Hear here

The mouse is still winning.

I know I fussed because we had a lack of rain but now we are getting more than we can use. No complaints from me, though.

I finally surrendered after five years of nagging from Carolyn and ordered myself a cheap hearing aid. Now, maybe I can hear audio on TV movies without raising the volume so much and save myself from many of her elbow in-the-rib punches.
Happy is the hearing man; unhappy the speaking man. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

You ever have those days when you don't want to do anything except maybe roll up like a pill bug and await better times? Don't feel like staring at a TV or PC monitor, reading or even porch sitting? Lately, I am having some like that. I'm in a Dog Days slump, I think, but I trust it will soon meld into alertness.

Pillow talk

For most of m life I’ve comfortably slept on a feather pillow but the one I have been using is worn out and cannot be fluffed anymore. In its place I am using a foam pillow which I detest. It sleeps well enough but it cannot be folded or punched or wadded onto submission the way I would like it. Also, the worn feather pillow was probably exacerbated some of my eye allergies which have not been as bad since I stopped using it. Is nothing sacred? Seems like all my past is like the pillow; worn down from much usage and ready to be discarded.

Blues

The boys, especially Sammy, have been very sick for the past week. I haven’t had the heart to blog while they were unwell. Sammy ran a fever of more than 1oo°F (37.78°C) for four days. His face was was swollen and he was covered with red spots, all due to fever. Mason and Jaden both have runny noses.

Carolyn made goulash for supper yesterday and blackberry dumplings for desert. Also, she is once more in a war with a mouse … or mice, spending a small fortune on various traps and such. So far the rodent is winning. I was a casual observer until the critter got into my stash of marshmallows which I keep in a drawer beside the bed so now I am hoping for his exit in whatever form it takes. Don’t fool with my stash, Rat!

I watched a very interesting documentary on Roku PBS channel about the new pope and how and why he got to be the church leader. Seems like the Vatican hierarchy is corrupt to its very core, even to the point that it could go bankrupt or worse. Pope Francis wants to reform the church but has been told by Rome police that if he tries to fix the failed banking system that the mafia may try to kill him. He appears to be a good man and I think he will try to get his house in order even it does kill him.

Johnny Winter died yesterday. He was one of my favorite blues guitarists.

Summer breezes

It rained forty days and forty nights in just one hour early this morning. My world of East Tennessee is once again green.

Sammy had a great birthday party. He didn’t pay much attention to his Batman mug but he very much liked the little picnic table we gave him. He had a doctor checkup Monday and is fine, weighing in at thirty-seven pounds.

When Jaden watches Sammy and Mason romping about, his arms and legs begin flailing and a yearning brightness comes to his eyes. He badly wants to get down and mix it up with them.

July and summer are whizzing by so quickly. Carolyn and I are thinking about taking another short-stay trip to Chattanooga on Labor Day weekend. She desperately needs some down time away from home. I am also thinking about going to West Virginia and revisit some of the power houses where I worked on construction back in the seventies. From there maybe to Morehead, Kentucky  to pay homage at my friend Fred’s grave. I also want to visit some of the Civil War battlefields in Pennsylvania and Virginia. Time.

Trainsience

July 3rd. … first day of Dog Days. It has been too hot and dry for several weeks. Hopefully the hurricane now off the Carolina coast will bring a bit of rain but it is probably too far away. I suppose I should be wary of what I wish for, though.

Is anyone truly surprised by the recent Supreme Court rulings? If the misdeeds of this high court can ever be undone, it will take many, many years.

Medicare for all Americans is a fair and just proposal.

Sammy’s birthday presents from granny and me came via FedEx yesterday. We got him a picnic table and a Batman coffee mug, both made in China. He loves that darned bat!

Tomorrow is Independence Day in America. I find it very difficult to celebrate in this age of corporate ownership of We The People.

Happy Birthday to a Wonderful Young Man

Sammy 1yr. old

Sammy 3yr old