So much rain fell this past weekend, everyone was talking about building an ark! Experts have now announced the drought of the past several years is officially over. Doug and I picked this lovely weekend to drain and dismantle a fish pond.
The people who are renting/buying our house in Oconee County did not want the fish since they won’t be there all the time to take care of them. They are taking possession of the house April 1st. We agreed to find the fish another home and fill in the pond. (This was sad, especially for Sean who dug the pond for me for my birthday one year.) Although the Avants said there was no hurry, it is getting warm, and the fish needed to be fed, so we decided to get it done this weekend after the weather forecast showed a break in the rain for the afternoon.
The forecast was wrong. We drove the two and a half hours down there in nonstop rain. When we arrived, we had lunch with former neighbors. Joanne had made a delicious homemade lasagna which we enjoyed immensely. The rain still had not stopped after we finished dessert and coffee, so we sat and talked with Joanne and Ferris for another hour. Finally, the rain slowed to a drizzle, and we went to the house to begin what would prove to be a difficult, dirty job.
We donned our rain jackets and put our hoods over our heads. I pulled the hose off the outer pump so water could drain onto the ground beside the pond. It drained very, very slowly. The ground had already been saturated with several inches of rain, so the water from the pond turned the ground into a mud bath. Doug and I soon looked like we had been mud wrestling! We moved all the heavy stones away from the edge of the pond so we could pull up the liner once the water was gone. We used two five gallon buckets to dip water out while the hose was draining. Occasionally, the rain got heavy enough to drive us back into the garage.
Once the water finally got fairly low, I filled the two buckets about a third of the way full of pond water and started trying to catch the fish with my net. It was impossible. The water slowed the net down, but not the fish! They got away every time I tried. We realized we would have to drain almost all the water before we could get to them.
Meanwhile, we pulled the potted plants out of the water. The lilies weren’t hard, but I had about three pots of water irises that had all merged together in one gigantic mass of roots and stems. Waterlogged, it weighed a ton! Doug and I struggled with it several times before we finally pulled it out.
We had a dinner date for that evening, and time was running out, but I felt we had to move the fish at this point since so much of their water was gone. Finally we got down to the place where the fish really had no place to go and I could net them out. The water by this time was red, and I couldn’t see the fish at all. I just kept dipping until I couldn’t get any more. The fish went into the five gallon buckets, which we put in the back of the RAV and drove to my friend Susan’s house. They were dumped into her pond to wait until my sister Cindy can get her pond up and running and come get them.
From there, we drove straight to Ken and Vivian’s house. We arrived dirty and wet and went to take showers before we ate the great steaks they had grilled. We had a wonderful evening with friends before retiring to bed.
Sunday morning the rain was gone, but a cold front had moved in. We had to return to the house to remove the liner from the pond. It had rained during the night, putting more water back in. We started the pump draining again. As the water got lower, it somehow got under the liner. We pulled and pulled off and on for a good hour before we finally got it out. Then I dismantled the external filter and hosed off the liner. Meanwhile, Doug dug up a large cedar tree that had been ruined by the recent snow storm.
By the time we were done, we were cold and dirty. We loaded the last of our things into the RAV and drove to Sean’s house to get a pet crate for Little Bit. We finally returned home, tired and ready for a hot shower.
On the bright side, we had a good time eating a bagel and cream cheese at Panera Bread with Ken and Vivian that morning. We sat and talked for a long time. Then we went to Wal-Mart to buy pet supplies. After that, we met Rod and Marlene to eat lunch at Rachel’s, and Rod insisted on treating us. It was so good to see them. So we worked hard, ate well, and enjoyed good friends – not a bad weekend after all.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Seeing God at Work
Sometimes things happen that just have God’s fingerprints all over them. Such was the case this week in two different situations.
The first happened when I went to Fred’s to get diapers for Mama. I was dismayed to see a long line at the register because I knew I would be late for choir practice. However, I was standing there when the older woman in front of me turned around and saw the diapers. She looked at me and said, “I have a whole case of those I will give you if you want them.”
“Really?” I asked incredulously. These diapers cost around $10 a pack, and Mama goes through them in no time. The cost of these diapers has become a real bone of contention between Mama and Daddy. Daddy hates buying them all the time and claims they cost him $100 a month, which, considering the source, is no doubt an exaggeration. He also hates carrying them off in the trash. Lately he has been pushing her to get a catheter, an idea that two doctors have told us is very, very bad. Catheters are notorious for causing infections.
The woman in front of me smiled kindly and said she would be glad for me to have them since her husband no longer needed them. I thought he had probably died, but then she went on to tell me the whole story. He had been in a horrible car accident a year ago last October that pretty much crushed one side of his body. Doctors told him he would never walk again. He spent two months in the hospital in Chattanooga and several more months in a nursing home before finally returning home. During his recovery, he needed the diapers because he couldn’t get up and go to the bathroom. Now he is walking with a walker and takes himself to the bathroom. He refuses to use the diapers anymore.
I told her how much my mom would appreciate it because of the cost of them. She then went on to tell me she is able to order one case a month for only $8.00! And they are Depends, not the cheap kind Mama buys at Fred’s. She told me she would be glad to order a case for Mama every month if we just give her the money. This was great news! The lady introduced herself as Virginia, and went on to tell me how much Jesus has helped her over the past year-and-a-half, so now she wants to help others. It turns out she lives here in Shooting Creek, not five minutes away from us. She gave me directions to the house and her phone number, hugged me, and left. I went on the choir practice and sang with more enthusiasm than I had in a long time!
On the way home, I took a slightly different route because I wanted to take some pictures for an album I will call “Spring in the Mountains.” I was heading back toward the house when I saw a very small black dog standing in the road. It was running around looking lost and confused and had no collar. I stopped and got out and tried to go up to it, but it was so frightened, it ran back into some briars where it hid behind a log. I couldn’t get to it without getting all scratched up. When I got as close as I could, it growled at me. It was so terrified, I thought it might bite. I gave up and got in the car and left. As soon as I did, he came out and started after my car. Just then, another car came down the road, and I stopped and waved them down because I was afraid they would run over the little dog. The saw it and stopped as well. I saw them get out in my rearview mirror. Well, maybe they will get him, I thought. I drove on a little ways, and then decided to go back to see if he was still there. I didn’t see him anywhere so I turned around again and started up the road, and there he was, standing in the exact same spot where I saw him the first time. I tried in vain to get him to come to me.
I went on back to the house and fixed a bowl of food, which I took down there. He ate like he hadn’t eaten in a week. I couldn’t believe such a tiny dog could eat that much food. He still wouldn’t let me touch him, however. I left him curled up behind the log, shivering and cold.
The next morning he was still there. I tried to entice him with a milk bone. He came very close to taking it from my hand, but then backed up behind his log again. I had brought a towel to try to cover him because he clearly was cold. I managed to drop it through the briars over him. He stayed underneath it. I decided he probably needed water. I went back to the house and got some. Boy, did he ever want the water! He came to it immediately and lapped it up. Finally, he allowed me to pet him. I left him there and went on to Virginia’s to get the diapers. When I came back, he seemed glad to see me. I was able to pick him up, put him in the car, and take him home. He was introduced to Blackie and Dallas, who behaved well. Now Little Bit is asleep in a box outside on the porch. Doug says we can keep him as long as he stays outside. Daddy is ok with it, too, so I guess we have a dog again!
The first happened when I went to Fred’s to get diapers for Mama. I was dismayed to see a long line at the register because I knew I would be late for choir practice. However, I was standing there when the older woman in front of me turned around and saw the diapers. She looked at me and said, “I have a whole case of those I will give you if you want them.”
“Really?” I asked incredulously. These diapers cost around $10 a pack, and Mama goes through them in no time. The cost of these diapers has become a real bone of contention between Mama and Daddy. Daddy hates buying them all the time and claims they cost him $100 a month, which, considering the source, is no doubt an exaggeration. He also hates carrying them off in the trash. Lately he has been pushing her to get a catheter, an idea that two doctors have told us is very, very bad. Catheters are notorious for causing infections.
The woman in front of me smiled kindly and said she would be glad for me to have them since her husband no longer needed them. I thought he had probably died, but then she went on to tell me the whole story. He had been in a horrible car accident a year ago last October that pretty much crushed one side of his body. Doctors told him he would never walk again. He spent two months in the hospital in Chattanooga and several more months in a nursing home before finally returning home. During his recovery, he needed the diapers because he couldn’t get up and go to the bathroom. Now he is walking with a walker and takes himself to the bathroom. He refuses to use the diapers anymore.
I told her how much my mom would appreciate it because of the cost of them. She then went on to tell me she is able to order one case a month for only $8.00! And they are Depends, not the cheap kind Mama buys at Fred’s. She told me she would be glad to order a case for Mama every month if we just give her the money. This was great news! The lady introduced herself as Virginia, and went on to tell me how much Jesus has helped her over the past year-and-a-half, so now she wants to help others. It turns out she lives here in Shooting Creek, not five minutes away from us. She gave me directions to the house and her phone number, hugged me, and left. I went on the choir practice and sang with more enthusiasm than I had in a long time!
On the way home, I took a slightly different route because I wanted to take some pictures for an album I will call “Spring in the Mountains.” I was heading back toward the house when I saw a very small black dog standing in the road. It was running around looking lost and confused and had no collar. I stopped and got out and tried to go up to it, but it was so frightened, it ran back into some briars where it hid behind a log. I couldn’t get to it without getting all scratched up. When I got as close as I could, it growled at me. It was so terrified, I thought it might bite. I gave up and got in the car and left. As soon as I did, he came out and started after my car. Just then, another car came down the road, and I stopped and waved them down because I was afraid they would run over the little dog. The saw it and stopped as well. I saw them get out in my rearview mirror. Well, maybe they will get him, I thought. I drove on a little ways, and then decided to go back to see if he was still there. I didn’t see him anywhere so I turned around again and started up the road, and there he was, standing in the exact same spot where I saw him the first time. I tried in vain to get him to come to me.
I went on back to the house and fixed a bowl of food, which I took down there. He ate like he hadn’t eaten in a week. I couldn’t believe such a tiny dog could eat that much food. He still wouldn’t let me touch him, however. I left him curled up behind the log, shivering and cold.
The next morning he was still there. I tried to entice him with a milk bone. He came very close to taking it from my hand, but then backed up behind his log again. I had brought a towel to try to cover him because he clearly was cold. I managed to drop it through the briars over him. He stayed underneath it. I decided he probably needed water. I went back to the house and got some. Boy, did he ever want the water! He came to it immediately and lapped it up. Finally, he allowed me to pet him. I left him there and went on to Virginia’s to get the diapers. When I came back, he seemed glad to see me. I was able to pick him up, put him in the car, and take him home. He was introduced to Blackie and Dallas, who behaved well. Now Little Bit is asleep in a box outside on the porch. Doug says we can keep him as long as he stays outside. Daddy is ok with it, too, so I guess we have a dog again!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Mama said there'd be days like this...
It started before the day even began. Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, I woke up like I usually do and got up to go to the bathroom. As soon as I stood up, I doubled over in pain. I had the worst stomach cramp of my life! You know how bad it hurts to get a Charlie horse in your leg – well imagine that in your stomach. In agony, I managed to roll back into bed where I lay in a fetal position afraid to move an inch – for a good half hour at least. I could barely breathe. I couldn’t call Doug either. He has a terrible cough and went to bed upstairs so he wouldn’t keep me awake. I was glad Dr. Mercer had removed my appendix or I would have been seriously worried that it had burst. As it was, I decided that too much fiber in my diet had resulted in a large volume of gas. After a very long time, I was finally able to relax my abdominal muscles and eventually went back to sleep and slept until 9:00 am. I woke up feeling sore around my midsection and not in the least bit hungry. So I decided to do some plumbing.
Yesterday, Doug had started installing a new kitchen faucet to replace the old leaky one. He was interrupted in the middle of this by Daddy, who had loaded his pickup with Mama’s junk, intending to take it to Dan’s second-hand store. Just as he started to drive off, a tire went flat on his truck. Dan came over, and it took all three of them half the afternoon to fix it. Then Daddy wanted us to bring more of Mama’s stuff down from the upstairs in the shop for the next load. I knew Mama was going to be upset by all this, so I hurriedly got things I knew had sentimental value for her and brought them back to our house to put in an upstairs closet. Now this is the same stuff I had spent the hottest week of the summer hauling out to the shop in the first place. Doug and I brought down boxes until Dan’s truck was full. Then Doug got back to work on the faucet. Meanwhile, I was on the phone trying to placate Mama about the loss of her things.
The old faucet would not come off. When Doug and Daddy finally got it off by tearing it to pieces, the new faucet wouldn’t go on. There was a small metal clip that attached the hoses under the sink to the faucet – a very important piece. Doug struggled and struggled to get it on, all the time coughing his poor head off. His back was killing him from lying under the sink so long even though I had stuffed pillows under it. We finally decided he should quit for the night and try again this morning.
I was up before he was. I thought maybe I could get the little metal clip on simply because my eyesight is so much better than Doug’s. So I crawled under the sink and had the same trouble trying to get the clip on. Then I dropped it. I tried to pull it towards me only to see it fall through a tiny crack at the back of the cabinet where it was – and is – irretrievable. “Oh no,” I groaned. “Doug is going to kill me!” I hurried out to the shop to search for one of those magnetic thingies that picks up screws and nails. After searching in vain, I went back to the house to find Doug coming into the kitchen. I confessed to what I had done, and to his credit, he didn’t get mad in the least.
I left Doug eating breakfast without me and drove to the hardware store in Hiawassee hoping to find a replacement part. They didn’t have one. Then I tried Dan’s. No luck. Defeated, I returned home and called the company that made the faucet to request a part. Supposedly, they mailed one out to me. So until it comes, I am without water in my kitchen. We at least put away all the things that had been under the sink, and I took the dirty dishes to the kitchen downstairs. By now it was time for lunch. I really didn’t want to cook, and besides, everything on the menu contained beans, which didn’t seem like a particularly good idea considering the night before. I warmed up some soup.
I left then to go to my painting class, definitely the highlight of my day. It was great, except for getting blue paint all over myself. Last week it was white. I don’t know why I seem to be the only one in the class that can’t paint without getting it all over my person.
After class, I dropped off a prescription for some nasal spray for Doug’s cough. I told the woman Doug had not used the pharmacy before, but he had the same insurance that was on file for me and gave them his birthday. Then I went to the hardware store to buy some new pipes to go under the sink because the old ones weren’t long enough for the new faucet. Now it was time to drive to Murphy to top this wonderful day off with a mammogram – scheduled at 5 pm. After THAT fun experience, I drove to Lowe’s to see if they had the little metal clip so I wouldn’t have to wait for it to come in the mail. I waited and waited for someone to help me only to be told they didn’t have one. Then I drove back to Hayesville to the pharmacy to pick up Doug’s prescription. They hadn’t filled it. “When is his birthday?” the girl wanted to know. I gave it to her, and she went to the back. Then she returned and told me, “He’s never been here before.”
“Yeah, I told the woman that when I dropped it off two hours ago.” I had to go talk to the pharmacist who asked me, “When is his birthday?” After giving someone his birthday for the third time, I waited and waited until finally the prescription was ready. Then I walked over to Hardee’s to order our little thick burgers for supper. I waited while they cooked, and when they were ready, they discovered there were no French fries cooked. So I waited and waited while they cooked the fries. At least they were hot. By now it was 7:00, and the little bowl of soup was long gone. The medium order of fries was a small order by the time I got home. Believe it or not, while driving home I listened to the song that shares the name of this blog post on the radio.
After we ate, I got on the computer only to discover that Doug had deleted the program I needed and had spent 30 minutes downloading yesterday because he didn’t recognize it. Besides that, the printer wasn’t working. While I sat there reloading the software, I absent-mindedly drank what I thought was my coke only to discover it was Doug’s – he with the horrible cough.
At last we settled down to watch a movie we had ordered from Netflix – one of the few I got to pick out, and, you guessed it, the sound didn’t work. So, there was nothing left to do but chronicle this terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day.
Yesterday, Doug had started installing a new kitchen faucet to replace the old leaky one. He was interrupted in the middle of this by Daddy, who had loaded his pickup with Mama’s junk, intending to take it to Dan’s second-hand store. Just as he started to drive off, a tire went flat on his truck. Dan came over, and it took all three of them half the afternoon to fix it. Then Daddy wanted us to bring more of Mama’s stuff down from the upstairs in the shop for the next load. I knew Mama was going to be upset by all this, so I hurriedly got things I knew had sentimental value for her and brought them back to our house to put in an upstairs closet. Now this is the same stuff I had spent the hottest week of the summer hauling out to the shop in the first place. Doug and I brought down boxes until Dan’s truck was full. Then Doug got back to work on the faucet. Meanwhile, I was on the phone trying to placate Mama about the loss of her things.
The old faucet would not come off. When Doug and Daddy finally got it off by tearing it to pieces, the new faucet wouldn’t go on. There was a small metal clip that attached the hoses under the sink to the faucet – a very important piece. Doug struggled and struggled to get it on, all the time coughing his poor head off. His back was killing him from lying under the sink so long even though I had stuffed pillows under it. We finally decided he should quit for the night and try again this morning.
I was up before he was. I thought maybe I could get the little metal clip on simply because my eyesight is so much better than Doug’s. So I crawled under the sink and had the same trouble trying to get the clip on. Then I dropped it. I tried to pull it towards me only to see it fall through a tiny crack at the back of the cabinet where it was – and is – irretrievable. “Oh no,” I groaned. “Doug is going to kill me!” I hurried out to the shop to search for one of those magnetic thingies that picks up screws and nails. After searching in vain, I went back to the house to find Doug coming into the kitchen. I confessed to what I had done, and to his credit, he didn’t get mad in the least.
I left Doug eating breakfast without me and drove to the hardware store in Hiawassee hoping to find a replacement part. They didn’t have one. Then I tried Dan’s. No luck. Defeated, I returned home and called the company that made the faucet to request a part. Supposedly, they mailed one out to me. So until it comes, I am without water in my kitchen. We at least put away all the things that had been under the sink, and I took the dirty dishes to the kitchen downstairs. By now it was time for lunch. I really didn’t want to cook, and besides, everything on the menu contained beans, which didn’t seem like a particularly good idea considering the night before. I warmed up some soup.
I left then to go to my painting class, definitely the highlight of my day. It was great, except for getting blue paint all over myself. Last week it was white. I don’t know why I seem to be the only one in the class that can’t paint without getting it all over my person.
After class, I dropped off a prescription for some nasal spray for Doug’s cough. I told the woman Doug had not used the pharmacy before, but he had the same insurance that was on file for me and gave them his birthday. Then I went to the hardware store to buy some new pipes to go under the sink because the old ones weren’t long enough for the new faucet. Now it was time to drive to Murphy to top this wonderful day off with a mammogram – scheduled at 5 pm. After THAT fun experience, I drove to Lowe’s to see if they had the little metal clip so I wouldn’t have to wait for it to come in the mail. I waited and waited for someone to help me only to be told they didn’t have one. Then I drove back to Hayesville to the pharmacy to pick up Doug’s prescription. They hadn’t filled it. “When is his birthday?” the girl wanted to know. I gave it to her, and she went to the back. Then she returned and told me, “He’s never been here before.”
“Yeah, I told the woman that when I dropped it off two hours ago.” I had to go talk to the pharmacist who asked me, “When is his birthday?” After giving someone his birthday for the third time, I waited and waited until finally the prescription was ready. Then I walked over to Hardee’s to order our little thick burgers for supper. I waited while they cooked, and when they were ready, they discovered there were no French fries cooked. So I waited and waited while they cooked the fries. At least they were hot. By now it was 7:00, and the little bowl of soup was long gone. The medium order of fries was a small order by the time I got home. Believe it or not, while driving home I listened to the song that shares the name of this blog post on the radio.
After we ate, I got on the computer only to discover that Doug had deleted the program I needed and had spent 30 minutes downloading yesterday because he didn’t recognize it. Besides that, the printer wasn’t working. While I sat there reloading the software, I absent-mindedly drank what I thought was my coke only to discover it was Doug’s – he with the horrible cough.
At last we settled down to watch a movie we had ordered from Netflix – one of the few I got to pick out, and, you guessed it, the sound didn’t work. So, there was nothing left to do but chronicle this terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day.
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