Beneath the Wraps

  I heard the censor go off and thought that the missionaries were walking up the driveway.  Before I could get the door opened I heard Richard call:  “The goats are on the porch!” They are Not our Goats! They were not our Chickens! and I have Absolutely no desire to be a homesteader! EVER! Sugar likes to escape and lately Cocoa has been following her.   Last night they were both on the porch.   And then Bonnie got out and ran into the street to torment a dog larger than her. The larger dog was on a leash and being walked. Walker not happy with Bonnie.   I don’t blame him. So Richard and I are trying to capture the goats with another neighbor.   None went after Bonnie.   And when Richard uncomfortably escorted Bonnie back in the house the goats got in.   Sugar climbed onto the coffee table to help herself to some bananas piled on the top of a bowl of fruit and Cocoa peed on our couch.   Richard fell during his struggles with Bonnie...

             We spent the majority of the day not home – and still outside when we got home.           We left the house at 5:30 to drive to Medford and did back to back endowment sessions at the temple.   Left without stopping so that we could let Bonnie out of the house.   She is showing some major discomfort right now.   She has become almost as stubborn as the goats.           After our return Don (a neighbor across street and corner) told us that the goats (although I think it was just Sugar and not Cocoa) escaped but he was able to corral   Sugar back to our yard and blocked the fence so she could not crawl beneath.   I found her trapped between two fences.   I don't know how long she'd been trapped.  Serves her right, I guess.           I should have probably left her...

  I think Cryptograms are my favorite puzzles.   I enjoy the thoughts for the most part or the trivia found in Pictograms. It's great that so many are smiling.  My expression would mostlikely mirror the guy on top of the driver I always wondered how the fruit vs vegetable difference.  Now I know.  Thank you Pictograms!

            Before he passed away, our neighbor purchased two small goats as he was unable to mow his yard.    The goats are named Cocoa and Sugar.   Cocoa is the smallest of the two and happily chows down and makes no attempt to leave the yard.   Sugar on the other hand . . . she is a naughty goat who has shown more interest in escaping the yard than eating any of it.   Why chew on grass when there might be plastic on the other side of the fence.           Our neighbor has left the gate open so that the goats can start mowing our lawn – though I don’t imagine we would want our yard to look as desolate of hers.   But there is plenty of grass to go around.   However, I think we have spent just as much time searching for and corralling Sugar back into our yard.   I have actually lost sleep over it.   That isn’t right.     ...

 We are lousy neighbors.  House to our right is for sale.  We never met the people who lived there though we did know their names. Their house is evidently in a trust.  I don't know why they moved. We have met the neighbors to our left - though we haven't seen them for a while.  I learned just today that he died a month ago.  An entire month has gone by since our former bishop and his brother-in-law stopped by to inform us that our neighbor was on hospice and they had been by to give him a blessing.  He must have died right after that.  Her son was living in our ward until recently.  We were supposed to pick up their oldest two to take to the temple with us - but were informed they could not go.  Perhaps our neighbors passing is what changed the plans.  I don't know.  I feel so out of the loop.  How terrible of me.

 I like to read and watch mysteries.   I like to see if I can figure out who is the killer, the thief  or what have you.  But in real life I would not  be sticking my nose into the crime scene like  some of the characters who get involved.  I always think -  "stupid, stupid" not "oh, that's a good idea" or  "not bad" "how clever".  I usually shake my head.  "Oh, girl . . . you are cruisin for a bruisn.  Why?"   Often I view the story as a comical situation rather than  a realistic encounter.  In real life I would keep my  mouth shut and not get involved.  I doubt I would make  a good witness or jury member.

 Ever since I changed the appearance of my blog, my posts haven't had any views. Coinsidence? It isn't important I guess.  What's important is that power is restored to so many across the nation who are without.  That our nation can be restored to a strong civil nation and not such a disgrace.  I would like to wish everybody well.

 yesterday the sun shone bright blinding bright It has seemed such a long time This morning the fog is back swallowing our surroundings

 As I mentioned in my last post, we replaced our water heater but not our floor.   We had our floor redone less than three years ago due to water damage.   It's sad that we don't have the money or that the insurance won't pay.   But it isn't as bad as being without power. Or shutting down the government. or not being able to travel due to the snow and closed roads due to the elements or accidents or being a victim to the ICE (the  Gestapo) or not even knowing what is true anymore I would rather have uneven floors - it seems so minimal compared to everything else that is going on. May the power be restored to the many who are without. May the harm and blows be softened. May we all be kind.

 Jaime had noticed that her carpet was wet but didn't know what from.  Richard tried to blame the dog, but in actuality it was the water heater.  It hadn't occurred to us to replace it sooner - no we have to wait until after the water leaks before we had even thought of looking at the 33 year old water heater that has probably been leaking at least the last two years. We had a friend tell us that the insurance wouldn't replace her flooring when her water heater gave out.  She said the insurance company had discredited her because the tank had not been in a basin - even though that hadn't been code when it was initially put in.  It's code now!  So both of us now have new water heaters and uneven floors. We didn't know where it was even leaking from until the plumber started to drag it out.  I did not get a picture of the rust corroded bottom, but did get it standing upright out on the curb.  Our new one is so much nicer.  It should outlast us....

           I cannot recall how he even got into it, but Richard would purchase a bunch of non-working watches, clean them up and replace parts and battery to get them in working condition.  It was just a hobby and he would take his finished products to the homeless shelters to pass out the residence.           He loves fixing watches and more he likes giving them away – but there came a time when the homeless shelters felt they had more watches than people and soon his hobby went on hold.   He became more involved in his graphics and the watch project was put on the back burner.           Recently Jai and I had gone to a division of the Antique Mall and noticed a display case that could be rented.   We took a picture to show Richard if he wanted to consider selling the several watches that had been taking up space in the back room.     ...

             I have had a cough since mid October though I don’t know why.   It isn’t bronchial or viral I don’t think.   I wonder if it is an allergy cough.           Here in Oregon we have trees which produce parasites or mistletoe.   I am allergic to mistletoe and have wondered if that is what has been creating my cough.     from dictionary.com I have never had a hairball lodged in my throat but the feeling is something caught between the hyoid bone and thyroid cartilage.           As I have looked into possibilities and researched   the throat names and positions I have also wondered if the cough may be caused by a drug prescription that I have been taking for just a few months.   I will have to ask the doctor at my next appointment .

            Ever since we put the rocks in the yard, Bonnie has climbed the hill to do her thing – which is nice – at least to a degree.   The winter months have been so cold and wet that Bonnie has not wanted to be on the hill – or even outside for that matter.   She does her thing on the rocks – next to the doors, next to the gate.   Blech!!           Eight hours after I had dressed I went outside to clean up after her.   When I got inside I removed my shoes as I could sense debris and mud on the bottom.   It wasn’t until then that I noticed I had been wearing two different shoes – a green one and a gray one.   I don't even know where the mate to the gray shoe is.  Boy, am I observant!

 all up and down I5 I never thought about how much  moisture is brought through the  fog but that seems to be what  is making our porch wet

  So the weather has been bleak overall.  Today it has been raining - enough to remind me of the floods that happened at the start of last year. . . . Just now I decided that it is the angels crying over this nation and what a disgrace we've become.  I didn't vote for Trump!  Not a once.  I am certain that he cheated all three times he's run.  I can't prove it. I hope all my readers know this.  I hope others know that I do not stand for anything he does - like with Venezuala or renaming Panama or trying to con those in Greenland to become a part of us.  Why in the hell would they want to be a part of us?  I don't want to be a part of us.  I am ashamed of our government - or those who do support him and continue to keep him in office.  How many times does one need to be impeached before he is removed from office?  He's already started a civil war and is dragging other nations into it.  I hope they take their outrage on him...

  Richard and I were watching documentaries of the worst snow in the nation - starting with the snowmageddon  in 1978 Ohio  followed by snowmageddons in Chicago.  Oh, my! I was in junior high with a different perspective than I have right now.  I did KNOW about the snow that seemed to shut down the north east part of our nation but hadn't known the details.   I was corresponding with a penpal from Germany.  The snow had delayed up our correspondence.

  We took down the decorations down on Tuesday instead of holding out for the new year.  Good thing.  Yesterday was rainy.  Today there is fog.  This is the thickest I've seen it since we came to Oregon . (I have seen it worse than this when I lived in Utah)

 I just received a call from someone  I will be having lunch with on Friday.   She said that two dogs showed up in her yard -  one a Great Dane mix and the other a Pit Bull Mix.   She said the two dogs are well cared for and  probably their owner must be frantic.   She was calling to find out if I could post the info on facebook.   With some struggle, I finally landed on a Tri City page.   Close enough.   Now my info is pending.   I hope the dogs and owners are reunited soon. I should ask her to take a picture to post. She is technically challenged and probably doesn't know how.   Her husband will.

  When it is near Christmas there are occasional stands or trucks parked selling oranges.   I hadn’t noticed tamales offered in the past but along with the oranges there have been vendors pushing tamales.           When we saw Freaky Friday we had stopped off at a Mexican kitchen in Roseburg and that is what Richard had ordered.   He was disappointed with the results and thus reluctant to buy from vendors - though it does seem to interest him.           We were surprised when Domingo and Maddie showed up on our doorstep sharing their tradition of warm tamales.   A dozen freshly made tamales.   It’s been eons since I’ve had tamales.   They taste delicious.   Thank you for that share.  

             Well maybe not every sticker . . . but perhaps one day it will.           I don’t know how long ago it was   when Jaime gave me a tablet that she had collected from another.   She gave it to me so that I could replace my kindle.   Truth is I used them both simultaneously.   I would play on one while the other charged.   I don’t know how old either product was, but my kindle outlasted the tablet.   And then Richard purchased a new tablet for me.   On Christmas morning I received a skin to protect my tablet.   Along with the plain skin was a set of stylists and several stickers which I could decorate my tablet skin.    These are the stickers I chose. I definitely wanted the landscape in jar.   It fits my personality.   The coloring app that I currently use contains several choices that combine outlined pages with a mysterious inside...