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This is a short note to let you know I am not dead, for the most part the computer is dead.

I didn't run away, well yes I did

I did run away to the SSB. We hadn't been there since Mothers Day. Staying away is problematic in several ways. You never know what may have happened to the place, and we have been in civilization too long.

Before we left, G talked about how low our electric bill was for the month. That raised fears because we leave the air conditioning on when we are gone (well in the winter the heat is left on too). It gets so hot in the house if we don't the laminate wood floors want to get up are walk out. This isn't a good thing. In the winter, we are afraid the pipes may break.

To say it gets hot there is putting it mildly. I have a rain gauge/thermometer on the back deck. When we got there, about 3:30 Saturday afternoon, the temperature on that thermometer was 105. It is in the sun. Can't track rain if the collector is under something. The thermometer is in that whole set up.

The weekend was good. I really realized that my knees and back are better. I don't know why I realized it there more than here t home, but I did. I could get so much done, and after five years or so of slacking off, the house needed it.

When it is just the two of us, we load the dishwasher daily, but since it takes so long to wash them, we wait until the night before we leave. Don't turn up your nose - the dishes are rinsed, and it doesn't stink! I just hate to use a lot of water up there. We are on a well, and we have to hope that well doesn't run dry. Water is precious in Texas. I was going to say just West Texas, but really it should be considered precious all over the state. We tend to think that when we turn on that faucet, fresh, clean water will come out. It could disappear. Enough soap box.

The reason I mentioned the dishwasher is the thing was put in last year. After about seven loads - both those marathon ones from the two of us to everyday because there are 10+ people in the house. Anyway - when we had people, it quit. In the middle of a cycle, it began to empty and it quit. Dead. Nothing. No lights, nothing.

In that neck of the woods, it is difficult to get a repair person at all, and on the weekend. You have to be smoking crack to believe that. So we just looked at the high capacity, pretty push button dead, $500 dishwasher for months. Until hunting season.

We are so wise (had nothing to do with it) to lease hunting rights to an appliance repair man. Actually father in law did that years ago. Anyway, Andy was there, came over, took the door apart, and found nothing. Zip. Nada. He put it back together, and it ran - beautifully. We really have no idea what was wrong.

But I think I know. That door is not stiff. It flexes. When it flexes, connections loosen. And guess what. We have a big weekend (lots of people in the house) coming in two weeks. It quit again. It was the same thing exactly. But we are gone. We will be gone for 9 days. That 9th day is a Friday - afternoon. We can't get a repairman there (if I find one). So that means even if I get that wonderful person to travel 45 minutes from civilization to trek to us, it has to be on Monday after everyone is gone. Probably someone could come Saturday morning, but we will all be in Tiny Town for Round Up. We will be there early (to set up the craft booth) and leave late (after 3).

He doesn't come right out and say he blames me, but G does blame me for a lemon. I ordered it from a big box store. They delivered (which I thought was a good thing). They didn't install, but SIL said he could do it - and he could. Big box didn't tell me I needed to save the power cord from the old one. That was just the beginning of the problems, but Hunter Andy said there were no problems with the installation. From that beginning, G has blamed me. He thinks if we had someone "professionally" install, it would be working now. When it broke this time he said "that's why I don't like leaving the dishes for three days." Piffel!! HE"S the one that pushes saving water there.

So ends my wonderful weekend. We are grousing at one another. But we are able to stay an extra day on this next trip. Dishes will have to be washed by hand for the crowd, but on Monday, hopefully we can have the bi-annual service on the HVAC AND the dishwasher fixed.

So, there you have it. What I did on my little vacation this year.

Peace be with you.

Confessional

In my religion, we don't have to go to confession. When I was younger, it was part of the liturgy. We would publically confession that we have sinned "by thought word and deed. We have not love you with our whole hearts ..." and so on. This little venue seems to have become a confessional. Sorry, but here comes another confession.

I had hoped fervently that SIL's family would not be in town for this party. I am so bad. I really didn't mean real harm to her, but I was hoping her doctor would tell her she was retaining too much fluid to travel for three hours. Oh how I hoped. I should be so ashamed, and I guess, if truth be known, I am not.

These people are horrible, flat horrible. I am sure I have talked about why I dislike them so, but I have no idea where it might be. They are trying to hide it a bit, but they are for the blood. In other works, my daughter could just disappear, then it would be the true blood for their family - son and grandchildren.

They have behaved so abominably at things that we have hosted they should be embarrassed. But they are so _________, (I can't think of a word that describes them)

I am dreading the party tomorrow. I can't move as quickly as before. I think she will have enough sense to stay away, but with those matching scars on my knee, I'm afraid I am going to be in her sights to talk about illnesses. Oh no!

They are dirt poor They have cell phones with all kinds of texting, and all the other bells and whistles that I don't know about because I still have my little one that will text, but I had that blocked, BIG screens TV, a granddaughter who has clothes she hasn't even put on that lives with them with her mom, - in other words they spend on foolishness - not bills. Their previous solution to be behind on the rent was to move. They called my daughter pretentious because she came from a family who paid their bills, and yet had a few things too. So because she came from a family that paid their bills and managed to have a few things - she was pretentious. But they will happily move the residents from their beds to stay at their house.

I dislike them so. That is not being Christian. I just cannot stand them regardless of everything else. I would have never met people like them in my life - had their son not swept Daughter off her feet. He claims to be embarrassed by them and their actions. He claims to see that he is not treated as well as the others. But, he comes to the fact, as he really should loves them because they are his parents. Daughter just has given up, and she takes them in stride.

I sound like a very low life. I wish I could get over this. I try, and they pull some other stunt that hurts SIL. I have tried and tried. They had hurt and hurt him. I just keep praying for strength to do the right thing.

Peace be with you.

Telemarketers

Oh, how I hate telemarketers! But I have to shamefully admit I was one - once - when I was in college - for about 2 days.

I wanted some spending money, so I took a job at one of the local newspapers. Just thinking about newspapers brings other thoughts to mind, but I am not going to ramble.

I really thought it would be an easy job. I liked talking on the phone. That was the absolute worst job I had ever had. In fact, that may be the cause of my aversion to talking on the phone these days. I really don't like it.

With my aversion to said people, I figured that my registration with the National No Call list had expired since I would get one or more calls daily from one of the blasted people - even on my cell! That is sacred. Not many people I know have that number much less the lowest of the low!

The calls I get are to either extend the warranty on my vehicles. The newest vehicle we have is a 2002. The others are 1999 - with the exception of the 1967 farm truck and the 1965 MGB that still sits in the garage after G shorted out the electrical system (another story for another time).

I finally would take these calls. I told them that sure - I was interested. My car is a, ready for this, a 1965 MGB. The telemarketer didn't find any humor in that. Well, waste my time - I'll waste yours.

The other calls are to get me a better percentage rate on my credit card. My credit card people already don't like me. I don't have a balance. I use one of them in place of a check book. So that means it is used a lot. But at the end of the month, I pay my balance and collect my cash back.

Today I had enough. I took the call. The question was if I had more than $3000 credit card debt. I replied no, and then I had the audacity to ask the name of the company. The slug on the line said something, but I told her she had better check her no call list because I was on it. She hung up on me, but then I am accustomed to that. When I play mind games they do that.

Perhaps one way of stopping these intrusions is for people to take them and play mind games with them. But I have started a log of these calls. I will put the number down, the date, and what happened.

I know this has to be the worst job in the world, but really . . .

Peace - even to telemarketers. By the way - Happy Valentine's Day!

Shame

I have been blogging for three years and two months today. I mention that because it is just now that I have been targeted by the hostile, hateful. If you check yesterday's comment, that is exactly what happened.

As far as I can tell, that person has never been here before, at least on that specific computer, and I don't know what directed them to this blog to leave such hate. I had put up two posts in response, but that's silly. I'm sorry that the person at 99.162.239 (SBC) latitude 39 and longitude 97. If this is someone who is a reader here, I will be so very disappointed.

I have not witnessed such hate - ever. I am completely speech less. I don't know how they zeroed in on this specific page which makes me think they stop by at times. That comment is making me seriously consider shutting this thing down. For the time I will limit comments. I will not accept anonymous comments anymore. The internet has people thinking they can do verbal "drive-bys." I have just been hit.

I am really glad that the pain of my mother's death is long over, but the fact that this person things that all white people are evil really upsets me. To consider melanoma to be the revenge of the blacks is so horrible that I cannot comprehend it. To compare sickle cell with melanoma and say that sickle cell is the smart disease is really off center.

I have a very sad, heavy heart while I write this.

I still can say however, and really mean it especially for 99.162.239 - peace be with you.

Uck!

This is a day of the good and bad. There is, fortunately, no ugly!!

The good is we are headed off the the SSB with Lady Bug in tow. That will be fun - I hope. I just got an email from my SIL, and she will have their grandson, who is madly in love with Lady Bug. It will be good for both of them. No parents, just grandparents.

The bad is I have apparently contracted a cold. My throat is scratchy, and I am a little congested. It could be an allergy. I went out yesterday to get some ultra-suede that was on sale (50% off so I'm getting more on Tuesday!!) and got my hair cut off. I don't know where I could have picked up the cold virus, but I'm not feeling too well.

Have a great weekend. I'll try to check in on Tiesday.

Family messes

All through my childhood and well into my adulthood, I hated the fact that I was an only child. I longed for a sibling. I constantly had the fantasy that somewhere out here was a brother or sister who was given up for adoption before I came along. I found myself making some of mt friends into my non-existent brother or sister. Being an only child was a very lonely thing for me.

Now that I’m finally an adult who has to do adult things (like deal with parental deaths in particular) I realize that perhaps being an only child isn’t such a bad thing after all.. One of the advantages is that decisions that must be made I can make without a brother or sister fighting me about it or there being hurt feelings.

When I had to make the decision to move my father and step-mother to Swampland, I just did it. Now there I could have had some repercussions. You see, I do have a step brother, but my step brother had never been in the picture. There were no big family gatherings, no letters, nothing. There was no contact between families. We both were adults in our late 30's with our own children when our parents married. It has only been since his mother’s death that there has been any contact at all.

He could have fought me all the way when I moved them here to, but you see, he was living and working in one of the great cold northern states at the time (the rest of his family was living on the Left Coast. He rarely saw his mother. He was not really involved with her care. This is something I later found out from his cousin.

When I made the decision, her extended family was thrilled. They knew that my step brother didn’t look after her, and if she were close to me here, she would be looked after. Whew! Side stepped a bullet there.

But now I am seeing how family divides can occur quickly. Now that my FIL has died, there is a BIG rift occurring in G’s family. His sister is the baby of the family as well as the only girl. You can see what that position in the family brings with the parents. His brother is/was/will be always be Mommy’s little boy. G is/was/will always be the third wheel - even if he is the oldest. I can expound on that later.

His mother could be cast as Mommy Dearest without question. Severe depression runs in her family, as does Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. She has both of those disorders - in spades. G’s early memories of his mother are of the numerous beatings he was given - all while Dad was away from home working for the rail road.

Brother and sister seem to be in the midst the supreme sibling rivalry. Both are jockeying for Mom’s favor. The sister moved in with the parents about 6 months ago because they were not able to care for themselves, but wouldn’t admit it. She became their caretaker. She did it for love, although brother and wife thought there must have been ulterior motives to her moving in with them.

Of course she could have used money for the care giving. She lost her job and at 55, jobs are hard to come from. I though she could get retirement, but it seems that she must have removed some money from the retirement fund. If it is not paid back, there is no retirement. Hmmm no job equals no money. No money means no repayment to the retirement fund. No repayment means no retirement checks. But I’m not supposed to know about any of this. OK. I’ll just play stupid.

This past weekend, MIL finally decided, or said she finally decided to make the move back to the retirement (perhaps assisted living?) facility where she and FIL had been for a few months. Back then, she wanted to be there so much and loved it - or so she said. He hated it and made her miserable every day. She decided to move back to the house even though she wanted to stay. Now the story has changed. She tells everyone but the family she wants to stay at the house. Forever.

To bring this all to a close and up to date, Little Sister was in the San Antonio for a good part of last week (even though she said she was through with all that stuff there and washed her hands of it all). They could get access to the apartment on Thursday, The big move was set for Saturday. She and Mother moved some things, but spent most of the time with the telephone company trying to get a telephone installed. She met with the usual mess that can come with a utility.

BIL and SIL came in on Saturday to help with little things. There were professional movers involved here too, so I don’t know why she wasn’t completely moved by them! When night fall came, MIL stated she wanted to go home. She had no sheets and no clothes at the apartment. Apparently SIL copped an attitude with Little Sister. Things blew up. Little sister was angry with SIL and left. To top it all off, there would have been no caretaker for MIL at the house that night.

All this has been going on especially since FIL’s death, but I suspect a little even before then. Middle brother doesn’t trust or respect his Little Sister. That is bad enough, but when the in law gets involved, that spells trouble with a capital T. MIL had complained to my daughter about her, and I thought she was the Golden In Law. She apparently had been rather "bossy" about things.

As for me, look for me in the nearest closet with my head in the sand - deeply in the sand.. I want to stay out of this one. I’m trying to keep relationships open with everyone. I hope I just don’t get slammed in the middle, but I’m afraid this problem has a long, nasty way to go!.

Wee beasties

When I got home from getting the fluids on Thursday, I had an interesting message on the answering machine from my neighbor on the east. She told me she was watching squirrels running in and out of a hole on the south side of my house and birds flying in and out of a hole on the north side. Living in Swampland is so wonderful. Apparently the saying "Mi casa es su casa" is certainly applied to wild life here!

So I remembered a television commercial I had watched. There is a company here who provides quite a number of services from killing bugs in your house to building swimming pools. One of their services is to get rid of invading wildlife. I called them, and they came out Saturday.

It seems like we are not only invaded by the above-mentioned vermin, and yes even birds if they are trying to share my house are vermin, we have "roof rats." They are clever little beasties that get into your attic to live during the night, then leave during the day to forage only to return that evening. Wonderful.

We signed a contract, and they will be here this week to seal up any and all entrance areas into our attic. They will place snap traps - glad our bedroom is downstairs so we won’t be hearing that action. They will also place live traps. The hitch here is that on the contract we are to contact them within 24 hours of finding something in the live trap. Guess what! We will be gone from Friday to Monday. I figure that to be just a tad more than 24 hours.

I wonder what that will do for our contract?