Friday dinner, Solar blaster, chicken sales, duck dispatch

Friday evening, Mama and I went out to dinner with Red and JoAnn Shaw. We met at Casa Torres in Decatur. It is by far the best Mexican food in Decatur. We were late to the meeting by about twenty minutes because Mama had gone to get feed late in the afternoon. That, in and of itself, would not have been an issue; however, Grandma and Grandpa, who went along for the ride, had Mama stop at the Post Office and Dollar General on the way home, so that lengthened the trip significantly. Mama was reticent to tell Grandma and Grandpa “no” to the additional stops because they get out so infrequently – especially Grandpa. It all worked out. JoAnn and Red held a table for us until we got there, and we had a wonderful, relaxed dinner together. It was a pleasant reprieve for all of us just to sit and visit.

As we outfit the shipping container for service as a workshop, I have been studying devices available for that sort of retrofit. In doing so, I stumbled across a passive solar light that could be mounted atop the container to provide light to the end of the container that I am going to reserve for storage. In that last ten feet inside the container, I am not planning on running any electrical service, but I needed some sort of additional light. Enter the Solar Blaster. It was exactly what I was looking for, but it was fairly expensive. However, when purchasing windows, even at the wholesale price, the Solar blaster unit did not seem so costly. So, after Mama and I discussed the purchase, I ordered one.

The unit was not due to arrive until Wednesday of this week, but it was delivered about 5 pm Saturday. By that time, I was pretty worn out. I set the box inside the container with the intent of cutting it into the container sometime this week. But, after I cooled off and ate a small dinner, I felt like I could get the installation done before dark. In making the cut into the top of the container, I wore out three batteries very quickly as I attempted to cut the opening with my DeWalt grinder and Sawzall. Neither were up to the task, and I had to resort to a corded grinder to complete the cut. Once that was done, I installed the Solar Blaster. Even in the low light of evening, I was impressed by how well the unit functioned. When I saw the effect inside the container the next afternoon, I was certain we had made a good choice.

Now, with the windows at the farm – Mama and Norman purchased them on Thursday – we can start that installation. One of the panes on one window broke on the ride home, so it will need to be repaired at some point, but the other three are ready to go. To facilitate the placing of the windows in the container, I went to a local wholesaler and bought the angle iron needed to frame the windows in the sides of the container. I will spend an evening this week – when I have time available – building those frames. Once the frames are built, I will cut the walls to accommodate the frames which will be welded into the sides of the container, then I will install the windows in the frames. That will probably have to wait until Thursday or Friday because tonight is going to be spent fetching hay. Tuesday will be spent processing 4 ducks and 6 chickens. Wednesday is church. I am not in a particular hurry, but Mama is. So, these delays are starting to bother her a little. I will eventually get this done, but I am not setting any records for speed in accomplishing the retrofit.

The next steps will be to complete the wiring inside the container then have the inside of the container sprayed with foam insulation. Then the floor will be redone, and a sliding glass door installed, and we will be ready to move into what I am now calling our “crafting shop”. Can I get all this done by the end of the month? I do not know, but I am going to try. Painting the outside of the container will come at some future point. That will not be a requirement for occupancy, and I am not sure if it actually needs to be done. I suppose Mama has not decided yet because she likes the look of the container as it is, and she does not want to delay any of the other upgrades needed to get her crafting items relocated to the shop once the inside is complete.

Mama has been trying to sell some of her chickens for months now and was finally able to complete a sale of one of her Lavender roosters Saturday afternoon. It was not a huge sale, but she was encouraged to finally have money exchange hands in such a sale. We are applying for a flock registration permit so we can sell our chickens and ducks at Trade Days. Such a registration is required for such sales. All the paperwork is done, but the final requirement of the registration is to have our entire flock tested for some bird disease before the permit is issued. Mama has that scheduled for the first week of August. I wish we could have taken the ten drakes we have to sell at Trade Days, but until we have the registration, we are not permitted to do so. They would have sold quickly. They are beautiful birds. Instead, they will be processed to be eaten. Not a bad thing if anyone besides me decides they like duck meat.

Otherwise, I will be eating a lot of duck.

 

Party time at the farm, a smelly oversight

The 4^th was a lot of work but also a lot of fun. I spent most of the late morning and all afternoon cooking. I smoked two chickens and a small brisket by about 1:30. Then I fired up the charcoal grill and used it and the pellet grill to cook over fifty hamburgers and about sixty hotdogs. With twenty-two adults and ten children in attendance, a good portion of the meat was eaten. We also had macaroni salad, potato salad, baked beans and all the fixings for the burgers and hotdogs – chili, slaw, cheese (six different kinds), as well as multiple desserts available. Mama dessert was mostly focused on brownies and ice cream. Sarah Fox baked sourdough hamburger buns, decadent cinnamon rolls and peanut butter blossom cookies. Brenda Fox made a chocolate fudge cake. Norman brought a lemon cake. So, we had plenty.

To give the kids something fun to do, Norman set up squirt wands and water buckets in the circle in front of the house. All ten of the single pump squirt wands were all in use during multiple battles. There were, over the course of the day, almost three hundred balloons filled with water to be burst on a variety of persons and targets. The temperature was near one hundred degrees at the height of the day but there was a steady, soft breeze stirring the hot air so everyone that ended up getting thoroughly soaked was quickly able to dry off. Only to go back into the water fight and get soaked once more.

Meanwhile, the adults visited in smaller groups moving about through the groups to visit with a different batch of guests. Some outside. Some inside. We all had a great time getting to know each other and just passing the time in casual conversation, hearing delightful stories from each of our pasts. The young mothers in those groups were constantly herding their little ones back outdoors when they came running inside, soaking wet, to report some bit of urgent news from the water battle raging in front of the house. Norman and Seth made a batch of smaller water balloons that could be easily managed by their tiny hands – and they were eager to join in the fun. Our front circle was a mess of refuse from the burst balloons, but everyone pitched in and cleaned up the mess before anyone headed home.

I continued to clean up inside through the day, so what needed to be washed was minimal once the leftovers had been packaged and put away. We will be eating those leftovers for many days. I predict we will tire of the macaroni and potato salad before we are able to consume them fully. The leftover meats will be finished off more quickly. Hotdogs, stuffed burgers, smoked chicken, and brisket all lend themselves to multiple dinner applications. Needless to say, I did not manage to follow my low carbohydrate diet, but I did attempt to keep the carbs to a manageable amount by limiting the dessert portions. The most difficult part was getting up the next morning to teach a class.

Mama, Norman, and Grandpa are in Gainesville for a doctor’s appointment for Grandpa scheduled for later today. So, while they are in that area, they will also pick up a few things we need for the container retrofit. Mama is also going to look at windows we need to cut into the container, but I do not know if she is planning on purchasing the windows or just looking at what is available and at what price in the surplus store in that area. Regardless, we are slowly gathering the required materials for installing the electric service, the windows, and the sliding glass door.

We are also studying/researching the best ways to install the windows into the sides of the container. That has been a fun study watching YouTube videos made by those who have done what we are considering doing. So many ways to get the job done and so many different looks as the final outcomes are achieved. I think we have decided to weld frames into the side of the container, then use those frames to house those windows. It seems to be the best way to seal the window into the container without the window sticking too far past the exterior of the container sides. If all things work out, I am planning to have the container finished and ready for Mama to fill by the end of the month. It will be very nice to have a dedicated workspace.

On the farm, we have been dealing with very large rat snakes. Over the past few days, I have had to kill four of the snakes that were each over five feet long and very thick of body. These were mature snakes. We have not seen such large, mature snakes at the farm during the ten years we have lived here. Mama is concerned but there is little we can do about it other than catch and kill the snakes as we encounter them. In a humorous turn of events, I had one dead snake in the back of the truck to be thrown in the creek on my way to work Wednesday morning, but I forgot to do that. So, the snake spent the day in the bed of the truck through the day Wednesday as I taught the class. The temperature was a little over one hundred degrees that day. The truck was parked in full sun. By the time I got done with class I was startled by the stink near the truck as I loaded up to head home. I thought, “Woah. Something is dead.” It was only when I got back home that I discovered my oversight. Boy, did that snake stink.

I had hurried home because Mama had trapped another large snake in one of the quail cages and I was to kill it after Sarah Fox got to the farm to watch how I accomplished that task. Once that was done, I put that recently dead snake with the very stinky snake and pitched both of them out for the varmints to eat.

One of those deposits was long overdue.

 

 

Half gone, fireworks, the 4th

 

2023 is now officially half gone. I am sure it took about 182 days, but it seems to have gone much faster than that. With my background in working 12-hour rotating shift, I developed the worldview of separating time into large slices versus looking at hours or half hours or quarter-hours segments, I look at life in much large chunks of time. Perhaps because of that approach to marking time’s passage, it seems to move very rapidly for me. Perhaps I am simply getting old enough that the days seem to evaporate as I try to give the most I can to each of those days. Never-the-less, there are only a few months left before we prepare for Thanksgiving and then Christmas.

One of the disappointments in this mid-year timeframe is that at the end of last year I had planned on retiring at this point in time. However, as I considered things from a financial point of view, it just made more sense to work through the end of this year. The Lord just would not give me peace about retiring in my set time. I lament, somewhat, not retiring, but I am certain that the delay will prove well worth the extra time on the payroll. Obedience to the Lord always produces wonderful outcomes and as fast as this year is fleeing away from me, my retirement will be very soon in coming.

After church last night we went out to eat at Braum’s before we met up with a few people from church to watch the fireworks from a vantage point we have used for the past several years. Betty Lemon has a condo on a hilltop just west of town that offers a spectacular view of the fireworks display put on by the City of Decatur. Kenny and Kimberlyn and their grandkids ate with us at Braum’s before following us to the overlook at Betty’s house. By the time we arrived there were already about a dozen of our church friends set up with their lawn chairs and coolers, waiting for the show to begin. By the time we arrived, we had only to wait about thirty minutes or so, and it was well worth the wait.

Cheyenne and Aubrey went to church with us so they could go with us to see the fireworks – and to Braum’s. It was 9:30 before we got them home after which, Mama and I went to Walmart to pick up some additional items for our 4^th of July party at the farm. I have found over the years that it is always possible to buy a few additional items at Walmart, no matter how trivial the need. Sunday night after church is the perfect time to shop.

The guest list for our party started at twelve but swelled to thirty. I will start the smoker early tomorrow morning with two chickens and a brisket. All that meat came from the farm. Then I will be grilling hamburgers and hotdogs near lunchtime. Some of that meat we produced on the farm. Some, we did not. All of our guests are bringing something. Sarah Fox is making homemade hotdog buns. Mama will be making macaroni salad, potato salad and a butterscotch lush. That along with what we already have on hand and what others are bringing, we should have plenty of food. The biggest challenge is finding places for everyone to sit.

Norman is getting some outdoor activities planned to entertain the kids, eight that are big enough to play games, and three that are too young to join in but will have a great time watching. Nineteen adults will be there to supervise and participate if desired.  I will be watching. Norman has Frisbees and water guns. Mama bought one hundred balloons for a water balloon fight. These are friends we have gotten together with on occasion in the past and have always had a great time together. The weather is forecast to be hot and dry, so some water activities are in order.

With all the meat we have to cook, we will fire up the charcoal grill I have not used in many months. I have switched over to the pellet grill exclusively, but with Norman to help, we can man the two grills effectively and speed up the process of cooking forty hamburgers and several dozen hotdogs. I was thinking about grilling some ears of corn, but we did not plan for that, so I will have to wait for another opportunity to do that.

So, all day tomorrow will be dedicated to feeding a crowd versus working on the container. But I was able Friday evening to get one outlet wired into the container, so we have power there. Unfortunately, VBS Monday through Thursday last week left me with only Friday night to get that little upgrade accomplished. Then, Saturday, Mama and I drove to Ana, TX to pick up our rescue goats – about a five hour round trip – and it was raining when we got back to the farm. That rain continued softly for the entire afternoon, so I did not do any more work on the container Saturday. Tonight will be spent getting the house ready for entertaining guests we have coming tomorrow. Wednesday I will be presenting an eight-hour class.

Staring off July with a flourish.

Heat, VBS, power

Wednesday our weather station registered 111 degrees. It did not feel like it was that hot because the humidity was only 10% and there was a  constant wind blowing the hot air around. However, our plants and trees are definitely feeling both the excessively high heat and the excessively low humidity. Mama and Grandpa have given up on the garden for the most part. They are continuing to water only a few struggling plants. The rest have been pulled up or allowed to wither away. The idea that we are presented as a cardinal truth of gardening, to “give your plants full sun”, is turning out to be a misnomer for our garden. Though Grandpa was excited about the plants when the weather was cooler, he has lost all that enthusiasm as we have watched almost all the beautiful, lush plants shrivel in the recent heat. Our hopes for a better garden this year petered out once again. That has become an annual tradition. We did get some produce for all the effort of planting and tending to the garden, but even the plants grown in pots have given up without any edible fruit being produced. We will probably try again next year but I am not anticipating any better success.

Brittany called last night. She was very upset. She continues to face some significant struggles – especially financially – as she is setting up a home for her and the girls without the promised assistance from Andrew. It is difficult for Mama and me to know how to help. We covet your prayers for Brittany and the girls that the Lord would give her wisdom and opportunity. She is an amazingly resourceful person when she sets her mind to the task. Please pray that she allows the Lord to lead her to the right opportunities and helps her make the right decisions.

We have had Vacation Bible School each night from Monday through Thursday this week. It was a bit of work, but it was great fun. We had over one hundred kids each night. With several children, including Aubrey and three of Cheyenne’s visitors, praying to receive Jesus as their Savior. Mama and I were able to take Cheyenne and Aubrey to VBS each night along with six and sometimes seven of their friends. Cheyenne was very motivated to win the competition for the most visitors, but she came in a close second with thirteen visitors across the four nights. For that she won a Nintendo Switch. The prize was secondary to actually winning the competition. She was thrilled with her victory. Mama and I, as well as many church members, were more thrilled with Aubrey’s salvation.

The theme for VBS this year was Coming out of Egypt. The stories followed the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt: the Red Sea, the ten plagues, the rebellious heart of Pharoah, and the power of God. Each night the lesson followed the Bible story through the exodus and each night Bro. Zach presented an illustrated Gospel presentation. Each presentation was well presented and well delivered. The impact on the children listening to the presentation was noticeable. I was impressed. What is even more thoughtful about the program used to present VBS is that the same presentation will be used again at the Navaho Reservation in Nazlini, AR in a few weeks. Our church puts on a VBS for the Navaho people every year in July. I have wanted to go to help but have not been able to get the time off to do so. Hopefully, in my retirement next year I will finally have the opportunity to follow through on that desire.

Mama and I are picking up four rescue goats in the morning. They are four bred nanny goats that have been poorly cared for by their owner due to financial constraints outside of her control. They are all registered Myotonic goats. They are from a different bloodline than our own, but we are assured that they are good stock. Mama and I plan to allow the does to kid and then sell the nanny goats once the kids are weaned. We will keep any of the doelings that look good and sell off the rest of the offspring. It should be a win-win for us, but time will tell. It will require some travel to get the goats – which are about two hours away - and rearranging of the herd we have on the farm at the moment since we will need to isolate the new arrivals from the rest of our herd, but we should be able to manage for a few months.

Other than fetching and rearranging goats, I hope to get into the beehives this evening or tomorrow. I am also planning on getting power fed to the container. I was able to get power hooked into the box in the well house, so I will certainly be able to activate a plug or two inside the container over the weekend. Though we are still waiting for windows to be purchased, I can get a couple outlets energized as I run the conduit for the power throughout the container.

One small step at a time.

Six Flags, container work, brutally hot, snakes, small success

Last week was occupied by training my company provided for all employees in a setting where we could all participate in person. There are now over one hundred employees at Energy Worldnet and about 40% of the workforce is fully remote. Although we see each other in Teams meetings online, it is infrequent that all of us see each other in person. So, this training provided a great opportunity to interact with our whole team and to catch up in person with those we so rarely get to spend time with. The training related to a new operating system being employed to refocus the company efforts in specific ways and since the system is new to us, it was beneficial that all of us got to go through the training together. The training sessions took all day Tuesday and Wednesday. Five separate training sessions each day. It was enough to get all of us started in the same direction but not enough to clear up all my questions about my part in the course correction we are now employing. Hopefully, it will be enough to allow me to ask the right questions as we move forward.

Thursday we all met up at Six Flags for lunch and a work-free day at the park. Many brought their families to the park as well. I was able to take Mama, Victoria and Rosa Lee. Even though Rosa Lee was a bit of a pill throughout the day we had a good time. We got to the park at 11 am and filtered in with the crowd. It was raining off and on so many of the rides had not opened, but as we ate lunch, the rain played itself out and by the time we had finished with the company activities – about 1:20 – the sun was out, and all the rides were operational. Victoria and Rosa Lee tried the teacup ride, but it went backwards the entire time and terrified Rosa Lee. The log ride was much better. We finished that ride and queued back into line for a rerun. It was more fun the second time. Mama and I did a couple more rides together with Rosa Lee and Victoria, but we mostly sat out as Victoria and Rosa Lee did those rides that would not scare her too much. We stayed at the park until about 4 pm. Three hours was about all Mama and Rosa Lee could handle. I could have probably done with less, but the lines were short, so it was almost always a short wait, making it more fun for the little one. Plus, we were able to duck into a gift shop or restaurant when we got too hot or when Mama needed to sit down for a minute.

On the way home we stopped at WinCo to get a few bulk items so Mama could bake cookies for Vacation Bible School, which starts tonight. We were cruising along pretty well until about fifteen miles from home, we got into stopped traffic due to an accident. Getting through the mile long backup took about thirty minutes. Fortunately, we were in an air-conditioned car for the wait. We were in no particular hurry to get home other than to meet Norman and Seth to get Rosa Lee home before it got too late. The delay just ended up giving Rosa Lee a chance to get in a good nap before we turned her over to Seth. Mam and Norman were planning to go to Dallas Friday morning to look for windows to cut into the container. That turned out to be a wasted trip for Mama, but Norman met with a client and got a month’s worth of work assignments. So, it was not a completely wasted trip.

Friday was spent catching up to all the work that did not get done while we were in training, so it passed by very quickly. Friday was our last day of temperate summer temperatures. Starting Saturday, we began a week of temperatures well over 100 degrees. Saturday, the high was 105 degrees. Sunday the thermometer climbed to 107 degrees. Those high temperatures are forecast to continue through the week with a break coming to us by Saturday. Wednesday is forecast to be 110 degrees or more. Our poor flocks are suffering from the brutal heat and there is little we can do to mitigate that suffering. Mama has been going out in the afternoons and wetting the ground for the ducks and chickens, but the way we have the quail housed, we cannot offer them any relief. So far, we have had only one death due to the heat. That was one of our older quail.

We have suffered more losses from snakes so far than from the heat. Two of Mama’s little Bantam chicks were taken by large snakes. One was eaten. Another was killed and left behind. I finally caught up to two of the largest snakes and killed both of them. In another two consecutive nights I caught two other large rat snakes and dispatched them as well. Saturday night I had to chase one snake down through the coop but was finally able to get hold of it sufficiently to unwind it from the roost and take it outside the coop to put it down. Mama, needless to say, is tired of dealing with snakes. Of the seven coop-hatched Bantam chicks, only two remain. I have to admit that it was fun to see the chicks scampering about with the mama hens as they grew, so the two half-grown chicks are a sad reminder of the hazards we deal with to protect our flocks.

Saturday, I spent the day leveling the container (with Grandpa’s help) and running the electric line from the well house to the container. The morning started off in the low nineties and quickly climbed to over 100 degrees. By noon, I was a muddy mess. The ditch I had to dig to bury the electric line required me to use a mattock to cut into the hard ground. Each cut with the mattock sent a spray of the dirt onto my sweat-soaked clothing, which turned to mud when it settled against me. I had to take a shower to clean up so I could eat lunch, but I did get the ditch cut, the conduit laid, and the wire run to supply power to the container.

It was a good day.

Trip news

This will probably be the only post I write this week due to a different work schedule Tuesday through Friday. So, I want to take a moment to share some of the highlights from the trip to Honduras to help with the Medical Missions team in El Progresso.

I flew to Honduras Thursday of last week and was greeted at the airport by Nate, Cori and the kids about 12 pm local time. Mama had dropped me off at DFW around 5:30 am so I did not get any breakfast in Dallas. When I got to Houston, I had only fifteen minutes to get to the gate for my flight to Honduras arriving at the gate as boarding had already started, so I ate nothing in Houston as well. That is not really an issue. I generally do better if I do not eat when I travel. All in all, the trip down was smooth, but hurried. The layover in Houston was far too short. I will need to remember that inconvenience next time we fly to Honduras.

We hit the ground running once in the country. Once at Cori and Nates’ home, I took the suitcases I had brought with me to the master bedroom to be secretively unpacked. Victoria and Mama had done all the packing so all I knew was that there were multiple birthday presents stowed within and just enough clothing to get me through the week of clinics. In the unpacking, Cori allowed Savanna to witness the unpacking, not realizing that one of the largest and most exposed presents was for Savanna’s birthday. So, Savanna, in her characteristic hurried fashion unzipped the largest suitcase and flopped it open to reveal her birthday present fully exposed to her. When she realized what she had seen, she closed the suitcase with a guilty, shocked look on her face and confessed to her mommy, “It’s okay. I will probably forget by my birthday.” That is probably not totally true, but the look on her face was worth the moment.

Friday was the only free day and we used it to get set for receiving the medical team that would be arriving that night, ensuring we had sufficient snacks and drinks for the coming week and planning evening meals we could easily fix once we were home from a long day at the clinic. We enjoyed the calm before the storm so to speak.

Saturday morning, Nate and I met the medical team at their hotel so we could get all the freight they had carried with them for the clinic moved to the school where we would be holding the clinic. That took three trips with Nates small pickup to get all those totes, soft sided medical crates and suitcases of materials and equipment to the clinic. We spent the next several hours separating the medical equipment, optical equipment, glasses, and meds for distribution to the appropriate areas. By 2 pm, we had almost everything set and opened the clinic to those who would be volunteering the next day as well as to church members who wanted to participate.

That gave us an opportunity to test the new software that would be used to track patients through the clinic on the general medical side. That turned out to be about 200 patients total in two hours. We had a few hiccups with the iPads and software, but it was a good start. That evening, we all met at the church for dinner and enjoyed a time of fellowship outside in the heat – made bearable thanks to a constant breeze. We were having cake in celebration of a couple birthdays among those on the visiting team when the power went out to the entire area. That ended the party abruptly. Those that had them got out their cell phones and activated the flashlights because it was pitch black. A fun welcome to Honduras.

Sunday, we had lunch at the church and a meeting in the afternoon to revisit assignments and organization of all the stations at the clinic that would begin at 8 am Monday morning. We were onsite with all the team members, volunteers and translators at 7 am. I was a translator for the pharmacy, so we talked to every patient that had come through the clinic because every patient got at least a multivitamin given to them when no other meds were required. Saturday and Monday were brutally hot, with high temperatures at or above 100 degrees and a dead calm in the area where we were stationed. To give the medications to the patients, we had a table set up on a walkway in front of the classroom serving as the pharmacy with no air movement at all. I was a sweaty mess the entire day. So, to help with that, Tuesday morning Nate brought a fan from their house to give us some air. It was a huge help.

Tuesday, I worked at the pharmacy as the only translator until after lunch, when Cori took me over to the optical side of the operation. I was placed in an air-conditioned classroom with two young ladies fitting patients with reading glasses. Not only was the air conditioning a huge blessing, but that position gave me more time to interact with the patients. Wednesday and Thursday I had the same assigned post, which was fun because all the grandkids were helping on that side as well. So, I got to see a lot of the interaction Savanna, Blake and Grand had with the patients. Cori was working that side of the clinic as well helping match patients with prescription glasses the team had received from donations. Mykenzie was translating for the first time under Cori’s watch care. Finding a set of glasses that were close enough to what the patient needed was a challenge, but more times than not, the team found something that would work well enough to provide some help.

It was encouraging to hear all the chatter among the kids as we drove home each evening. Grant, who did some translating on Wednesday and Thursday, told us that he did not merely step out of his comfort zone, he as shoved out! But he did it and he was obviously thrilled to have done so.

My flight home was even more rushed than my flight down. Deplaning in Houston was delayed due to a gate change. To get to customs, there was a fifteen-minute walk to the area where we were screened by a customs agent after which I had to collect my luggage to redirect it for a domestic flight. Almost twenty minutes more elapsed in that. Then on to security where we were held back for fifteen minutes to allow the line already queued in for security to clear. More twisting lines to the security area, packing and screening our personal items, regathering my iems, redressing, checking to make sure I had everything, then another twelve-minute walk across two terminals to my gate. When I got to my gate there was no one there. I was the last person to board my flight! We were airborne ten minutes later.

It was a great trip. A very busy, fast paced trip. I look forward to doing it again.

Rehoming furniture, a “good” problem

With the counter height table removed from the house, Mama and I ended up with seven chairs that were made for that table height. I moved five away from the bar along with the four we had at the table in the kitchen eating area. All the chairs we had been using were in good or fair condition, but Mama had no interest in keeping the four we had been using at the granite-topped table now sitting in the sunroom. We were loathe to throw them away but had no good options for finding them a good home. So, I suggested taking them to a Goodwill drop box I knew of. However, when we got to the box a sign on the box specifically stated, “No Furniture”. Another placard read, “No items outside the box.” I did not want to be “that person” who causes the volunteers the hassle of dealing with rain-soaked furniture items, so we elected to not set the chairs there. Mama had another idea.

On our way back into town, Mama called Erin and asked if we could set the chairs at the curb in front of her house. Erin quickly agreed so we headed her direction. As we were setting out the chairs, a van slowly rounded the corner and stopped. A Spanish speaking older gentleman approached me and asked if he could take the chairs? We conversed for a minute, and he assured me he and his wife wanted the chairs, but he had to go to his house and get his truck to collect the chairs. The van they were in was full of passengers. To accommodate him, we placed all four chairs inside the fence at Erin and Sam’s house to safeguard them until the family could return with the truck. As we were making the final arrangements and getting assurances that he would be coming back quickly, the wife asked if she could also cut some paddles from the large Napal cactus at the corner of the yard. That suited Erin and Sam just fine. So, our well used chairs found a new home. Mama and I were very pleased.

Grandma has been interesting to deal with lately. She has a wonderful, compassionate desire to witness. She gathers tracts, devotional booklets and whatever else she can lay hands on and has Mama drop her off at Walmart to hand out the materials. The problem is that she has no awareness of the times that she blocks isles as she buttonholes someone to witness to. She has no awareness of a person desperate to find a way to make a hurried exit from her. She has caused enough issues that she was confronted by a worker the other day and told she was not allowed to hand out materials within the store. I am not sure if that is correct, but that is what she was told. She has such a passionate desire to witness that she is almost always irritated to have to leave when Mama returns from her errands to collect Grandma and take her home. We have no idea what she shares with the persons she does talk to and we are reasonably certain that she does not remember either.

Yesterday, Mama did not really want to go out, but found it necessary to do so. Grandma, who insisted on going along, was dropped off at Walmart in Decatur and Mama headed off for her required stops. About forty-five minutes later, when Mama went to get Grandma and head home, Grandma resisted strongly, insisting that Mama leave her there. When Mama urged her to come along, Grandma told Mama she would find her own ride home. That made a bit of a scene until Grandma finally relented. Mama was upset. Grandma was upset. It was a difficult ride home as Mama was chastised for not allowing Grandma more time. Grandma laid a pretty heavy guilt trip on Mama and the effects of that lasted quite a time for Mama even though Grandma forgot about it an hour later. An admirable desire. A poorly executed delivery. We will trust God for the results. He promised His Word would not return to Him void. We are just not sure how to give Grandma enough time so that she feels somewhat satisfied with her effort without giving her so much time that she causes a problem in the location where she shares her witness. 

Last night at dinner, Grandma suddenly blurted out, I’m scared. I’m really, really scared!” We asked, “Scared of what?” Her response, “I have no idea.” That is what Mama deals with every day. At times only a few hours pass between Mama having to repeat to Grandma what they discussed previously. When Grandma tries to tell Mama that the discussion in question never took place, it is frustrating. Sometimes Grandma will relent and ask, “Why don’t I remember that?” As difficult as Grandma can be to deal with at times, she has a good heart and for now, Grandpa is close by to shut her down when she starts to get out of control. I assume it has to be difficult for her, but I know it is very difficult for Mama. Please pray for them both.

Mama has her work cut out for her.