). 

Now I wait for warm weather to fill the holes I could not fix.

11:00 AM

I had to fill around our pump as the rain caused the soil to sink around it; it took a while because everything was muddy and slick; when I got done I had to completely wash my lawn tractor and cart; then I had to scrap the mud from my shoes; my clothes are completely soaked with water. I have to take a bath and wash my clothes.

This is a photo after I filled in the area with clay soil and rocks. You can see where I have to shovel and step it is very muddy and slick. Those are my lawn tractor tracks driving with my cart next to the air conditioner. The photo below is the muddy area near where I traveled with the lawn tractor and cart.

Birds at the Feeders

There were 2 Woodpeckers at the peanut butter log a few minutes ago. Hummingbirds are here flying from feeder to feeder. I see Finches,Doves, Black Birds and Sparrows; I have not seen the Cardinals here this morning.

Chicken Wire

Good Morning,

We had rain showers yesterday but they were just remnants of big storms; hopefully there was enough to help with the ruts. Time may help; we have had no problems with our fix; everything is working out fine.

I adjusted the pool yesterday and I need to wait a couple of days to test the pool; it got off and I need time to make sure I can fix it properly ( I can look at it and test it and clean it but no adjustments for a couple of days).
I am going to move the chicken wire out of the mud in the back yard and into the west side area where I had my rock pile. I advertised it and folks are interested just waiting for good weather.

8:45 AM
I moved the Chicken Wire to the rock pile next to the garage (above) and I placed bricks found by the Backhoe above around the Gladiola's that are planted where the Hack-berry tree was.

Hoping for Good Rain

I checked the pool and it was off so I fixed it; the temperature was 75 degrees and hopefully it may warm to 77 degrees today; It has started to rain, not much but sprinkles; So I am inside today; there is not enough rain to settle the soil over the filled ditches; I have to wait to flatten the soil or smooth it out.

Family Death

Good Morning,

It is 65 degrees here at home in Marion,Kentucky; it is still peaceful and quiet; any noise we bring, comes via our electronic devises except outside bird and vehicles and the ringing in my ears; I feel good spiritually, mentally and physically; I say and think about our family and how they handle each day; they all struggle and survive. 

My cousin Arlene (FaceBook Friend) was informed by my cousin Terri:

I heard that one of my uncles ex wives had died. I had not heard her name in a while but I thought about her daughter a lot (my cousin Terri); my cousin Terri who I had not seen since the Christmas's of my youth but when Terri informed me yesterday via cousin Arlene that aunt Dora (Dora cane to all the Christmas's) had died (Dora was married to my uncle Sam but they were divorced (uncle Sam who lived with me in Pasadena and whose room I stayed in when I had Scarlet Fever)).

Here is a partial tree:

Sometimes you learn new things in 74 years.

Water in Yard

Good Morning,

After all the digging the yard is a mess; it is a problem they cannot fix; the more they do the messier it gets so I'll do the best I can and leave it at that.It is the water table that causes the problems. When they built our home they took the soil and used it to build a place for the hospital and they cut deep into the clay and built our home.

I feel good this morning and I will mow whatever I can. The yard is a jigsaw puzzle of topsoil and lawn. We have a small chance of rain today and a bigger one tomorrow. So I will mow today if I can.

I will move soil later the ground settles over the trenches.

 I have to mow around all these bumps and dirt.

I have to mow around all these bumps and dirt.

Digging

The Plumber is digging in our yard updating our water and sewer system.

All Done

Pump Website

Life Styles

Good Morning,

I have a Humming bird feeder like this one (at left); well the little yellow flowers finally got old and fell to pieces; I told mom I would paint the flowers on and she said it may be a problem; anyway I painted it with acrylic paint (painted feeder below) which dries really well and holds up well. If the hummingbirds smell the acrylic then were are done with it, but the red housing is probably acrylic to hold up well in the weather. We will have an answer in about a week or to.

For some reason we have four cats sleeping in the front side of our home two outside on the stoop and two inside on the couch. It could be that the weather has layered the oxygen out back and the cats sense it and are moving to a safer environment. 

Mom is sleeping a lot lately and I can assume that her body is adjusting to her active new lifestyle.

Bird Feeders and Amish Peanut Butter Log

Good Morning,

49 degrees up front on the stoop and 52 outback on the deck, well just out side the kitchen window by the sink. We have been getting a lot of birds at the bird feeders; the peanut butter and finch feeders; I put old used feed in the old house feeder (at left) since the starling's learned to tip the feeder over to one side by putting 4 or five birds on one side and tipping the wooden house feeder and emptying the contents on the ground.

Now we have a round feeder along with the old house feeder; small birds love to sit on top of the house feeder and crack shells off of Sunflowers seeds. Starling's have a problem trying to tip the round feeder.

Triple Crown Horse Race Distances

2,000 meters

The Kentucky Derby was first run at 1 1⁄2 miles (2.4 kilometres), the same distance as the Epsom Derby. The distance was changed in 1896 to its current 1 1⁄4 miles (2.0 kilometres). On May 17, 1875, in front of an estimated crowd of 10,000 people, a field of 15 three-year-old horses contested the first Derby.

1,900 meters

The Preakness Stakes is an American flat thoroughbred horse race held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs (1 3⁄16 miles (1,900 m)) on dirt.

2,400 meters

The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile-long (2.4 km) horse race, open to three-year-old Thoroughbreds.

Good Morning Sunshine

Good Morning,

53 degrees outside this morning; I heard the birds singing outside but now at the moment it is just the sound of my ears ringing.

Why would one human being just say a prayer; move to the next bead on a Rosary, say a prayer (it is the same prayer) and repeat the process ten times; pause say a different prayer then repeat the process.

***

This blog is similar in form as a Rosary as it says the same thing over and over; it is a constant of normal living; Why would I do that?

Well it is to show the folks on the planet that one home is peaceful; here, there are no armies coming over the next hill and that everyone of my neighbors believes in the law of the land. I know that chaos wants to rule as they send sharp needles to the mind hoping that I will forget and lay on them.

My mind is sound and I do good things with it.

I do feel good mentally and physically.

The earth has revolved toward the sunlight and in the next few minutes we will see the sun; we make it simple and call it a sunrise.

Saving Live on Air Planes

Pool Man

 Good Morning,

  It is raining and 55 degrees here a home in Marion, Kentucky; I am caught up on the pool just waiting for at least 75 degrees in the pool and then I will attach the steps; the steps are tied and floating in the pool to get cleaned up because I put in Natural Chemistry First Aid into the pool and the stuff is an enzyme that eats old stuff like, old dead grandpa's, dead leaves, used oil, people waste; it cleans up dead algae, pollen and other forms of organic contamination.

I am not sure if it is OK to use this at it eats the outer shell of Crustaceans and insects that are chitinous exoskeleton. I know that mud dauber's and some wasps die in the pool; apparently bees dislike chlorine so they are not affected.

If you noticed when they cleaned up the oil spills they used enzyme's like this and after this was used that parts of the ocean was dead; it maybe OK now but tis stuff may eats the dead skins of grandparents. I will let you know in a later post if I make it through the summer in the pool.
10:00 AM
It has stopped raining and I went out and planted the herbs we got from I think Melinda's Wedding and maybe elsewhere. The plants are on the deck on the west side near the black mulch; yesterday I planted Yellow Celosia in the old black tire.

Early Morning Pool Cleaning

I just cleaned the pool and I am about ready to shock it; it is clear and cold. The pool is 60 degrees this morning.

5:30 PM

I had the solar heater on all day and just a few minutes ago I put the cover back on for the night; I checked the pool and it was 68 degrees for the night. I will clean the pool tomorrow. I did test the pool and ir was balanced even though I shocked it this morning. Tomorrow I will treat it to keep the pool hardness back to normal; it was low but still balanced.I will raise the hardness just a little.

Flowering Dogwood Propagation

Good Morning,

It is dark outside and the birds are singing and maybe seeing the sunlight coming over the horizon or the earth is rotating in that direction. I am not sure what the temperature is but I think it is in the low 50's.

I found this video interesting:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxmOVKcREw0

The reason I found this interesting was that the next time you see a Flowering Dogwood like this;

You take some cutting hopefully from out in the woods and not your friends tree and follow the directions from the video. I think the first year of growth you bring it in for the winter then plant it in the spring.

"Softwood cuttings taken in late spring or early summer from new growth can be rooted under mist if treated with 8,000 to 10,000 ppmindole-3-butyric acid (IBA). In cold climates, potted cuttings must be kept in heated cold frames or polyhouses the following winter to maintain temperatures between 0 and 7 °C (32 and 45 °F). " 

When you plant them outside you need to place a couple of ears of Indian Corn in with the new plantings of Flowering Dogwood.
Next Spring you need to find a Flowering Dogwood in the forest or edge of a highway and get your cuttings.