Happy Halloween! May all your spookies be good ones. We’ve had an uneventful day around here. I took Ms. Kate for her weekly hair appointment this morning and I ran to Ruler’s, our local version of a Kroger store. She likes the half and half from there, although I don’t know what makes it any better than anywhere else. But the lady asks and she shall receive. 

Right now I’m waiting on the Sears Appliance repairman to arrive. We need a new door put on our microwave. It has been cracked forever but yesterday Kate told me that the glass almost fell out of it. I looked on the internet to see if that could be a home repair and it can. In fact it look relatively simple but then the caveat says, it would be best to have certified repairman  to install it. 

Well, the young repairman came out and looked at it All told, it is costing me a little less than $500 to have a new door put on my microwave. But a new over the stove unit would have cost me a lot more and bless his heart, the repairman helped to save me over too hundred dollars. Buying the new door through them would have cost me over 450.00 for just the door. So, he had set down at my computer, gave me the part number to order, and the place to order it from. It saved me $250. He will come back on the 10th and put the new door on and in the meantime —— he told me to put duct tape on the front of it to make sure the glass couldn’t fall out. Yes, it’s a redneck fix but what the hell, it works. And the microwave itself works fine. 

Last evening I got busy and actually got a good start on the “pocket sermon” I’ve had running around in my brain for the past month. The danger of the piece is that I need to watch out for “rabbit holes” and stick to where I want to go with it and don’t end up with an hour long sermon. It wouldn’t do for me to fall asleep giving a sermon. LOL

My back yard azaleas are blooming. They do this every year in the fall. There won’t be a lot of blooms but it sure is nice to look out there and see fresh blooms. I also have a couple of lilies blooming and my zinnias are doing well. Thanks for the beautiful blessings Lord!

Nothing else is happening today. I suspect the Halloween’s will be pouring out soon. I’m sticking to my guns and I’m not passing out any candy this year. We’ll just keep the lights off and not answer any doorbell ringing. I guess that makes me a Halloween Grinch, but it is what it is. 

It’s hard to believe that tomorrow is the first day of November. Seems like it got here quick but I know it didn’t. Next thing we know we’ll be celebrating Thanksgiving, then a half a month later it will be Christmas. 

That’s it for today. Have a blessed weekend. I may or not chat this weekend, if not, I’ll see you Monday. Peace. 

 Thursday afternoon and the sun is shining, and the wind has died down, and the temperature is hovering around 55 or so. All in all, a very nice day. For that I am grateful to the creator. 

Yesterday turned out to be "Tax Day" for us. Property tax bills came in for our home here and for our farmland over in Illinois. I was glad to put both checks in the mail and have that task completed. Of course, the taxes were higher this year than they were last year because that is how taxes work, I reckon. I am just glad that I can afford to pay them. Of all of the things that I have to deal with in life, I think taxes are my most disliked.  I dread every February or so when we do our income taxes because when it comes to dealing with anything using numbers, I don't do well and I'm always afraid I'm going to screw it up. Having property income from my farm always is a headache. I only get a little less than $7,000.00 a year income for renting it out but Illinois income tax just ads a headache I don't want. 

Today we were supposed to go to Louisville to have lunch with Julie and Jim and their friend Karyn. But she couldn't get anyone to "man the store" for her so we cancelled it. Instead, I went to a lunch meeting with a couple of my pastor friends. I always seem to learn stuff when I listen to these young guys. Today's topic between them cost me the purchase of another book. I came home and immediately went to Amazon and ordered the book they were talking about. What will I do with the knowledge I gain from it ----- who knows. 

Ms. Kate is currently fixing a meatloaf for our supper. She planned to do that yesterday, but we were still full from eating a late lunch. So, she's got it in the oven as I write this. She makes a great meatloaf. I know a lot of people turn their nose up at the mention of meatloaf. I had a son-n-law that would not eat it. The thing is that he likes everything that Kate would put into the making of a meatloaf but I guess the actual mixing of the elements turned him off. No wonder he became a "former son-in-law". 

Tomorrow is Halloween but The Monkey has retired and will not be sitting on the street by the driveway passing out candy. The Monkey is the mask that I have used for at least 25 years. I've just gotten to the point that I don't need to sit out in the cold, and the lids don't walk all the way up hill to our door. Years ago, the kids and I loved to decorate the house and the yard and each other for Halloween. Our's was "the house" to go to when we lived on the various Air Force bases. I've scared many a kid and adult with my various pranks. 

Okay, that's it for today. Have a great evening. Peace. 

 Good morning to you. Today is “yuckier” than yesterday weather wise for sure. It’s cloudy and rainy, and cold. But, it is supposed to all clear out  by tonight and I think the anticipated total is supposed to be around an inch and a half. It will be what it will be and my only recourse is to be thankful to God for any blessings that come with this rain. 

Tomorrow Ms. Kate and I will be heading to Louisville, KY to have lunch with Julie and her visiting friend, Karyn. Karyn is a nice lady and she and Jules are pretty much hooked at the brain. They met many years ago when Julie was working for Barnes and Noble in the Boston area. Karyn was her boss at the time. Karyn comes down every Halloween week and the two of them do “spooky stuff” together. A few years ago I went with them and Jim to Waiverly Sanitarium, a “super haunted” former tuberculosis sanitarium. We did a midnight to four in the morning stay all by ourselves in the dark. It was a lot of fun. But, no ghosties got us. LOL It is amazing how one’s mind can pull things out of the darkness whether it is there or not. I’d go back and do it again, although it is more walking than I would want to do these days, and Lord knows I couldn’t run. Bwaahahahahah!

Yesterday we took Kate for her checkup with Dr. Jackson as I told you we were going to. I’m very happy to say that she is doing very well with no outstanding issues. She does have to go for another check of her thyroid in a month. That will be done through bloodwork. Dr. J said that he really didn’t trust the “abnormal” reading that she had for that. So, he wants hr to have it checked again in a month. If it still comes out abnormal, he will adjust her medications. 

The hurricane hit Jamaica with 180 mph winds and rain causing lots and lots of damage. Then it moved on across the Atlantic and now is sitting over Cuba and hit there at 120 mph. I can’t imagine that. I think it will be over Bermuda by this afternoon and then head on northeast across the Atlantic Ocean. It will wear itself out by the time it reaches the north western coast of Europe. Our US Navy storm chasers flew into it a couple of days ago and actually had to abandon the mission because it was so rough. That doesn’t happen very often so it must have really been bad. I haven’t heard of any more deaths beyond the first 6 or 7. I pray there were no more. But lots of people are going to have to rebuild their lives out of nothing. I occasionally hear people say they would love to live on an island and enjoy the sun and the breeze and the ocean. Yes, it would be nice on those days, but when a hurricane comes —- you are out of luck. No thanks. 

I think today would be a good day for either chili or a meatloaf. I need to get some ground chuck out of the freezer. 

With that, I’ll leave you to enjoy the day as best as you can. Put a fire in the fireplace and pull up a good book. Peace. 

 If one day could copy another, today would be a copy of yesterday with the exception of maybe a couple less showers. But it is supposed to begin raining in earnest tonight and then through all day tomorrow. I’m just glad I don’t have to work outside and I feel for the folks that do. The temperature is a balmy 57 degrees. And speaking of weather, let’s all lift up prayers for Jamaica for the islands after that in the path of this category 5 hurricane. I think I heard there had been already six deaths attributed to the hurricane before it land on Jamaica this morning. When you live on an island like that, there are only a limited amount of places one can escape to. So Lord, I ask that you put a protective had on the people in the storm’s path. 

I have a stiff neck today. I guess I slept wrong in some way last night. I couldn’t really get comfortable and sleeping on my left side cause me pain of the left side of my head. It wasn’t a “headache”, it was pain on the side of my head. I don’t know what that is all about but this is the third night in a row that I have had that. I must be stacking my pillows wrong or something. 

Kate has an appointment with our family doctor today. It is a routine, every quarter visit. She did her bloodwork for the visit last Friday, I think. Today she has to have a chest X-ray. I have bragged on Dr. J before and will again. He is a really good doctor and has been through a lot with us two old farts. I pray we never have to find another doctor. He has a great family too. I was pastor for a lot of his in-laws while I was at the Ft. Branch parish. 

I have an idea for a sermon that has been rolling around in my mind for weeks now. I need to just sit down and put it on paper. Will I ever have the chance to use it???? I don’t know. But, if someone does ask me to fill in for a Sunday, I will have this one ready. It can be used on any occasion. I know I’m retired, but that doesn’t stop the brain and I like to create what I call “pocket-sermons”; sermons you have in your pocket if called upon. My buddy Art Christmas probably has a thousand pocket sermons ready to go on a moment’s notice. I’m not that wordy or smart. But then, Art has been preaching for about 60 years, has a Doctor of Ministry degree, and teaches at a seminary. I learn a lot from that old Baptist!! He’s a year older than me. He’s a great friend.

That’s it for today. Try to stay dry and warm. Give thanks to The Lord for all of the blessings you have been given year again today. Peace, my friends. 

 It’s wet, chilly, rainy and raw today. I wonder if there are any other adjectives I could use to describe a yucky (there’s one) Monday. I unfortunately thing is that this just day one of this weather. Reports say that we’ll be having this on and off through Thursday. But it is supposed to be a nice day on Friday, which is Halloween. The neighborhood monsters can have a good day to go grub for candy. I wouldn’t want them out there catching a cold. 

We haven’t done anything this morning except sit around on our IPad’s and work our individual games. Both of us like an app called Happy Color. We each do the picture of the day and then may find three or four other pictures that we like and color those. I find it a good exercise to wake up the brain while we look for the part of the picture that corresponds with the number we are trying to find. If you are looking for something a bit challenging and have free time I recommend this application. Some of the pictures will frustrate you because the spot is often quite small and well hidden. The other game that I play is Criminal Case. I’ve been playing this one for maybe three years now. Each “case” involves several different part to it and each part may take a couple of weeks to solve. Again, it’s a time waster but also mentally therapeutic. And —— I’m easily entertained. 

The reason we can sit on our bums today is that we did our work yesterday afternoon. We got the laundry all done including changing the bed clothes and making an apple pie. I think we have enough apples left for maybe two more pies and that will be the last of the fall harvest pick. Speaking of apples, I was down in my furnace/storage room a couple of days ago putting something away and noticed that we had several pints of apple butter on the shelf that Kate canned at least a decade ago. I decided to bring one up and see if it was still good. It is delicious!! It was like finding a bit of treasure down there. I figured it should be good since it was still sealed. So now, for a snack I pop a couple of pieces of bread in the toaster and have a bit of a snack of apple butter and toast. 

Our pastor had a good sermon yesterday. Yesterday was Reformation Sunday, the day that Martin Luther posted his 95 complaints to the church door in Wittenberg  Germany in 1519 and there the beginning of the Protestant (from protester) Church. His sermon was about the wife of Luther, Katherine von Bora, who was a major player in the beginning of the movement in her own right. I had never heard of her or frankly ever thought of Luther having a wife. It is an interesting story that you might want to look up sometime if you are interested in church history. He was a Catholic priest and she had been raised in a convent and wanted to escape. It’s good juicy stuff. LOL

I think it is time for me to make some Ramen soup. On a day like this soup seems like a good thing and I love ramen. 

Have a blessed day. Peace. 

 Hello Sunday afternoon. It’s been a peaceful day so far. We did “recliner church” again this week. You know, it used to bother me that people would stay home and watch the service instead of showing up in person. My argument was that you can’t get the same sense of Christian Fellowship when you aren’t together. But, frankly, Ms. Kate and I enjoy watching it from home and while we may not get the sense of “fellowship”, we are getting the gospel from our pastor and that is what counts; hearing God’s words and hearing His message.  Next week we will try hard to make it in person because it will be communion Sunday.

This afternoon Kate made another apple pie. I declared it to be “doing the LORD’S WORK because I know when it comes out of that oven it will taste heavenly. 

Yesterday we went to my sister-in-law’s house to gather pecans. She had told me that the wind was blowing a lot of nuts off of the trees. I took my bag and gathering device and went up there but I really didn’t find that many. There is enough for one good round to throw out to the squirrels. I suppose it looked like a lot more when she was mowing. Or maybe her squirrels have picked up a bunch of them already. 

My grandson Josh and his family finally got into their apartment three are renting in Raleigh, NC. The place they thought they were going to get turned out to be way less than advertised; infested with roaches, leaking ceiling, wacky electrical wiring. So, they demanded their down payment back and quickly found another place after five days in a hotel. Bless their hearts. I feel for them and am so glad it all worked out. 

Okay, my friends, that is enough for today. The end of October is rapidly coming this week. Give God thanks for any blessings you received this month. Peace. 

 Thursday finally got here, the day I have been dreading because of my electrocardiogram test. Yes, I know I was being a baby about it but those things are really very uncomfortable to have. If you’ve had one, you know what I mean. If you’ve haven’t, let me tell you about it. It is totally non-invasive and I don’t really know what they are measuring except I guess how well your heart is functioning. As I told you, I didn’t really know who prescribed it for me but I found out it was my primary care doctor, Dr. Jackson, who has been keeping me alive for 25 years now. 

Anyway, you strip down to skin above the waist and lay down on this bed on your side. The technician then spends the next hour poking and prodding with a couple of different instruments trying to get good pictures of the inside of your heart. Again this time I had a student I there to do the procedure which I’m not crazy about but she did a good job and they have to work on somebody if they are going to learn the job. The problem is that when the student has completed her job, she then calls in her supervisor to check her work. And of course the supervisor feels the need to get some pictures of her own. They have to really press hard  and they just keep it up and keep it up. I seriously thought about telling her that if she wanted to reach my back, she could maybe reach around my body instead of trying to go through it. But of course, I made it through it just fine and didn’t cry (in front of anybody.) LOL So, if your doctor recommends you have one of these things, just know, you are not in for a fun hour of your life. 

It was 42 this morning and once again is going to be only in the low 60’s today. Sunday, I think we won’t get out of the 50’s. I actually pulled out a sweatshirt to wear today. It wouldn’t be as “cold” if the wind would calm down. But the wind definitely makes you say “Brrrrrrrr!”

Yesterday afternoon we went to get “Bambi” (the little John Deere) a new battery. I’m glad to have it back up and running. Bambi is my backyard JD and I need it to mulch up the leaves that are soon going to coming own off of those two Tulip Poplar trees. I could of course, take “Big John” around back but it is a tight squeeze along the sidewalk and getting through the gate. When I bought Big John I tried to trade in Bambi it the dealer wouldn’t give much at all for it so I just kept it and once I got the fuel pump issues worked out, it has run well. I just needed something with a bit more power for my snow clearing out front, so I bought something a little bigger for the front. I don’t need to do snow removal in the back yard although I could because I have a blade of Bambi too. As much as I enjoy the setting of our home on this hill, I certainly didn’t consider snow removal at the time. 

Tomorrow is going to be another busy day. Kate has a hair appointment and I have an appointment to get my toe nails trimmed a the same time in two different locations. So, I will drop her off and run down the street to my appointment, then pick her up when I’m done. From there we’ll go do our thing at Planet Fitness and then we’ll head up to Kate’s sister’s house and gather pecans. She has three big pecan trees and they are dropping pecans like crazy with the wind we are having. I have the neatest pecan gathering tool and it requires no bending over. From there we’ll probably go get some lunch somewhere before we finally come home. So, I may or may not post tomorrow.

That’s it for today. Have a great evening. Remember that God loves you and you are never alone. Peace. 

 Can I say it????? HUMP DAAAAAAY! It’s been around I think for seven or eight years and I still get a kick out of that. Silly camel. 

It’s 48 degrees this morning and we have a frost advisory for tonight. Fall has certainly arrived in style. Yesterday it was really windy all day. We had gusts up to 40mph. I don’t see much of a breeze out there at the moment and we are supposed to have a fairly calm day. Actually the wind is what kept the frost away this morning. 

Our cleaning lady, Kari, is coming this morning. She does such a good job and is so very personable. We know two other families that she works for. Kate had  put off hiring someone for a long time but when she started to have all of her health issues she finally gave in. She comes every two weeks and mainly does stuff that I did as a kid when I lived at “home” for my “chores. She does dusting, cleans the bathrooms, vacuums, and anything else that I might want her to do. She spends three hours or so and the place feels fresh when she is done. We had her come when we were on this last vacation so that we come home to a freshly cleaned house. It is a great way to “finish up a vacation.”

Today is gym day so we will be heading down to Planet Fitness in maybe another hour. We only use one of the machines and do 30-40 minute workout but it keeps us fit. It obviously helps because it was reflected in my physical last week with all of my good stats. 

Tomorrow I have to go for an echocardiogram and I don’t really know why or who scheduled it for me. I had one last year too but I don’t recall my doctor saying anything about me needing it They called yesterday as my reminder and I had an option to cancel it and really considered that. But, I’ll go ahead and let them poke and prod on my body and then they can tell me I’m good to go. 

The neighbors across the street finally have contractors working on their house that caught on fire early this year. They have gutted to house and will be replacing the roof as well as building a new attached garage. It  has been a long process for them but they think they will be in by the end of February. It  gives the rest of the neighborhood something to be nosey about. My next door neighbor on my south side is having a roof put on this morning so I have entertainment all day. 

We need to make apple pie again today because our apples are starting to get a little soft. Darn the luck. 

With that silliness I think I will sign off for today. I pray God brings peace to your life today. 

 Good morning on this sunny Tuesday. It was a bit warmer this morning when I got up; 55 instead of 40 like yesterday. I think we’re supposed to be going to may 70 or so today. Last night the weather reporter said that the outlying areas could maybe get a light frost. I don’t know if it happened or not. However, he also laid out the dates of our “normal” first frost and first freeze. Unfortunately, those days are not that far away. But then Christmas is only about 63 days away. That doesn’t seem possible  to me. I still have a long way to go to get my fall outside stuff done. The leaves haven’t really started to fall yet and the grass is still green. I guess a lot of changes are going to happen in the next thirty days or so. 

I fixed Pillsbury Orange rolls this morning. I really like them, but today I don’t know what happened to them. I’ve fixed these things hundreds of times but today they got too done on top and not quite done on the bottom. It won’t keep me from eating them but it was disappointing. Maybe I should have turned to oven to 350 degrees instead of 400 like the instructions said. I guess I will have to “practice” some more. 

With the days heading towards frost time I would normally be bringing in my flower pots for the winter but I don’t think we are going to this year. We have had those three pots of geraniums for years by now and they seem to bloom constantly. But this year they have had nothing but blooms that are fairly scraggly looking. I think it is time to give them up and plant new ones next year. Next spring I will put all new potting soil in the pots and fresh new plants. Of course our weather has been unpredictable this year and that might have affected the way the bloomed. We had entirely too much rain in the spring and then we had five different heat waves with no rain. It’s a wonder they bloomed at all. 

I’m very happy for my former parish. They are building an addition on to the parsonage at St. Lucas to house the pastor and his family. It has not housed a pastor since 2004 because I didn’t need it when I started up there. The two pastors previous to me were single and didn’t need a lot of room. However, the current pastor has several children and there wasn’t enough room. The parish decided to have a “whole hog” raffle in order to help raise the money to build on. They had hoped to raise at least $5,000.00. They actually raised $11,000.00. So good on them. I’m very happy for them. 

I think the outside has reached a comfortable temperature so I’m jumping off and going to do some outside work. I hope you have a most blessed week. Peace. 

 Welcome to Monday and the beginning of another week. Actually, that isn’t totally correct. According to our calendars, Sunday is the beginning of the week.It seems though that at some point in my lifetime the calendars changed and Sunday used to be at the end of the week. Does anyone remember that? After all, we call it a weekend and have Saturday and Sunday off work. We also say that “on the seventh day, God rested and declared the day to be holy.” To be fair, many churches and faiths use Saturday as their 7th day and worship day so I don’t really know but would love to hear your thought over on my Facebook page. 

It was forty degrees when I got up this morning but by now it is a pleasant 68 degrees and the sun is shine bright. There is a bit of a breeze though so unless one is busy outside it could feel a little cool. 

Ms. Kate had an appointment with one of her heart doctors this morning. They ran an EKG and checked her medical records etc and said, “See you in six months”. That’s pretty much what I hear these days too. Thursday I have to go in for an echocardiogram. I hate those. 

We stopped for lunch after Kate’s appointment. I had an order of gizzards, German fries, and creamy slaw. Kate got a trip to the salad bar and ate part of my gizzards. I love gizzards but they will wear your jaws out. 

Talk to you tomorrow. Peace. 

 Happy Saturday morning to you. It is a bit warmer this morning as we await a coming storm pattern for this afternoon and maybe even a bit over night. Maybe we need rain by now, I don’t really know. Most of the growing season is over so I don’t really have a dog in the fight. What we don’t need is a severe storm and I think we are maybe under a watch for that. 

So, a Saturday blog as opposed to a Friday blog. Yesterday was filed with stuff to do and by the time I got around to it, it was late and I was tired. Or, maybe I was just lazy, I don’t know that it makes any difference. This morning I had to make a run to the bank. We had three CD’s mature today and I wanted to “roll them over”. Interest rates have dropped some since I purchased them. I bought the old ones at 4.5% and today I was only able to get 3.95%. I doesn’t a huge difference because we will roll them over again next April. I have two more coming due in December and I do hope the rates nudge back up. There may be places that pay a little more but I’m a loyalist and will stick with my bank. I know people that jump around each time they think they can get a little better deal whether it with their interest and cable company. We’ve been with the same cable company since we moved here in 2001. They have changed names etc three times I think but we just stay the course and press on. 

I finally the flower beds by the street yesterday. And I mowed my backyard and mulched up those leaves. There was a lot of leaves. We have only had the one weekend where a bunch of leaves fell. But the grass was getting long and the backyard looked bad. I had to take the big John Deere to the backyard to do the work because “Bambi”, (the smaller John Deere) had a dead battery. I just put a new battery in “Big John” (the larger of the two John Deere’s) two weeks ago, I think, or maybe it was last week. Time to get out another $100.00 bill I reckon and make Bambi healthy again.  I wonder why batteries are so expensive???

My oldest garndchild, Joshua, and his family are moving to North Carolina today. They left New Hampshire yesterday. I think it is going to be interesting to watch them acclimate themselves to “the South”. They have lived in New England their entire lives, living in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Josh has at least traveled and is used to other parts of the country but his family are definitely New Englanders.  I love North Carolina and they are moving to Raleigh but life is going to slow down for them. Their daughter is still in high school. I offer prayers for their success. 

Okay, I need to go fire up the grill and cook some pork chops before the storms come in. This is the weekend; —- God’s time. Take the opportunity to go to your house of worship and give thanks for another  week here on the planet. Peace. 

 Thursday evening. It has been another busy day and a good day too. As I told you, I was to have my physical exam this morning. I did and everything went very well. I had read my lab reports yesterday evening on “Deaconess View My Chart” so I already knew what he would be saying. And sure enough, he did: —- “ somebody has been eating too many donuts.”  All of my tests were good with the exception of my blood sugars and they were pretty high. Not diabetes high but higher than they should be. So, I know he’s right and I need to slack off on my sweets. The problem is that all of the things I really like to eat convert to sugar, stuff like pasta, potatoes and of course the desserts. I have another physical next May and I will try to bring my numbers down a little. 

We had a little incident last evening concerning Kate’s last piece of Apple pie. I had put the pie pan back in the oven because I knew I would be having it for a mid-night snack. I told Kate where it was. We, about supper time Kate was going to fix some biscuits. To go with supper. She turned the oven on to heat it up and searched in the refrigerator for a can of biscuits and didn’t find any, and thought no more about the oven. As we sat watching television I kept thinking I smelled something burning. Finally I got up and checked the stove and oven. There, baking at 450 degrees was that poor piece of pie as well as the pie scoop. I have never seen anything come out of an oven that black and burnt. Frankly, it is a wonder that we didn’t have a fire. Needless to say, the pie was completely inedible. And the pie plate, (her favorite) is ruined. I was able to save the pie scoop after a lot of cleaning. However —- Amazon delivers and she found a couple of pie plates that she thinks are going to be good replacements, and she bought two new pie scoops too. What would we do without Amazon???

While we were at the doctor’s office, we got our flu shots. We asked Dr. Jackson about getting our Covid shots and he said the latest version hasn’t come out yet and probably won’t until sometime in November. So he said we should wait because the strain of the vaccine that people are currently using does no good against the strain of the virus that currently going around. 

We went out for dinner at “Ma T China Bistro” because I was hungry for some ramen noodles. Ms T’s is a favorite place. For you locals, it is on Vogel Avenue and I highly recommend it. 

My television show is coming on so I’m out of here. Have a blessed day. Peace. 

 Hello Wednesday. I made it through my confusing Tuesday without any mishaps. LOL, Well, except for wondering where my Friday television shows were. I don’t know if I told you that my doctor’s office called me about an hour after I got home and I finally had something to eat and told me they had put in the order for my blood-work. So, I went this morning and got that done. Now I can eat the donut holes I bought yesterday for my breakfast. They are so darn good. They are still fresh this morning. I’m telling you, that Windmill Bakery has it going on!!

Yesterday was a great day in Kate’s kitchen. She made the tuna salad that I have been wanting and she made an apple crumble pie. (Maybe I told you that.) Any way, both were delicious. I had two pieces of pies last evening and I’m trying to mind my manners until at least after lunch time to dive in today. But that pie will not see tomorrow.  Kate is a great cook and through almost 60 years of her cooking I can’t remember more than one or two things she fixed that didn’t turn out right and were not tasty. However, the two very best things she fixes are her pies and her soups. I love her soups, especially her crème soups like mushroom. And of course I love her pies. I think though I like her apple pies the most. At one time my mother used to make a great apple pie but as she got older they changed and she put less and less apples in them We swore sometimes she would only use one apple for the thing. But then, she was 97 when she passed so I reckon that might account for some of it. 

I don’t have a lot on my schedule today. We were supposed to go to the gym but Kate has some kind of infection/bite or something on her foot and can’t wear shoes without irritating it and making it both hurt and itch. I reckon I will get my exercise by doing some more flowerbed work. And, —— I think I will fill my bird feeders today. I have not filled them in maybe six weeks and there is still feed in some of them. They have been feeding on nature’s bounty I reckon. But, I’ll clean out the ones that have food in them and put fresh food all around. It is past time for the hummingbirds and I have three of their feeders to wash up and store until maybe next July. I also need to really look at my feeders because they are all several years old and many are showing the wear and abuse that some of my guests hand out, especially that four-legged bushy-tailed uninvited guests. But the good news is that even the squirrels have been absent. They certainly aren’t gone, they are just over eating someone else’s bird feeders and waiting for the buffet to open. I’ll bet you they will be back on my feeders before the day is over. 

Our neighbor, two houses over had their house burn early this spring and the builders are just now starting on it. The fire only burned the garage and part of the roof but the water from the fire department of course ruined everything else. So, they have gutted the house down to the studs and are building on a new garage and putting on a new roof for the house. It makes for nosy neighbor watching as we all trade opinions about what should be done with something that is none of our business. 

Speaking of neighbors, I met a “neighbor” this week. She and her husband live immediately behind the houses across the road. I met him a long time ago and we exchange pleasantries when we see each other. I have seen her outside hanging three times a week but have never met her or spoken to her. Well, she was over watching the builders last week and I introduced myself to her. Why do I share this??? I have lived here for 25 years and have never spoken to this neighbor who lives in a house 500 yards from me and I can see their house from my kitchen window. I think that maybe I’m not the good neighbor I think I am. I also think that I’m not alone in that fault. I need to do better. 

That’s it for today. Have a blessed day. Peace. 

 I can hardly believe that tomorrow October will be half over. Suddenly time seems to be flying again. Before long we’ll be watching for snow, and I still have a bunch of flowerbed work to do. I guess I should do more than think about it, right??

Today though is a loss. I had a haircut appointment right around noon. That appointment is going to mess up my mental health for the rest of the week. LOLOL I always have my hair cuts done on a Friday, and an occasional Thursday. But a Tuesday haircut is going to messing up my days of the week and there is no telling how many Fridays I’m going to have this week. 

After my haircut I was to go to my doctor’s clinic and get my blood work done for my physical this Thursday. Well, the doctor’s office had not sent in the order yet, which I guess is okay except that I had fasted for the blood draw and it was well after 1300 hours. So I came home and Ms. Kate was just finishing up the Tuna Salad that I had asked her to make. And of course, about 30 minutes after I ate, the doctor’s off ice call and told me they had just sent in the order for my bloodwork. I guess I will wait until tomorrow morning now. 

The great news is that while I was out, Ms. Kate made an Apple crisp pie. It came out of the oven just as I was walking in the door. You know what is on my menu later don’t you. 

I am so glad to hear that the hostages in Gaza have been released after two years and the war there is hopefully over. Millions of prayers have been lifted up in the past two years and I suspect many people came to believe that God was not listening. But I assure you that God heard each one and I also know God acts in his own time and situations. I just send thanks to God that this has happened and pray that the conflict and war really can be over. Those areas will need a lot of help to rebuild what they have spent two years blowing up, but the people killed during all of this will never return and my heart breaks for the senseless loss of life.  Through it all, as far as I can tell, —- neither side gained a single thing. Pray with me for peace. 

I think that’s it for today. Have a blessed day. Peace. 

 A blessed Monday afternoon to you. We just got home from our Planet Fitness workout and stopped by GD Ritzies for some “3-way Chili” to bring home. I know a lot of people don’t like pasta in their chili but I always have. So “3-way” is chili with no beans, spaghetti and cheese. It’s good stuff. And they make a great chocolate malt. I think they go all the way up to “7-way” chili but that would be too many additives for me. One of my son-in-laws swears it isn’t chili if it has beans in it. I totally disagree. (How’d he get in this family anyway?)

There are great world events going on as I write this. A peace agreement has been signed between Israel and Gaza ending (at least temporarily) that war and bringing peace to the Middle East. Of course we have seen this all many times before. I don’t think I can name a president since I’ve been alive that wasn’t working to bring peace to the Middle East. I pray that this one will hold.

Are you celebrating “American Indigenous People” or are you celebrating Columbus Day? I’m not much for celebrating Columbus Day since I have read a lot about his history and the fact that his “discovery” was actually an accident and he didn’t really know where the heck he was. I personally believe we should recognize the indigenous peoples that were already here for a thousand years before any “white man” set foot upon this continent. In our scewed (SP) version of history that I grew up with we never talked about our treatment of the natives only that they killed the settlers; with the exception of “Thanksgiving Day” when they brought a roasted turkey to dinner. Today, the native Americans are the most marginalized people in our nation. But today, thousands of people will suddenly remember that they are 1/4th Cherokee.Amazing that I never hear people claim to be one of the hundreds of lesser known tribes; it’s always Cherokee. 

I listened in and watched Pastor Adam at St. Lucas in Ft. Branch yesterday. He had a good message. He is my replacement from when I retired. He’s doing very well fitting in up there it appears. WE didn’t attend our church because Ms. Kate still has that nagging cough. And while we would usually watch our church on TV, they didn’t broadcast it yesterday due to a lack of people to help run it. 

Tat’s about it for today. I pray you have a week full of God’s holy blessings. Peace. 

 It is Friday evening and Ms. Kate and I have been out and about since early this morning. Our normal routine lets us do stuff on our IPads for a couple of hours each morning before we get our day started. It gives us time to have coffee, and wake our brains up. 

I was pretty stiff and sore this morning from my flowerbed work yesterday. I had to take some Tylenol at 0530 because my hands were cramping up so much from pulling sunflowers for two hours yesterday and a couple of hours on Wednesday. But I got the bed at the 99% complete point. Lastly yesterday I had one last thing I wanted to do with the John Deere but the battery was completely dead. Time to get a new one. This morning I had “a plan” for the day. After IPad session we would go to the apple orchard out in the next county. I called to make sure they still had apples and they did. So we drove out there, (25 miles to the west of us) and pick up a half bushel of Golden Delicious. There will be several pies in our future for sure. 

The next stop would be at the John Deere store which would be on the east side of Evansville and maybe seven miles to the east of our house. Battery procured, we decided to go to a restaurant up north of Legottee (SP??) IN which was a little over an hour north east of our place. So off we went. The place is called Stoll’s Amish Restaurant and was well worth the drive. They have a “typical” Amish buffet and the food was really good. However, they are known for their pies and the reputation is well earned. Yes, I had two pieces, a coconut meringue and a chocolate meringue. When we finished there we headed towards home which takes us through the city of Montgomery, IN. In Montgomery there is another Amish place that has a great bakery and they make really good Angel Food cakes and sell them at a very reasonable price. So I stopped in there and picked up a lemon Angel Food cake. 

We came home, put away the apples, installed the battery on the JD and made sure it ran, and then flopped into our recliners. That’s where we are for the evening. Later, I will cut us a piece of cake for a midnight snack. 

That’s it for today. I probably won’t write during the weekend, so I’ll see you on Monday. Don’t forget that Sunday id for The Lord. Take the time to attend your house of worship or attend a service from the comfort of your recliner and television. Peace. 

 Good morning and a blessed Thursday to you. It’s a bit chilly yet but is going to go up to mid-seventies and a day of sunshine. That’s perfect weather for being outside and working on my flowerbeds. I guess I talk about working in them a lot but they are so much work. It was a lot easier when I was creating them and was 59 years old. At 81, there is a lot more groaning going on both during the effort and the next day. I spent maybe three hours out there yesterday. I got the front yard mowed, neighbor Dan’s yard mowed and the flower bed about 85% done. I’m pulling up all of the Black-eyed Susans, (an annual Task) and will trim the peonies off today. Then if I’m not done in for the day I will take the weed eater and go over the whole thing. That flower bed is probably 70X40 and is on a hill. Makes it very unsteady to work on and I have fallen on it a couple of times. So, I tread carefully.

Ms. Kate and I were talking this morning about the announcement that Disney is raising the prices to their theme parks AGAIN!!!!! We have been to both Disneyland and Disney World a number of times when the kids were young and then again with grandchildren and while “expensive” it was tolerable. But according the the article their prices have risen by 136% in just the last decade. The cheapest adult ticket for a one day, off season visit is over $200.00. That doesn’t include parking fees which have also gone up. I can easily see where it would cost a family of four $1000.00 per day to go there. And I also read that the CEO of Disney, Bob Lager, just got a pay raise and is making $41 million a year. $41 million dollars a year. There is no way that he can begin to identify with his customers as anything more than a walking dollar sign. Don’t get me wrong, I know that Disney contributes to the economy through job creation and using small businesses but, I think it has long since eliminated the possibility for millions of families to afford what they offer. And I think that demanding a $41 million salary is sinful. Enough of that rant.  

Have you been to the Fall Festival yet? Do you plan to go? Ms. Kate and I haven’t been in at least ten years except maybe to go around lunch time, go pick up a sausage burger and get out of the crowd. I certainly remember the “Old days”. Of course as a band member, I marched in the parade with the Reitz High School Band. And as a kid I was in the Talent show and won that once or twice. I remember going as a high school kid with a girl friend but I don’t remember my parents ever taking me except to be in the talent show. I liked the rides, especially the Farris Wheel. 

I think we may be heading out to the apple orchard either today of tomorrow It is apple pie season and I don’t want to lose out. So, I need to get some working clothes on and get busy. I hope you have a blessed day. Peace. 

 I consider myself somewhat of a self appointed expert in tasting of donuts. This area has a lot of opportunities for places to find good donuts too. We’re fortunate that way. There was a time when it was very hard for me to pass up a Dunkin Donut shop, especially when we were on the road. However, on my list of favorites, Dunkin has slipped to the bottom. Many of you will remember the old commercial “Time to make the donuts” where the fellow gets up real early and heads off to Dunkin Donuts. Sadly that is the case anymore. I don’t think any of the local Dunkin’s make their donuts “in house” any more. If they did, they wouldn’t taste “day old”. 

Locally, I think Donut Bank does a great job. Their donuts are always fresh and they have a great selection from which to choose, I like crème-filled donuts and their Bavarian crème filled ones are excellent. So, they get the number one position. Number two and moving up fast is just a mile down the road from me at Windmill Bakery. Believe it or not, it is a bakery inside of a Marathon gas station. There was a bakery in the same spot many years again and the donuts were pretty good but for what ever reason, they quit making donuts there about ten years ago. This summer, obviously someone new took over the place and totally rehabbed the place and they are making some delicious donuts. I’m having one as I type this. I really hope they succeed and I think they will because you have to get there early for product. I still haven’t gotten there early enough to get donut holes. Their selection is still somewhat limited but they are doing a great job of getting the business up and running and are nice people to deal with. 

Evansville folks were really excited when Parlour Donuts opened up and so were we. We stopped there a few times. My opinion though is that they are too expensive for what you get and I don’t like paying for reputation. As a friend of mine once said, atmosphere and reputation don’t have a lot of taste. 

When I was serving the churches up in Ft. Branch, I used to go to their little donut place. I don’t know if it is still in operation or not but they had good donuts. I used to pick up some to take to our Wednesday morning Bible Study and never got to take any leftovers home. If you live up there, check it out; it’s on Main Street I think. 

I’m also a fan of picking up the occasional donuts of cinnamon roll at our local grocery stores that have in store bakeries. Schnucks has some great crème-filled Long John’s although they have kept the same price and shortened the size of the product. “Not fair Schnucks!!!!!”

That’s my tutorial on local donuts. Maybe I’ll do one on ice cream places although everyone knows I’m partial to Cold Stone above all other and then Dairy Queen How fortunate for me that there is a Dairy Queen located next door to Windmill Donuts!!!!!!

It was 53 degrees when I got up this morning but the sun is shining. This is a gym day but my exercise is going to be had pulling weeds and mowing/mulching up leaves today. We’re supposed to get up to 73 today. That’s perfect. 

Having said all of that, I hope you have a blessed day. Peace. 

 Well of course it’s raining. I am supposed to have a contractor coming this morning to do some work. I contracted several, maybe three, months ago for a company called Acculevel to come and raise up the concrete of my back sidewalk and patio. We had a date set and they called in late August to reschedule because they didn’t have a crew available for the day planned. So, they wanted to set one of the days from two weeks ago but that wasn’t good because we would be on vacation. So, we agreed on today. Of course, as you know, we have been in a drought situation and the weather has been perfect up until today. I haven’t heard from them yet today and maybe they can work in the rain, but ——— I reckon we will see what happens. Speaking of which, they just pulled up. And as I suspected, they can’t pour foam in the rain and standing water. Another reschedule is coming. On the other hand, Lord, I thank you for the rain. It will settle the dust and I can mulch up the leaves in my yard tomorrow or Thursday. It will also soften the ground so I can pull up the sunflowers in my flowerbeds and also all the other stuff that needs removal from those beds. 

Yesterday we had an exercise in frustration with Spectrum and Hulu. We had been watching some shows on Hulu and suddenly we could get it This was before we went on vacation. So yesterday we went to Spectrum to see what the problem was since Hulu is part of our plan. Well, the good news is that after a review of our Spectrum plan we saved ourselves about $60.00 a month and they gave us written instruction on how to activate Hulu again. We went to lunch (nice lunch at Texas Roadhouse) and went home to watch Hulu. Nothing we did got us on Hulu/Disney. (They are bundled together through Spectrum)  Eventually Ms. Kate called Spectrum and talked to someone who very patiently walked us through the process. How nice to actually be able to talk to a human.  But it took a good three hours from start to finish. Technology is great ——- when it works. 

Ms. Kate has a mammogram this morning at 11:00. I hope it quits raining by then. She won’t have to walk in the rain because I’ll drop her at the door and then go park and wait. I’m a professional when it comes to waiting. LOL. 

Ms. Kate and I have made one lifestyle change this year. We have joined Planet Fitness and try to go to the gym three days a week. We do a 30-45 minute workout. I think it has helped us both and is improving heart health for us. She had to go to Heart Therapy last year and decided that she liked doing it, so we decided to continue with it. It helps my breathing and I’m sure helps strengthen our hearts. Getting old takes work if you want to continue getting old. 

That’s it for today. I pray God will fully bless your day and bring peace to your life. 

 Welcome back me. I know it has been months since I last wrote. I want to thank those of you who have inquired as to my absence from the blog. I truly do appreciate you concern and caring. You might recall I was having problems with the site and just quit trying to mess with it. But, I’m going to give it another try with intent this time. 

Ms. Kate and I have had a great year so far in 2025. It would appear that most of the health problems Ms. Kate had for 2023 and 2024 are finally under control and she is doing very well. I can’t say enough about the power of our Lord God and the power of all of your prayers. My health continues to be excellent with the exception of some aggravating arthritis in my left knee. I guess you have to expect that when your life calendar reads 81 years old. But, a visit to the orthopedic doctor and a few weeks of therapy has that under control combined with a shot in my knee. We will hope it continues to behave itself. 

I am 98% retired which means I fill in for a vacationing pastor when asked and have only done that three times this year so far. And —— admittedly, I do miss it. I was asked by the pastor at my former parish to fill in one Sunday and it felt like a homecoming. I do love spreading the Gospel. 

It’s a rainy afternoon and I really glad. It is supposed to be raining again tomorrow so no weed pulling or mowing tomorrow. We have been in a drought situation so a little rain is welcome. It’s almost time to clean up all of the flower beds and maybe even the tomatoes. There are still a lot of green tomatoes on the plants but not much seems to be ripening and what does develops “bottom rot”. But, if you followed me on Facebook, you know that I had a really great tomato season. I started them from seeds and they really grew. 

Ms. Kate and I just got home Saturday from visiting my daughter Lisa and her family in North Carolina and then went to Colonial Williamsburg for three days. We are contemplating another trip, this time to Biloxi, MS at the end of October. We haven’t made any firm plans yet. If not then, our next “firm plan” is to Sieverville TN in June of 2026 for a full family reunion. We already have the place rented. 

Okay that’s a start. Y’all have a wonderful evening. Stay in touch with God. Peace.