Okay Here We Go, Heavy Stuff

I read a funny post by Doug at As I See It which made me LOL because I can so totally relate to that post. He writes some funny stuff and some of it is fact and some is fiction. I have even copied some of his stuff and read to my husband so he could have some good laughs too. This particular one is where he discusses how men carry wallets and women carry purses and that we do carry everything but the kitchen sink in them. I had to laugh because he was describing my purse to a T. Recently my sister-in-law was here and she lifted my purse off the chair and sit it on the table. She said, "Lord A Mercy, what in the world have you got in there? I couldn't carry a purse that heavy." I told her it had all my "stuff" in it. After reading his post I was thinking of all the things I have in my purse. When I was working the other girl in the office asked if anyone had any matches. I don't smoke, never have, but I dug in my purse and pulled out a book of matches that had been in there for ages. She was amazed that I had some. She wanted it to light a candle. Another time she needed a safety pin. I dug in my purse and got her one. The Doctor came in and asked if anyone had a KY road map. We just looked at each other. I said, "Well I know I carry lots of stuff in my purse but I don't have that!" But I did have one in the car!

I think the things that make it really heavy are the cell phone, digital camera, spare batteries for the camera, and enough loose change (like Doug said) to fill a bank vault! I have a side pocket that I put loose change in. Sometimes when it gets to overflowing I will empty it. Lots of the loose change gets tossed in the purse and stays there until I clean it out (which is rare). Loose change gets quite heavy. Then you add in the comb, lipstick, mirror, 2 checkbooks, a large wallet, appointment (not that I have any) calendar with notepad, Kleenex, ink pens (2-4), reading glasses, huge bunch of keys (which are also quite heavy), address book, asthma inhaler, and then you have the miscellaneous stuff; safety pin, matches, couple of separate keys, small container of Tylenol, maybe an extra allergy pill or two, an extra pair of earrings, paper clip or two (just in case I need one), emery board (don't you hate to get a broken nail and no emery board), coupons, lip gloss, nail clippers (a must have!), dental floss (another must have!), and ....I think that's about it. I've probably got something in there I left out though! However....no kitchen sink, probably because there's no more room!! I bought a new purse and it's bigger than the one I have now.......so...that means I can carry more items! Let's see.......maybe an extra pair of shoes??? Nah!!

More Mushrooms

We had lots of rain this past Friday, Saturday, and Sunday morning. According to our rain guage we got about 6 inches during the whole thing. We had some real gully washers. As some of you who watch the news may have heard KY was hard hit and did have some deaths from the flooding. Mostly Louisville, Elizabethtown, and Lexington. We didn't get as much as they did.

I guess all this dampness is good mushroom weather. I found these small ones growing in the back yard. These don't even compare with that monster in my last post though. Cute little mushrooms and I found it fascinating that they are all different.

The Giant Mushroom........

We have had rain today. It was a nice day for staying in and being generally lazy. Since I was up quite late last night then that was easy for me to do. Now there is a nice breeze blowing but it's not really cool, but it feels great. I have just been sitting out on the front porch for a little while as the light turned to dark and it was very pleasant.

The past couple of days have been cooler and I did some walking, which is always a good thing!

I came across this mushroom in the woods and it is the biggest one I have ever seen. When I first saw it I thought, "What in the world is that?? A white basketball, a white helmet???" Then as I got closer I realized it was a mushroom. Naturally I had to take a picture but I did not have my digital camera with me and normally I always have it with me. Isn't that how it always goes?? So I went back yesterday and took the pictures below.

















I took my shoe off to help show the size and believe me I do have big feet. Those are size ......well let's just say that I have BIG feet, okay??? Alright all ready.......those are size 11. Usually I wear a 10 but sometimes a 10 hurts my big toe, so I got 11's so I can wear my thick socks and have nice comfy feet while walking. Now are you satisfied??

Anyway, getting back to the mushroom....I was just amazed by the size of this one. It was the only one all alone there in the woods. Later I ran into a park ranger and in talking with him I mentioned it to him. He said that once he was out working in the woods and he saw 3 of them. From a distance he thought they were debris and he went to get them and they were 3 big puff mushrooms. Very interesting for me to find this one. I probably would have thought the aliens had landed for sure if there would have been 3 of them!

Bathroom Break

One thing I dislike doing is using public bathrooms. I only use them in a "have to" case!

I thought this sign was funny in regard to bathroom usage!! I wonder if it helped to keep this particular bathroom any cleaner!!

Things Found in My Yard Today

I was looking around for some pictures to take and this is some of what I came up with.
I was looking for some color and found some. The lamb's wool is one of those that the seeds get blown about and before you know it you will have lots of it. I love to feel of the leaves though. They certainly do feel like lamb's wool, so silky soft and smooth.






The cosmos are doing well.














Then of course I found Chunky Monkey (Little Bit, but I usually call him Chunky Monkey), up in the Bradford pear tree trying to ambush any birds caught off guard. I got him down. Where he's at there is a feeder in front of him and one behind him. He blends in very well with the tree too. Usually he's not too bad to bother the birds anymore like he was at first, but still sometimes he can't resist the urge to get up there and try. He is one of the cats I brought from the farm where I feed the strays every day. He was still a kitten then. He is a real sweetie too. I'm so glad I brought him home, even if he does try to ambush the birds occasionally!

















While I was out there under the oak tree one of these came flying down and barely missed my head. I think it would have been a big ouch if it had hit my head, even if my head is hard! Then you all could have called me Acorn Head. Well ......you could but I know you all are far too nice to do that! They are a nice size this year. Looking at the picture I think they'd be cute if they had little faces painted on them......hmmm....maybe I'll try that and see what I come up with.

Another Visit to The Falls

This past Saturday I went back to Cumberland Falls and took my great niece with me. We went horseback riding. That is her on the horse and then in front is the young man that led the way. His name was Daniel. She loved it and wanted to keep riding all day. I promised her that we would do it again soon. There was a group getting ready to go rafting below the falls. I would like to do that someday! It is a beginner's raft ride and is 5 miles. I have never done anything like that and I think it would be great fun! Right now I have a little list of things I want to do pretty soon (like this year or next), and so far that list is:

1. Ride on a tube behind a boat on the lake with the boat driver not drinking, not high, and not crazy, and knows what he/she is doing and is very careful and alert to all things!
2. Ride a ski-doo or jet ski.
3. Go rafting below the falls.

Not much of a list huh? Well, that's just the main ones I can think of right now.

****************************************
A little old man shuffled slowly into an ice cream parlor and pulled
himself slowly, painfully, up onto a stool. After catching his breath, he
ordered a banana split. The waitress asked kindly, "Crushed nuts?" "No,"
he replied, "Arthritis."

Remembering 9-11

I know everyone can remember where they were when they first heard about the senseless attacks by terrorists back on 9-11-01. I was at work in a doctor's office. We had a TV in the waiting room. The office manager came back where I was and told me what was happening. I immediately went out in the waiting room to watch in horror. There was only 2-3 patients there at the time and we were all glued to the TV. The other doctor who shared our office (he was not seeing patients that day) was also there watching. We watched in stunned silence, shock, and horror as the tower's were hit and then hearing about the Pentagon. Once I heard about the Pentagon it suddenly dawned on me that my stepdaughter was working in Washington, DC at that time. I didn't know where in DC but I knew she was there. That sent a new fear through me. She works for a company that produces software out of NC and they were there training employees at a company that had purchased their software. I dug her business card out of my purse and then got on the phone and called the company that she works for in Charlotte. They told me that they had not been able to be in contact with any of their people yet but they were desperately trying to find out about their safety. They took my name and told me they would call me as soon as they had any word. I then called her mother in Ohio and told her that I was trying to find out. She was beside herself with worry as I knew she would be. She also had called the company. We promised to let each other know when we knew anything.

I went back to the TV to watch and then to see the added horror of the buildings falling and all the dust and debris and the people all running in panic.

I spent some more time watching and then I finally called her company again. He said that he had just gotten contact from the team leader of their group and that they were all safe. He didn't know where they were exactly when she had called but that they were safe. He said that they would try to rent a van to go and bring them all home as soon as they could. Then I had that wonderful relief that she was safe and I called her Mother to let her know. She was very grateful and thanked me for making the calls, etc. I knew she was too upset to do it since she was crying on the phone each time I talked with her, and that is certainly understandable.

In a few days they did send a van and brought them all back home. They were working a block from the Pentagon and heard the airplane hit and saw the smoke. Then their building was evacuated and they had to walk back to their hotel. She said everything was pretty much in chaos and they, like the rest of the world, was in shock. They watched from their room then and found out what all had been going on. She did call later that day.

Such a senseless stupid act that killed so many innocent people. My heart goes out to the families who lost loved ones. I'm sure many of the survivors have their own difficulties dealing with the memories as well.

We are never safe though. I pray that our country will not let their guard down and always be vigilant in this area. I'm sure the evil ones are always looking for an opportunity to do something else to kill as many as possible. We must all be alert. I pray that God will protect us from anything like this again.

I must say I agree with the sign on this truck below whole heartedly!

Different Stuff

Here is some tobacco and part of it's cut. The low long building you see is where they will house the tobacco to let it cure out. Since I took this picture this tobacco that has been cut is already hanging in there. We always hung ours in the barn when I was a kid growing up and people still do that too. You do see more and more like this though where they just hang it in these....and I'm not even sure what they call them. This one runs the whole length of the field and it's covered but no sides. A lot easier than building a barn and does the same job I guess.








Pup loves to have his face in the wind when he's riding in the car. Sometimes he is in the front seat and then he'll get in the back. If he has his head up there and a loud car or truck comes along he is quick to get back inside and lay down! He used to bark and bark at the garbage men and run out in the yard and just bark and carry on like he was so bad! One day he did that and the air brakes made that big noise and then they decided to dump the container from the front into the back of the truck and squeeze it up like they do. That scared poor Pup so bad he came running back to the porch. He will bark from the window now and doesn't want outside when they are near!! He just tells them off from the safety of the house!!
















I saw this van at Walmart. It's not the best shot since I didn't want to be too obvious that I was taking their picture. That van loaded down like that really caught my eye! They have all those coolers and stuff on top and the back was as full as they could pack it. That is several jugs of orange juice sitting inside the sliding door. I am assuming that they were going to a houseboat or a cottage maybe they had rented and were just stocking up on provisions! It's unusual to see a person on top of a van like that! But the guy is wearing a blue shirt and you can see the white lid of the cooler up. Reminded me of the Hillbillies when I first saw it!! That date is bad wrong on the picture. I must set that camera with the right date. I took that picture about a month ago or so.

Cumberland Fall Visit Part II

After having our lunch and feeding the raccoons then we drove down to the riding stables. I didn't actually ride but I did get on a horse and I got there among them. It was so great to get to hug a horse and be near them. That, for me, was the real treat of the day! I have always loved horses. All of these horses were beautiful and well cared for. There was 8 there munching on hay. I made my rounds to all of them. The young man working there was very nice. My neighbor refused to get on a horse although I tried to convince her to!

This is my neighbor. She is a sweet lady, an animal lover, and loves a good laugh. She and I also go to the same church and are in the same Sunday School class.

















This is the river a little ways above the falls. That bridge down there in the one you cross to get there. The next picture is the water below the falls.

















Very pretty and loud! You can see the muddy water from all the rain we have had lately.

We had a great trip and I truly enjoyed it. I have some more scenery pictures that I'll post another day. Have a safe and Happy Labor Day everyone!

Cumberland Falls Visit, Part 1

Today my SIL came and stayed with my husband, and so my neighbor and I took a trip to Cumberland Falls State Park. It was very nice. It's not that far from us, about a 35 minute drive or so. This first picture is the Dupont Lodge. This is a very pretty place with a fantastic view. This was my first time to eat there and I had the KY Hot Brown. This has toast on the bottom, then layers of ham, turkey breast, onions, bacon, and then it was topped with all that yummy cheese, a tomato slice, and another piece of bacon. Full of cholesterol and calories, but mighty good!!


This was the view from where we ate at. What a lovely view to dine by. Wouldn't it be great to wake up every morning and sit there with that view while sipping your coffee? I think so! We saw raccoons, a squirrel, and lots of birds. We got some cornbread to feed to the raccoons. They appreciated that!















This, of course, is the Cumberland River and it was quite muddy today with all the recent rain we have had. There will be more pictures from this trip coming up in my next post, so y'all come back!