Just Trying to Stay Busy....

Day started early at 5am. Made myself breakfast .... went out and did chores. Walked around to see if I could see anything lurking around. No sign of the longhorn cow. He either wandered home or farther away from them. If you're wondering why in the world I was looking for a longhorn cow, you'll have to read yesterday's posts. :o) Came back inside and laid on the couch watching HGTV again until around 8ish. I must have fallen asleep but woke up when I heard Russ turn off the blow dryer in the bathroom and then walk across the floor to come in to tell me he's going to work ...... but then I realized that was just a dream. Now I'm hearing things, too. That was really creepy. I could have sworn he was here.

Decided to get up ..... checked Facebook and email again. Nothing. Went back outside and mowed. Even though it really didn't need it. I mostly just drove the mower round and round topping off the dandelions. The grass is pretty much dead with no rain lately. I like to mow. Actually, I LOVE to mow. I get to sit there and ride and think. If someone drove by when I was mowing today they would have thought I was crazy. At one point I was smiling .... thinking of all the good times ..... the summers when Lauren was here and she rode in the wagon behind me mowing. She grabbed a Mountain Dew and Happy and jumped in the wagon and off we went. That was fun. It was a bitch to mow with a wagon hooked on but it was fun. Then at one point I was crying my eyes out. Again .... just remembering .... so many memories on this farm. Then looking around at how run down all the fences are ..... and the barns. The pastures.

I remember years ago Russ and I would schedule weekends when we would do nothing but work outside fixing fences and cleaning and just maintaining because things fall apart so fast with animals around. I had 'lists' a mile long. It seems like we worked so hard all the time. The last few years we were so on the go all the time that things got put aside and let go because we just didn't have the time or the energy to work on them. It seems like we were travelling somewhere every single weekend. A few years of neglect really takes it's toll on landscaping, fences, pastures, .......yeah.

I look around and think but it was only last year when we put that up or built this or fixed that ...... That sure didn't last very long. ....but then I go look at pictures and the pics are dated 2005 or 2006. Wow. Really? It's been 7 years? 8 years?! ....Man. It seems like we just did that not too long ago. ..... or I think well, we did that just a couple years ago when I retired from Ball ....... but that was in 2003. Almost 10 years ago. .....Yikes. Seriously? That much time has passed? It sure doesn't seem like it.

Went out and put Gato out for a bit. It was so nice out that I decided I was going to try to put that gate together that I've been wanting to build for so long. ....I found all the tools I needed to do it except the screwdriver. I figured what the heck .... they didn't have automatic screwdrivers in the old days -- I'm just gonna use a regular old screwdriver. Yeah. That turned out to be a bad idea. I needed to take out 48 screws by hand. I got 24 out and realized my hands were bleeding. I had apparently been working so hard that I didn't notice I had a few blisters started and then ripped them open. ....until they really started hurting. By the time I stopped to look at my hands, they were bleeding. Ow!! .....so, I stopped. I gotta find that screwdriver. I know it's somewhere around here. I just had it a few weeks ago. I can't remember where I set it down. ??? I looked in the barn and in the house and in the garage. Nowhere. so yeah .... I got half a gate built. or maybe more like 1/4 of a gate built.

Ti (Schwann Man) stopped this afternoon. Haven't seen him for a while. He's been on another route. He always cheers me up when he stops. I'm glad he's back again. ....so we visited awhile. .... jeez my hands really hurt. ....ok, I gotta stop typing. I have blisters on the tips of my fingers. Guess I'm not as tough as I thought I was.

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GATE UPDATE!!

I went out to put Gato back in and give him and the rest of the animals their supper ..... brought my gloves out to work on taking out more screws in that stupid gate. ....but I found my screwdriver!!! YAY! That was MUCH easier. ....and an hour later ..... I HAVE A GATE!!!!! I BUILT A GATE!!!!! I have to still figure out how to hang the gate but at least I HAVE A GATE!! So I present to you .... my new gate. :o) ....I'm gonna go make myself some pancakes and celebrate. I built a gate all by myself. :o)