Hello on this Thursday morning. It is a crisp and breezy thirty-eight degree morning. Actually it is more than breezy, it is down-right windy and has been now for a couple of days. We have a frost advisory in effect until 0900 this morning, and we have another frost advisory in effect for tonight. At least it isn’t snowing here like it is up in Wisconsin. They are expecting another eight inches. This winter just will not quit.

But, yesterday was an absolutely perfect day weather-wise. And —- I took advantage of it which is why you didn’t hear from me. It got to almost eighty degrees yesterday. I had office hours yesterday morning of course but then Ms. Kate and I went out to lunch and to the grocery store. Then yesterday afternoon my young neighbor came over and helped me get the twenty-one bags of mulch spread on the front flower beds. Now I need to go to Lowes and see how much they are selling their mulch for. I can easily use another 21 bags and maybe even more than that. I’m hoping they still have it on sale. The kid is a good helper and I have already given him another job that I want him to do. I told him he can work independently on it and keep track of his hours and I’ll pay him. I want him to rake all of the leaves out from an area that I have trouble getting into. He knows to take it over and put the leaves into my compost pile. We’ll see how that works out. By my calculations, it shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours for him to do that job.

I see I have a feeder down this morning. I don’t know if it was the wind or they raccoons or birds. I also have some small limbs down so it could have been the wind. Regardless, the feeder is empty which means I have feeders to fill again today. Since it is supposed to get up into the lower fifties today, that job can wait until a little later this morning. I also have to carry all of the plants that we bought out on the patio and water them. I don’t want water all over my sunporch floor. I’ll let them drain and then I guess I’ll bring them back in so they don’t get frost bit tonight.

The daffodils are done blooming now and the tulips are looking beautiful. That new bed of tulips that I planted really came out nicely. Ms. Kate has ordered some more that will be delivered this fall in time for planting. Now the azealias are staring to bloom too. I love these transition periods in the spring. However, another job on my list is to get the knockout roses trimmed back and the other roses too. There is never a lack of things to do it seems.

Speaking of things to do it is time to wrap this up and get on to doing other things. It’s been nice talking to you this morning. I hope your day will be wonderful and filled with the love that comes from God. Until next time; — peace.

Thirty six degrees this morning as I sit here for Cardinals and Coffee time at the Backyard Buffet. But it is a far cry from yesterday’s snow and stuff. It is a beautiful morning. The sun is shining, the sky is a clear brilliant blue with no clouds to be seen. And if the forecast is correct, it will be going up to almost sixty today. That would be nice.

This morning my guests include woodpeckers, cardinals, goldfinches, robins, mockingbirds, starlings, a dove or two and a couple of squirrels. My feeders are all full so everybody has plenty to eat. I’m just about out of the very last of the product they call bark butter paste. I still haven’t found a good substitute and I refuse to pay the price they want to buy it on line. Four tubs of it with shipping would be $75.00. I was at Pet Food Center last week and asked them about it and they said they are trying to add it to their product line but it is from a different supplier than they normally use. They have had a lot of calls for it since Wild Birds closed down here in town. There are Wild Birds Unlimited stores over in St. Louis, Nashville, and Indianapolis; but I don’t know that it is economical to drive three hundred miles for bird food. So, if I want this product, maybe on line will be the way I end up going. It’s a quandary because so many of my birds really like it. Somebody needs to step up and buy this local franchise just to make me happy. LOL

I finished my sermon for this Sunday. My next Sunday to preach will be Mother’s Day. So, — I have a couple of weeks to think about what I might want to write. Certainly it will need to be homage to mothers everywhere but it needs to be Biblical too. Perhaps I need to read a little Catholic theology since they put much more emphasis on the mother of  Jesus than we Protestants do. I’d like to get beyond the “Honor thy father and Mother” commandment. I guess I’ll just have to first see what the liturgical calendar calls for for that Sunday.

What to do with myself on this non-event day is the question. I have a Board of Christian Education meeting this evening but the rest of my day is free. It is still too wet to be working in the flower beds and yard. And frankly, it is still too chilly  out there too. Maybe I’ll open up one of the Stephen King books that have been sitting here partially read for about four months and do a little reading. That would be a change of pace and thinking for a while. Or, I’ll waste some time playing bingo and Criminal Case on the computer. A person needs a non-brain  engaged day once in a while. I don’t do enough of those. Within clergy circles those are called “personal health” days.

First though, as I look at all of my backyard buffet guests and the joy and beauty they bring me, I must stop and give thanks. I’m a fully blessed person and I’m extremely grateful to God for that. I hope and pray you have a wonderful day. Keep your heart close to God. Peace.

Okay!!! What is up with this snow? Who authorized snow on April 16th? This is really getting old and people are really getting grumpy. I'm even at the point where I frowned this morning. But my backyard buffet guests just go blithely on as if it were a sunny day. The difference being that they were all puffed up once again as a defense against the thirty-two degree temperature and the wind. The wind is sharp this morning making the "feels like" temperature down in the twenties.

I have office hours this morning until noon. Then this afternoon I need to do some touch up on my sermon for this Sunday. I wasn't supposed to preach this coming Sunday but Art has a family funeral to attend and asked me if I'd fill in for him. Of course it isn't a problem. I had most of my sermon for the following week already written so I'll just do it a week earlier.

I had hoped to be able to spread my mulch on Saturday but the rain prevented that. While it didn't rain all day, the ground was too muddy to be walking around in. My young kid next door called me yesterday afternoon to see if I wanted to do it then but I told him it was still too wet. So, we'll hope for some dryer and sunnier days this week and maybe some afternoon he can help me if he isn't covered up with homework.

Today will be laundry day for Ms. Kate while I'm at the office. With just the two of us, it only takes a couple of loads. But I'll have to swap it from the washer to the dryer when I get home because she is too short to reach it without using a pair of tongs. I'd make fun of her for it except that it is almost too deep for me to reach the bottom of the washing machine without stretching a little. I may go by the nursing home and do a little visitation on the way home today after I finish at the office. We have a couple of folks that can't get out at all. One lady has alzheimers and won't recognize me at al but her husband certainly will and part of the reason for going is to give a a sense of peace to the family members.

My time is up and I need to get busy. I pray your day is better than the weather and will instead be full of warmth of spirit and sunshine in your soul.

No rat-a-tat-tat this morning; no sunshine this morning or gentle breezes. It is sixty four degrees and that will be our high as this cold front with the rain cools everything down. But —- the rain is a gentle rain it still looks very “spring-like” out there. It appears though that with all of the work that I got done yesterday, I forgot to fill bird feeders, Many are low or empty. And we put the hummingbird feeder out yesterday. I don’t expect any hummingbirds any time soon but one never knows. My cousin Debbie said she had her first one yesterday and she is just 150 miles west of us. So I know they have migrated this far north by now. 

I’m very thankful for the rain this morning. We got the back yard seeded and totally covered in straw. The straw will keep not only the birds from eating the seed, but my back yard has a slope to it and the straw will keep the seed from being washed away by the rain. We also got the garden re-worked and the lettuce and beets are planted. So, thank you very much God for the needed rain. What I didn’t get done was putting down my mulch. I got it unloaded from the truck and stacked it up in front of the garage door. I’m hoping that it is sheltered enough to keep it from getting totally soaked. They are only 2cu ft bags but they do get heavy when wet. The young fellow next door is going to help me spread it. I told him I would pay him $10.00 an hour. I also have some other work I’d like him to do. I think he is sixteen and he’s big enough to handle the jobs that I might have for him. And, he’s a good kid. I know I sound like an “old geezer” but in the seventeen years I’ve lived here, not once have I ever had a young kid or teenager come to the door looking for something to do to make a little money. We don’t have an abundance of kids in the neighborhood, bj there are some that ride by on their bikes and skateboards etc. Of course, one of the reasons is tha their parents are too busy taking them to their other activities like baseball, tennis, soccer, dance classes, and football. They don’t put chores on kids because they are too busy running the kids to outside activities. I had my first job and bought my first car at sixteen. Ms. Kate was doing babysitting and she and her sister made money working hard mowing grass and cleaning house for an aunt. I’m cynical I know, but, it seems the only thing kids do these days is walk around with their head down and text on their phones. 

The warmer weather we’ve had these last couple of days has really made the leaves start popping out every where. Ms. Margaret’s flowering crabapple trees is really starting to bloom nicely. We love seeing that tree. It blooms so beautifully. And I’m glad she has it and we don’t. They are a mess of a tree what with the falling soft twigs and branches and the dropping crabapples, no thanks. 

It is “schrooms and beer” day with Bob and Brenda at noon. So I guess I better get busy doing something besides sitting here loving life. Have a wonderful weekend. Count your blessings. I’m sitting here with warm spring like weather this morning and I have friends tha are sitting through blizzard condition yet again two morning up in the Dakotas. Yep, I’m counting my blessings. Peace. 

Rat-a-tat tat. The neighborhood wakes to the sound of hammers going this morning. Someone is having a roof replaced today. I think it is on the ridge on Old State Road. I saw a truck delivering roofing over there yesterday. From the sound of the hammering it sounds like they are using actual hammers instead of nail guns. I’ve done roofing before and enjoyed it. Many years ago my buddy asked me to help him roof a couple of houses. I didn’t think my thumb would ever heal from all of the times I hit it. While it might look easy, and roofing is hard work, —- it is also an art to be learned if you want to not have a flat and bleeding thumb. It is also a business that as a consumer one should check out the contractors before hiring them to do your job. In our area, I’m told by a knowledgeable source, many of the contractors will just hire “day laborers” and they usually find them through parole officers. Therefore, many of the guys working around and on your house are fresh out of jail. Our former next door neighbor to the north of us hired a crew to do his roof and the language coming off of that roof was embarrassing and not what one would want their children hearing. And, that roof has since had to be re-done. The crew that did our roof was a super crew.

This morning is a copy of yesterday morning. The sun is shining and the birds are chirping. It is supposed to get to seventy-seven today before rain sets in tonight. I have a lot of work to do today. I finished getting the yard raked yesterday. Then I went to Lowes and picked up three bags of Scott’s lawn repair mixture. It has grass seed, fertilizer, and soil conditioner to strengthen the roots. It is supposed to work well in shade so we will see. I also picked up two bales of straw to put down on  top of it so it doesn't wash away. I also picked up a yard and a half of mulch to put down. I hope to get it all done but we will see. I might wear out before that. With yards and flower beds, there is always work to be done.

It is Friday the 13th! Does that make you nervous? Are you superstitious? The only thing it means to me is that tomorrow is the 14th. And —- tomorrow is “schrooms and beer” day with Bob and Brenda.  It is Bob’s birthday and we need to celebrate. I think he is turning eighty six. He just became a great-great grandpa the other day. If my grandchildren don’t start getting married soon, we’ll never be great grandparents, let alone double greats.

Time to get busy. Take advantage of the weekend but don’t forget to attend a worship service. We all owe God time set aside for worship and gratitude for the wealth of blessings that we are given every day. Peace.

Well, —- this Thursday morning gets a rating of “G” for glorious. It is sunny, and sixty one degrees, not a cloud in the sky. We do however have a weather alert for wind gusts up to forty miles an hour. But that is going to dry the soil out and the yards too. I anticipate getting a lot of work done today out in the yard. Tomorrow is supposed to be a carbon copy of today. The farmers will be out testing soil for sure and will be working ground. These days you don’t see a lot of farmers turning the soil over with a plow like they did when I was a kid. They basically disc and harrow the soil and then just drill the seed in. But days like this will warm the soil too so life will get better for them. For that, I say a prayer of thanks.

Ms. Kate and I went to the nursery yesterday afternoon and I now have a trunk load of plants that I will need to eventually get in the ground. She bought some nice stuff although I’m not sure where it is going to go. part of my plan for today is to get the lettuce planted and the beets. I’ve never raised beets before, so this will be an experiment. Ms. Kate also bought a small package of okra seed. I’ve not raised okra from seed before. We usually buy three or four plants and raise it that way. It will be another experiment. If I end up with a dozen okra plants and it grows like it has the last couple of years — I will have an okra forest out there We also bought a tree peony. We bought one two or three years ago and it did nothing but die. So, we will try it again. They are really pretty when they turn out right.

I need to get my propane tanks filled this morning. It would be nice to throw something on the grill today or tomorrow. I had pne tank run out some months ago and never re-filled it and then on Easter Sunday, the backup tank went empty in the middle of cooking the brats. Just another job on the list for today.

My buffet guests are telling me that I have to refill feeders again today. Although as I lok at them, they are “low” but far from empty. That job will be low on the list.

So, it is time to get dressed and get out and enjoy this God given beautiful day to the fullest. I hope you have time to do the same. Days like this are great reminders of what a magnificent God we have and how majestic His world can be. I pray your day is blessed. Peace.

Happy Wednesday on this semi-bright, and somewhat warmish morning. How’s that for starting off with definites? This may be short as I only have about twenty minutes to write before I run out the door to the office. Wednesday morning is staff  meeting morning for the three of us as we sit and coordinate our calendars and work out what plans we may be making for the church. We only take about an hour to an hour and a half.

After the staff meeting this morning, we are heading out to a nursery down on the southwest side of Mt. Vernon, Indiana. Ms. Kate has it in her mind that she wants to get some more plants, specifically at least one tree peony. Of course then we’ll end up walking through the entire place, filling up the cart and guess who will be doing the planting. I’m not sure where she thinks we are going to put anything more. I have no intention of creating yet another flowerbed. I barely get the ones we have taken care of. But —— we’ll see what ends up in the car.

I did get out and do some raking yesterday. I got the sunflower seed residue raked up from under the pussy willow tree area. The robins lovd it because it exposed fresh bare ground and they had a buffet of their own right outside my back door. I have four more places to rake up and then I need to go to Lowes and get some Scott’s Yard turf builder and spread on this back yard. I hope to fill in all of these dead and bare spots back here. The leaves will be coming on the trees soon and the entire area will be in shade again. It makes it tough to get grass to grow. But I do what I can.

I also got the snow blade off of the John Deere and the mower deck put on yesterday. I guess spring better make it’s mind up to get here and stay for awhile. This week looks so promising though for good weather which is most likely why Ms. Kate wants to go to the nursery today. It’s a vicious circle isn’t it?

Okay, it is time for me to go. I offer prayers that your day will be a blessed one and that good things will happen to you today. Share your love and blessings with someone today. Peace.