Gloom, Despair,and Agony

Last night was horrible. What I have is the flu apparently. My temp went up to 102.5 and I was shaking so bad from the chills that I could hardly walk. I took two tylenol, my sleep med, my muscle relaxer, and was so grateful when they all kicked in. I slept with the cordless phone by my pillow in case things got bad.
Doing a little better this morning, but did anyone get the license of the truck that ran over me repeatedly? Temp climbed up to 100 earlier, so took two aspirin. The pain is worse than a Fibro flare-up. I may have to go back to bed. I am drinking orange juice like it is going out of style.
Kim is on his way home and should be here early evening. I am so glad I won't be alone if I have another bad night.
Today's pic is of my Bat-faced Cuphea. I bought a little pot of it a couple of years ago and it has loved it's new home. It tends to spread out about 4 feet. But it also rewards you with little bat faced flowers that hummers love. The full picture of it was in 2003, when it was just a baby. I will have to get a new picture of it so you can see just how big it grows. Thing is, it dies back every winter, then almost doubles in size when it comes back up in spring.

Another Bad day

I thought I would be better this morning, but spent the day hurting all over and running a fever. Today had the added fun of sore throat and pain in my chest and back when I cough. All I can figure is that I am sore from the violent sneezing yesterday.
Tried to take a nap this afternoon, but the power went out just as I was falling asleep. It is 98 degrees outside, so the power off for about an hour was not comfortable.
I went into town early this morning before I started going downhill. I had a big wad of mail in my tiny mailbox...three days worth. It always amazes me how much they can stuff into a tiny box.
Today's picture is of a beautiful Perilla plant in the same container with blue evolvus. They are both growing like crazy.
A friend sent me this little quote....I know a few people it sounds like:
"Some people are like Slinkies.....not really good for anything, but they bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs"
Hoping I feel better tomorrow because I will be driving to a town over 2 hours away to pick up Kim on his way home from Colorado. Sure hope I can make the trip so his boss doesn't have to drive about 5 hours out of his way to drop him off at home.

Bad Day

Today is a pic of my pot of Zinnia's. This was taken last week, so there are about double the amount today.
This morning I woke up sneezing. I hate these sneezing fits. I will usually wake up sneezing and keep it up for hours. And, of course, it usually means I am coming down with something. I was aching all over last night, but felt fine this morning. But this afternoon it started up again, along with a slight fever. I am so hoping this is only a 24 hour bug.
Last night I watched the National Jr. Miss Pageant. My first cousin's oldest daughter was in it. Sadly, she didn't make the first cut, but what an experience it must have been for her!
I watched Shallow Hal this afternoon. Youngest son left it here months ago and I finally got around to watching it. Really great message to it. Thinking of watching Meet The Tanenbaums this evening.
I spent a good part of this morning blowing my nose and sorting through the pictures I have on my computer. When my oldest switched me over to XP, I ended up with my picture files scattered in three different areas. It took me hours just to do a preliminary sort. Now I have to go back and refine my files.

Happy Birthday Missy

Today Missy turns 12 years old. She is a very special cat. A dear friend gave her to me and when she was almost a year old, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. When my hair fell out from chemo, Missy took on the job of sleeping on my pillow, wrapped around my bald head. Over 8 months later, when my head could fend for itself, she never gave up the practice. Now that she is a hefty old girl, it gets to be a battle over the pillow at times. She has had a love-hate relationship with Kim. She can be sweet as honey, then when you go to pet her, she turns into a razor imbedded ninja. Her most distinctive feature is her kinked tail. At about 4 inches from the base, it totally turns back on itself. She had a difficult time with it when she was younger and has even broken it I believe. As she got older, she learned how to keep from hooking it on things. Due to the difficulties, the tail is completely hands-off. Nothing brings out the slasher in her faster than touching her tail. She is starting to show her age, but I hope she is around for a long time yet. Missy is the Queen of the household.

How I spent my Sunday morning.....

This is Mouse. She and my other dog, Luv, are sisters. Luv was my dear late mother in laws dog. Luv got all the intelligence in the womb, leaving Mouse dumb as a fencepost. This picture is of her after her spring haircut. She and her sister are part Sheltie, part Schnauzer. Luv got the wirey Schnauzer hair, Mouse got the Sheltie look. This morning, before I had been up 15 minutes, I was assaulted with the smell of skunk. I looked down and knew instantly it was Mouse. I kicked her outside and shut off the doggy door. I let her stew in her nasty juices for about half an hour while I finished waking up with another cup of coffee. Then we did the baking soda-dish detergent-peroxide bath. She smells better now, but I am not a happy camper with her getting sprayed yet AGAIN! She can't seem to grasp the concept of leaving the bad kitties alone. She is 9 years old and has never learned. As much as she hates baths, you would think it would click. This is the dog that made me vow never to have another dog. Then Luv and Jack came into my life and changed my mind. When will I quit saying the word "never"!!!!

This is the little love of my life, Jack. My oldest son found him as a puppy at the side of the road. He seems to be a rough-coated Jack Russell terrier with a smidgen of dachshound. He is my constant companion and sleeping buddy when hubby isn't home. I am always amazed at his personality. I was never a dog person until he came into my life.
Wow! I just learned a new trick! I figured out how to put more than one picture to a posting. WooHoo!!! So I added on of Jack's baby pictures, just so you can see that precious face better.

As promised...my Stargazer Lily. I clipped it and have it in a vase in the house where I can see it. Believe me...pictures don't do it justice. It is exquisite and smells divine!!! 

In may I was delighted to see my first baby turkey. Momma brought the baby into my yard. I was awestruck, but managed to get this one good shot of them. You can see the little one to the left of the mother. It is quite unusual to see just one baby. 

Lazy Days of Summer

I am taking these lazy days of summer seriously. I am not keeping up with this well. But to catch up....things are doing nicely in the garden. Todays picture is of burgundy daylilies. I have tried daylilies off and on the past few years and they finally took this year. I am enchanted! I also have another lily blooming, but will put the picture up later when I dig out the envelope on it and find out what kind. I think it is a Stargazer. Sure smells wonderful.
I have been trying to get things in the house done. Not moving along very fast at it. For a couple of days, I kept thinking about a certain shirt. It wasn't in my closet and I didn't recall getting rid of it when I did my purging after losing weight. I finally got the bright idea to look in a couple of storage tubs I had stashed. There were my summer clothes that I forgot to get out. I spent an hour trying different ones on. I managed to get out almost a dozen shirts and tshirts, leave a tub of stuff in one, and toss out half a tubs worth. I really have no need to keep a pair of size 8 shorts.
I also thinned out my mending and altering stack. I know it must be cool to put abalone shell buttons on linen, but glaring white ones just don't do it for me on black linen.
I spent a couple of days this week with my nose buried in books. Mom and I have been reading Jennifer Weiner's books. I cried at the end of In Her Shoes, smiled while finishing Good In Bed, and am almost through with Little Earthquakes. Finding an author to grab my attention and drag me deeply into her world is rare. In Her Shoes is being made into a movie and it is one I will make the special trip into the city to see. That is a big deal for me, as I live 70 miles from a city large enough for shopping and movies. If Kim gets to stay home longer than 24 hours in the near future, we will go see the last Star Wars. I have a hard time sitting still for 2 or more hours, so a movie really has to hold my interest for me to put myself through that.
Well, that is as much chatting as I can sit still for now. Remind me tomorrow to tell you about the potty puppies and post their pictures.

Here comes the Heat

I didn't check the thermometer until 6:30 this evening, and it showed 98 °. It is supposed to get to 100 this weekend. I am not looking forward to the summer heat. It's been nice and cool up till now.
The night at the Sleep Center was interesting. Even taking my sleeping pill, I didn't sleep too well. After being hooked up with over 30 wires....most on my head, I made the mistake of looking in a mirror. You know the guy in the horror movies with spikes sticking out of his head?
It sure was nice to get home and take a heavy duty nap. Slept like a rock last night also. I have discovered that I can't take the new sleeping med, Lunesta. It causes me to have a bitter and metallic taste in my mouth. Hard to drink water that tastes like it is poison.
I think I finally got a handle on the blackspot on my roses. They are starting to releaf and set buds. If it stays dry, then maybe things will be okay.
I am going to a quilt show tomorrow. I really look forward to seeing the beautiful workmanship, and of course, the intimidation. I won't ever be good enough to be shown, but my famiy is happy when I finally finish one.



I love my Peace roses. This was first bloom this spring. They are putting on more buds now and should have lots of flowers next week.

Thought I would share some of my yucca blooms from this spring. They were wonderful this year. 

Hyper Day

I am running around here in a tizzy this morning. Roaring staight into Obsessive mode. I am leaving this evening to go spend the night at the Sleep Center. I will probably be home before noon tomorrow, but I am still obsessing. The only things I really have to do around here are make sure the dogs don't have anything to get into. All the trash is empty. Any cans I use can be put up high. I have one dog, Luv, that shows her displeasure at being left home for more than an hour, by stringing trash around the house. She has taught this to Jack. Only Jack doesn't know that you wait till mom is gone to do it. Luv also taught all the others to talk, but that is a different story.
I also cleaned out the cat pans, so no kitty cookies will be laying about. So now I have gone into full frantic mode....dishes clean, no dirty laundry, beds made, dog hair vacuumed up. Geesh...I keep telling myself it is only overnight!!
Maybe tomorrow I can chill and get some more pictures up here. Have three vivid red hibiscus blooming out back.
Gotta go pack now.

New in knitting

I got a wild hair crossed this morning and decided to try continental knitting. I keep reading that it is an easier method to use when doing more than one color in a row. I felt like all thumbs at first, and the instructions I printed off a website weren't too clear, so I grabbed my Stitch n Bitch Nation book and went by the instructions in the back. After my fingers got a little used to the strange way of knitting, it went rather easy. I will practice it more, and regularly to keep the memory in my hands. This could revolutionize the way I knit and my speed. I am a self taught English (American) technique knitter. But I haven't been too happy with throwing my yarn. I would like to be a speed knitter like I am a speed crocheter. I have too many projects in progress and that I want to do, to waste my time going slow as molasses.
Also, there are those socks I want to knit.......

This is Merlin's roses....and Redbud tree this week after I thinned the canes and sprayed again. Merlin was a wonderful Tabby we had for about16 years and was very unique. I added an angel kitty statue, and a rock that says "My kitty is buried here" 

Merlin's Roses

This is the rose bush I am having difficulty with. One picture is of the bush in full bloom. The next is after black spot ravished it in one week. I have sprayed 4 or 5 times, but it keeps raining after each spray. I trimmed this batch up severely the other day and resprayed. It hasn't rained yet, so maybe the bush will have a chance to come back out. Watch this spot!
This is an unknown floribunda type bush. I rescued it from a tree shaded yard and it has gone nuts for me. I have two like it that bloom in beautiful bouquets. Somehow, a Peace rose was growing in with it. I would have divided them up if I had known. The Redbud tree was a surprise addition. But Merlin will provide beauty and shade, so it all stays.

My Luna Hibiscus decided to bloom yesterday. Each flower is the size of my hand. I cut them and put them in a bowl of water to enjoy in the house for the day. Each bloom only lasts a day. I have another bloom today and two more about to burst open. 

Bummer day

I had a rough night last night. I didn't sleep hardly a wink. Looked at the clock every hour all night. I couldn't figure out what was wrong until I sat down at my computer this morning and saw my sleeping pill sitting there. It is small and dark so I didn't see it in the low light. That made for a rough day with no sleep.
While I was in town getting mail , Kim called and said he had to take off this afternoon for a job in Colorado. So, less than 24 hours after he got home, he left. After he drove off, I went down for a hard nap.
At least it was not raining today, nor threatening to. I was able to get out and spray my rose bushes yet again. I am hoping rain holds off for a few days so the fungicide can kill off the black spot that is stripping my bushes.
I finally got a couple of barrels filled with dirt and planted hybrid iris that a friend gave me into one, and the round zucchini sprouts in another. I was also able to put my new blue plumbago plant in a bed beside a white one I got earlier.
I will post pictures of what is going on in my garden tomorrow. I was delighted to find two huge Red Luna hibiscus blooms shining. Since they faced the neighbors pasture, I cut them and put them in a bowl. It is nice to have them where I can see them all day.
Well, more tomorrow. Pictures promised.

So, I have forgotten how to enter into my blog. I hope I got it right. Geesh, this should be easy....hmm, story of my life.
This will take some getting used to.
I was sick yesterday. I don't know what happened but my head was spinning and it made me quesy. I spent half the day in bed. This drove my terrier nuts. I have a high bed and he is short. I finally found a chair he could jump up on and onto the bed. He is such a brat....but I love that little brat.
Today I went to the grand opening of my small towns Wellness Center. The big accomplishment is that it opened debt free. I went early and got a tour before the crowds got there. It is really cool with pool, workout room and physical therapy room. I also got to see the remodeled hospital. It is very impressive.
Kim came home early this evening. Almost...ALMOST the first thing he did was pull out Betty Lou for a ride. Luckily he knows his priorities.
We are now officially puppy-sitting the neighbors fox terrier as he took off for a two week school. He will come home for the weekend, but I am sure Mimi will look for him all week. She will be fine though, as she lives here half the time anyway. In fact, she is sacked out for the night on one of the dog beds as I write this.
Well, I am just a fountain of interesting information tonight, so will shut this down. I am sure I will get more interesting as I learn this format. Right now it feels strange.

Finally....a picture!

I have spent hours trying to figure out this photo program "Hello". I at least figured out how to post a picture into the log, and now how to edit it. Now comes the big question of how to put the pic into my profile. With all the instructions they have, none of them tells you how....they just say to do it.
Anyway, after decades of a dream, Kim finally fulfilled it. Betty Lou is a 2001 Harley Superglide. We took our first ride together monday night. We went into town for gas, then took the long way home. I definitely need some kind of goggle, and either wear a helmet, or pull my hair back. I thought with the wind whipping through damp curls, it would straighten out....NOT. I spent hours untying the knots from super curly hair.
On his way home from a job this weekend, Kim is going to stop in a Harley shop and see about getting footrest extenders. He has the longest legs in history and the ones on Betty Lou are too short. He is also going to look at goggles for me.
He and I are like two teenagers nowadays. All the kids have left home and we can afford to buy the cool toys we always wanted. It is better to kick up our heels and have fun together, than to be like other people having mid-life crises, splitting up and ruining everyones lives.



Kim and Cyndye and Betty Lou

First time out...or no longer a virgin blogger

Well, okay, so I started a blog. Now what? Weird how your mind can go blank when faced with a naked page waiting to be filled.
I started this to keep from having to write long emails to a long list of people everytime something happens around my place. Since it is a regular zoo here, this gets a bit pesky.
I will try to keep everyone up to date on all my interests. A short list of that is...my little piece of heaven 15 acres, 3 dogs, 3 cats, hubby and his new passion...a Harley named Betty Lou, my garden, my house redecorating, the wildlife around here, all my numerous crafty endeavors.
Whew....my brain is now fried and my nerves jangled from thinking so hard. Like freefalling.
One special note: Keep this clean! I have young grandkids that might see it!
Have a good one! Otter