Hurting, cleaning, travel plans

The fall and the cleanup efforts of Monday morning have left me very stiff and sore. It is disappointing to be in this shape with so much still needing to be done. I wanted nothing more than to sit still yesterday evening when I got home but I could not. Knowing that we will be listing the farm motivated me to do some cleaning, discarding and rearranging of the shop and the area around it.

I told Mama we need to look with a very critical eye at what we have and where we have it. In order to have the pictures of the farm look half way decent we need to do a major cleaning of the property and buildings – beginning with our living quarters and working our way outward.

With that in mind I started in the shop last night. I only worked a couple hours but I nearly filled the dumpster with things that should have been discarded long ago. My rule of thumb was that if I did not want to pack it up to be moved it should probably be thrown out. It is amazing how much stuff Mama and I have just left lying around; gallon jugs, coffee cans, empty boxes, etc.

It was when I rearranged the shop that Mama really saw what I was getting done. I do not think she made a single trip to the dumpster but she did allow me more latitude than normal to put things into the dumpster. If we are not able to sell the farm, or are not offered enough to make it worthwhile to make the transition, we will at least have a much neater place to develop.

Tonight is church so we have arranged with a realtor to look at a property just outside of Decatur on the way to Denton. This is the ultimate shopping for Mama. Victoria is off today so she will be able to go with us for the initial viewing. She is more ambivalent toward the sale of the farm and resulting relocation. The way I am hurting today makes the idea seem a little more practical.

Mama is working through a travel agent in Victoria, TX to get the tickets we need to fly to Alaska to visit Maggie, Aaron and the baby. I have transferred the money so we should have the tickets in hand this week. The trip is set for some time around the 12^th of September. We are planning a day layover in Seattle, Washington so I can show Mama the northeast coast.

I traveled there with my family many years ago but Mama has never been. With the cost of the flights to AK it will not be a trip we will take very often so we are hoping to capitalize on the time in that part of the United States. We have not set an itinerary for the time either in Alaska or on the stop in Seattle, but we are looking forward to the trip.

On a more immediate note, I have to be in Houston next week for work. I hope to see Grandma and Grandpa Kline while I am down there. Mama may not go with me depending on what needs to be done on the farm to get it ready for pictures but for the moment we are planning on both of us making the trip; leaving Victoria to cover the farm chores.

One day we’ll settle down…maybe.