MICE !! SWANS and FISH

Hey There !

I had a great day planned I was going to Boone to get some sewing supplies so that I could finish up some of my never ending projects. But things around here just never quite go like expected....I was finishing up my hair, brushing my teeth etc, when I spilled a bottle of liguid make-up on the carpet. I was really annoyed at myself, but I had to clean it up, I went to the linen closet for a sponge and opened the door to find not only mouse droppings everywhere, but a foul odor ..Yuck. I decided this was a job for Dudley and left for Boone !! I can understand why mice come into a kitchen, food right ? but a linen closet with towels and sheets ? I have decided that mice are one of the most resourseful creatures on earth, or dumbest, this one chewed a hole in the sheetrock wall just to rub on my pillowcases and make a nest with the toilet paper...I hope he had fun, But Dudley didn't. patching the hole and removing stinky bodies kinda ruined his day... I guess some days are better than other's at the Farm ! Life Lesson: Into every life rain must fall. You have to take the bad with the good.

But today also had a good thing for Dudley. He met with the electrician to plan the start of his workshop in the big red barn. He has been patiently waiting until the house was done and we had more money to start on his workshop. We will have Mountain Electric drop two poles next week and get this show on the road. When it is all done, I really expect to be a "Workshop Widow" because he will spend so much time working out there. But whatever happens , we will now have electricity in the barn. PAPA always expected that barn to be used as a doomsday overflow for the family. 'We can all live here on this property and raise our own food and defend ourselves." He might not be that far off..

Brandon showed up after I came home from Boone, I had a special project for him. I left the mouse job to Dudley and got on my boots. See, every evening when I feed the swans in the big pond, the fish come right up to the them and jump out of the water to get the bread. Sometimes they actually bite at the swan's feet and feathers! They swarm around them and startle Penny and Duke that they back off and let the fish have the bread. Oh no, I'm not feeding fish too. So, my idea was to catch as many as possible in the net, and take them down to Watauga Lake and let them go. These are not large fish, baby brim mostly, 3-4 inches long. Our 'no fear' Brandon is the man for the job, (see how I direct men to do work for me..uhmmmmm. ) Anyway, we have buckets, we have nets, we have bread, we have the will........Do you know that after 2 hours , with a quick break in between, we only got 20 fish in the bucket ? I was hoping for 100. I doubt that I will see a decrease in the piranha next time I go feed, Duke and Penny will just have to get use to them!

Speaking of Duke and Penny, next week is 'wing clipping time " Yeah. Cheri and Michael will be here. Do you think that we could get them to help ? I will make sure that I get pictures and blog that one ! But as usual Dudley has come up with a plan on how to catch them..and we'll see how that goes. More next week on that !

Before Brandon left to go home he asked if he could please show his friend, a new kid 11 years old named Kevin, the garbage disposal in the sink, and the trash compactor operation. These are space -age devices to these country boys and Brandon is proud to show off that he knows how to use them. Not that he does, but it makes him feel special, Did anyone notice that the age difference between Brandon and his new friend Kevin is 4 years...? Most of his friends are alot younger than him, I think that Brandon likes the younger boys because he can act tough and they don't challenge him. He has not physically matured yet and is happier being with boys that don't remind him of this fact. If I don't see some 'peach fuzz' soon I am going to have a talk with his Grandmother, I know some of you might disagree with me on this, but I can't sit by , I'm not made that way.
Stay tuned for that saga..

Actually, I am going to end this blog early today. I'm sure my followers are glad that they have a break from reading so much. Thanks for your feedback, I really don't know if you are reading or not, but I am doing this for me. Love you Guys! Sandi