Shits and Giggles...

This, is a wild turkey. This, crossed the country road in front of us this morning.
Why does the wild turkey cross the road you ask?
Well...it stopped in the middle of the road. It did not cross.
It was less than a foot away from the car. The corgis and I got up close and personal. Addie popped her head out the back window, and barked her itty bitty head off as she always does. Jake hid. As he always does. The bird didn't flinch.
Nobody blinked. I was imagining bloody scenes in my head...thinking,"do turkey birds attack?" I rolled up the back window and slowly pulled away.
The darn thing chased us.
For twenty five feet.
Addie looked out the back window, paws on the back seat, looking as if she couldn't believe the crazy sight.
Jake kept his head down, hoping it was all a bad nightmare.

Years ago, Jim and I camped at a northern state park in Indiana, called Chain-O-Lakes. We were surrounded by wild turkey creatures there while in our little red tracker. Seven or eight of them, looked inside our car windows, thinking we were the biggest red berry they had ever seen. These things were nearly as tall as our car windows. I have photos.

It was like that day all over again. Same red car. Same boldness. Either turkeys are really, really dumb.....or really, really scary.

Alone, without Supervision...

Bet you're thinking uh-huh...she's being naughty! Well, sort of I guess. Let's set the scene. Winter...doldrums...long, dark nights...Jim out on the road...two weeks alone without any one telling me I can't do something. Perfect setup for trouble, right?

Well...I don't know what YOU'D be up to, but I've been sorting closets, drawers, tossing papers, moving entire rooms of furniture. My sis-in-law and I are infamous for moving furniture when we have emotional upsets. Cleaning is cathartic when your innards aren't happy. There's just too much winter to cope with!

Jim's "big man's" recliner wasn't too bad to push around, but the corgi/mama chair and a half was awful, weighing twice as much.
Several herniated discs unpleasantly wake me up during the night when these shifting urges strike. The ol' gal still feels like superwoman in her head...forgetting (or denying) that the body isn't what it used to be. I always pay for it, but it's SO rewarding to see the results of one's efforts.

Jim'll be mad. He always is, but phhhttt,when the urge strikes to get something done, it's very hard to wait around for two weeks for a tired, grumpy man to get home, who will just crab about moving furniture. So...why not just get 'er done?


Being alone has never bothered me. Luckily, since Jim has been gone most of our thirteen year marriage. Luckily, since I was single for fifteen years...while working, raising two kids,going to school after divorcing in '82. I even liked it as a kid. Boredom has never been a problem for me. Is it something that any of you have trouble dealing with?

Is it a woman thing... this need to change/clean/clear...or am I just plain weird? Surely, there are a lot of "us" out there.......right? Peck, peck....hello? Anyone going to jump on this rebellious wagon of hormones?

Is it Spring yet?

Groundhog Day, a Germanic holiday that uses a furry prognosticator to foretell the coming of spring, depends on the presence (or not) of sunshine for its forecast.
Many of you know that most of America is being hit by the Blast of '11 this week.
I'm thinking, that NO groundhog in their right mind will pop his little furry head out of a nice, warm burrow.
Oh well....in the meantime, we're under a Level One snow emergency, meaning that only emergency vehicles can be on the road.
We have over a foot. The wind was blasting so hard last night the windows rattled.
Jim is home this week with a bad cold, and it's a lucky break for him.
The corgis are not enjoying the snow as they have in past years. There's just too much of the stuff.
We put a small turkey in the oven last night, and were carving/deboning after 9p.m., in anticipation of a quiet, snow day today. The library director called with the delightful news of being closed today. She just became one of my favorite people on earth!
Luckily I brought home movies and books from work yesterday. The trees were loaded with fat, perky robins when I got off at one. I've never seen such a sight in early February. Somehow, they made a wrong turn, and landed right in the thick of a pending blizzard.
Last week, we got an emergency call from Florida, stating that my mom had fallen, face-first onto concrete, and ended up spending a few days in ICU. We went down to see her; spending two days in Largo. The rv needed a tiny little valve, so we spent an entire day sitting at a repair shop, and the next morning. She's doing better, and the rv made it home after a bumpy beginning. Both intact.
We spotted ten armadillos, sunning along the Florida interstate. A site that always delights me. We took a shower at a truck stop, and slept in Cracker Barrel parking lots at night. We listened to "Murder on the Orient Express" on the way home. We stopped at a Waffle House for a pecan waffle fix. The corgis ate some green grass at the rest areas. A treat for them. While in Florida though, we had sweaters and jackets on. I think the temps ranged from 40 at night to maybe 60 during the day.
It wasn't a pleasure trip, but it was a change of scene, once the anxiety of mom's accident passed.
Spring can't come soon enough. Time to go shovel....again!