Our house keeping had finally come to a head Friday. I’m usually an east going individual and our union has lasted over the years my overlooking her weaknesses and accepting her plusses. Take for instance she’s severely handicapped in letting slide housekeeping. Her pluses are many beginning with she’s a wonderful lover. I’m not talking just about her attentions toward me. I mean the love she’d given all our children, grand children and great grand children if she’s ever given a chance, so many of them a couple hundred miles away. One day she witnessed an elderly gentleman take a tumble on the side walk passing our house. She immediately ran out to him insisting he come intp our house and rest awhile. He stayed, likely seven/eight years, her taking him into her heart. It was a time she took more interst in animals. She was even an unpaid volunteer at our local animal shelter every once in a while bringing home a lost cause. She welcomed all manner of critters: a curbstone sitter, a 57 variety hound, a dukes mixture plus many more dogs over the years. This was a mile walk each way. She’d brought home cats; one had even selected Frieda her friend and keeper, Judy Poo, taking on the rest of the household as a price to pay. We’d had a guinea pig Happy, who‘d been kept penn up tight less than a square yard, she gave this guy a real instigator the run of the first floor. . Parrots what talked a mile a minute driving everybody nuts man/animal/mail man/any knock on our door. One was a real hoot, saying, “Open the door. Let me out of here!” Whom perplexed a lot of people coming to the door, when no on was home, trying to help knowing no better once or twice calling the police, the police knowing about the parrot. That bird was good fun.
Our early years in our honeymoon cottage about 3:30 PM Frieda had fresh baked cookies and fresh made fruit drink made for our kids, all kids, served off our front porch the half hour kids walked home from school. Winter’s turn key kids gathered around our table and she loved them enough to make them complete their home work before play. Nobody’s had a bigger heart.
So it is, our house keeping has not only gotten behind, it has gotten out of hand. “What do I save, what do I throw away. “Why did we keep this? “That’s something we may show a great grandchild, they’ve never seen.” “I thought you said we needed blankets. I seem to have worked my way into a whole mountain of them.” I’m sitting here thinking, I almost made this end of this room. By gum, I’m going to get some planks and build two book cases for my end. Well have nore room both ends making the middle wider. I’d be good to if I did my art wook for the book, and get all the art stuff out of here. But I like stringing words together for a story. Maybe these words will do that some day?” BGKC.
Fernan



2-15-o9 Journal’s SUNDAY report
Nothing like advanced notice, I’d have to grind grain, today. Elevator’s closed on Sunday. It’d had been nice could I have already had the supplements handily loaded easily handled off my truck bed. But no, I’m note told until this morning. This meant a whole new set of circumstances. I was given the golden opportunity to get a good workout this AM. I’ve got supplements kept on hand for just such emergencies, only, They always give me a damned good work out getting them lifted out of the vermin proof steel storage barrels. Then there’s the toting them across the barn to lay them on the back of the truck to move again emptying all those bags later. Whooppee, I pressed (so I stretch the truth a wee bit) 700 pounds weight today in 50 pound bags 14 times today, half of them from low down.
Oh, I put in some time today not so much cleaning house as I did clearing away rummaged debris. I’m still clearing away rummage, Oh, whom ever I rely on, me, give tomorrow to really burden this weeks trash pickup.
Boxes pilling on the deck filling with snow, some for trash some fore shop. Old clothes hanging on the handrails. I hope to have the place tidied up before the neighbors start thinking us Gypsies. We’re no even Bohemian.



Good Night’s submission written after dark at 10:00PM here.
Fernan