Monday Morning

Well Sunday turned out to be a very nice day with temps on the cool side to start the day after an early morning down pour which saw us with nearly an inch of much needed rain. The overcast skies keep it pleasant for most of the day which saw us with an occasional peep of the sun. It was worship day at Cornerstone and we were given this weeks activities by our youth mission team in the form of songs, pictures and personal testimonies. They had 30 plus youth and their sponsors travel throughout this area spreading the love of Christ in nursing homes, day care, senior and hospice houses as well as engaging in some great end of the day devotions and making friends for life. We even had time for youth pastor Daryl give us a great message on love.

After church we headed over to Mexican Joe's grill in Sparta where we had some authentic cuisine. I loved the food but they were short on servers and order takers. It was very reasonable as well. We had 9 of us for lunch as the Dalton Gang minus Andy was with us. Afterwards we headed back to the cabin where we vegetated for an hour or so before getting into a wild game of Hit or Miss. Patrick and Kathryn headed back to their place after lunch and they stayed home for the rest of day as he was having some back issues. We eventually ate some left over chicken on salad around 6'ish and then headed outside to wonder around. We headed down to neighbor Gerald's to view his place before Dan and I took off on a hike to the top. The gals where out on the golf cart as Carol is experiencing some leg pain and didn't feel up to a hike. We met them on top at the Browning's and then they rode along with us as we headed back down off the top.

We just sat around watching the show Mountain Man on the history channel until Dan and I started watching the inside of our eye lids. It was off to the showers for me soon after the show ended. Well we had a busy day and the coolness of the day was awesome. I almost forgot to mention on the way home from church and lunch we stopped at our "mountain mom's" place for a visit. We found some wild black raspberries growing near her cabin and we picked enough for her cereal. They are the Cadillac of all berries. We had a nice visit and although we interrupted her afternoon nap she quickly showed us around her beautiful place. She is quite the worker and maintains it by herself.

Well that was about it for the day as we enjoyed the ambiance and of course with our friends we had many laughs. Our mountain buddy Caleb is raring to blow up my stumps in the backwoods yard so we invited everyone in the area to attend this Monday evening for the finale, LATER  

Sunday Morning ( Worship Day at Cornerstone)

Well Saturday turned out to be rather nice after a somewhat foggy drizzely start of the day. It was that way until mid afternoon when we saw the sun peaking through and by the time our guests arrived it was really nice with temps reaching the low 70's. We did some old fashion sittin' on the porch rockin' until the sun headed down below the mountains around 9'ish. Our local guests the Tracy's headed out about sundown and our Florida friends the Botbyl's were enjoying the coolness of the evening.

The morning started with my usual 6'ish roll out to start the day. After my routine(s) of a hand full of vitamins and supplements washed down with a cup of hot green tea, a few quiet moments with my Creator and then the posting of this ramble I ventured out to walk the yards and gardens and check for deer damage. Wow was it ever foggy and wet with all of the moisture in the air. I noticed new bean seedlings had popped up during the night and a tomato had set as well. The rain we are getting  is a blessing as its been quite dry.

I fired up the riding mower despite the grass being wet and commenced to beautify the yards. I had already weed whacked the place yesterday so by lunch time I had the yards looking good. Neighbor Gerald came by and gave us the info on our neighbor Nub's funeral set for Monday in Lexington. Gerald took up a collection for Pam his widow to help with some of the expense of his sudden death and he will attend the funeral on Monday and give our condolences to the family from the mountain neighbors who live on our road.

I had stuffed two whole chickens with fresh Rosemary and a half a can of beer each and put them on the smoker packed with soaked hickory wood around noon. That wood smell is awesome and by 5:30 in the evening the chickens were pull apart ready to eat. Along with fresh broccoli, twice baked spuds Kathryn made as well as a delicious Key Lime Pie for dessert and fresh bakery sour dough bread to help add a little to the waist line we dined for nearly an hour and reminisced, each trying to get a word in edge wise while stuffing our pie holes. It was good to have the old crew back together for a sumptuous meal as well. We were to full after the cleanup to do anything but walk around the yard but mainly set on the front porch and love the fresh air, the birds singing and the beauty of GOD'S creation. What a difference from the area we all come from in Florida with no back ground noise of sirens, road traffic and gunning motorcycles.

We were able to follow Amy and Tyler on our Ipad as they traveled to western Kansas. They go in sometime around 11 our time which made for a 27 hour continuous trip of which Tyler did most of the driving. Thanks to all who kept them in your thoughts and prayers for safe non -eventful travel.

Well today is worship day at Cornerstone in Sparta, N.C. and we will have good representation from our  Element Church in Tampa, Fl. It's awesome we can be a part of a family of believers and followers wherever we decide to worship our awesome GOD. We will have a full week of fellowship and putting on the tourist and vacation attitude with the Tracy's and the Botbyl's, LATER

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was a busy day that started with a 7'ish roll out for me while my helpmate snoozed to nearly 8. We planned most of the days activities around my 6' ish date for pickle ball at the Roaring Gap Club with 3 other fellers. We had a great visit from our Florida pals Kathryn and Patrick as we did the "sit on the front porch and rock" for a couple hours taking in the ambiance. We eventually did a little snacking as we were passing on a regular supper as we had our large meal around lunchtime. I entertained these city folks with all that entails the butchering of a hog and what parts were made into different delicacies. I think I may have helped them in their somewhat late decision to become a vegetarian.

I headed out to check on the gardens after my usual morning routine(s) of my hot green tea after washing down a handful of vitamins and supplements, a few quiet moments and then the posting of this ramble before a bowl of oatmeal with fresh honey, blueberries and cinnamon. Yikes did that ever taste good. For some reason I'm back into oatmeal here in the mountains and I'm enjoying the flavor once again as before in Florida I could hardly get it down. I think the natural honey is making the difference, oh well.

I fired up the weed whacker and headed out to spend the next couple hours waltzing it around the whole perimeter of the yards and wow did that ever make a difference. I plan on mowing today(Sat) which will keep me busy while I smoke a couple "beer in the rear" birds. We are expecting Dan and Carol from the hood in Florida as well as Kathryn and Patrick for supper and will have all there but one other couple from our house church.

I piddled around after our large meal for lunch doing some honey-do jobs until the Tracy's arrived. We were going to hike the mountain but since I was up and down the yards for a couple hours I decided to opted out because of the PB match later with much younger players. The weather looked like it might rain so that was a great excuse to sit and rock on the front porch.

Well the PB matches had some great play and after 2 hours of constant play we decided around 8:30 we were all tired and had enough for one day. It's hard to get these 2 other younger players to say uncle but both Ted and Craig finally admitted they were whipped. Gerald and myself were down 2 sets to none but came back and rallied 3 sets in a row to win the best of 5 sets in that match. We played 3 other matches each with different players during the evening, wow what a workout and its been over a week since we last played so we are were experiencing some aching muscles. The hot shower felt great and the horizontal lab later was even better, LATER

Just a note to all who will take just a moment and keep my daughter Amy and her family in your thoughts and prayers for traveling mercies as they head to Kansas to visit with Tyler's folks for 2 weeks. It a 26 hour non-stop drive and Tyler drove all night as it's much easier on the kiddos. I remember those days as I did the same many times especially when the kiddos were very young. Also our friend Eddie who was severely injured is still in the hospital in ICU and isn't progressing much at all still needs prayers for some miraculous healing. It's been over a month since his fall.

Just a reminder about this month's Ribbon Gift bogo's promo. Our generous team leaders at Amway are matching any and all purchases of the gifts until the end of the month. This is a fantastic offer and these gifts never expire and are great for folks who get to decide what they want from a long list of merchandise depending on the value of each independent ribbon gift. I personally keep a couple of the delicious ribbon gifts on hand as we love the mid-western beef; its shipped in dry ice and each steak is vacuum sealed. Check out my store at www.amway.com/JNTriplett  

Friday Morning

Well Thursday once again had some fantastic weather and by late evening we had a nice measurable rain fall. We took off for Galax to do some shopping at Wal-Mart around 10, gas up(its 20 cents a gallon cheaper than Sparta), eat lunch at Wendy's which we seldom eat fast food but they have a chicken sandwich comparable to Chick filet in size and taste, pick up fresh veggies at Horton's and lastly buy some fresh new sweet corn seeds and okra. Speaking of sweet corn Wal-Mart had ears of sweet corn at 5 for a buck; haven't seen that in years and it was delicious with melted butter and salt, yikes that was our evening supper along with a guacamole I made using our garden onion, cilantro and thyme.

The day started with me sleeping in until close to 7. Those stumps have been kicking my butt but I can feel the muscles starting to bulge a little which takes away from the belly bulge. That sure beats lifting weights in the gym and the ambiance is much more pleasurable as well. I've just about finished with the digging and cutting until I either blow them loose the rest of the way or out of the hole completely with Caleb's explosives or I use neighbor Gerald's tractor to extract them or my last option is to burn them in the hole.

We got home somewhere around 2 and found a most disturbing piece of news on the recorder. It seems our neighbor through the woods who is a local restaurant owner and cook died while preparing breakfast this morning at his place of business. "Nub" Johnson had a massive heart attack and by the time Pam his wife could get him off the mountain to a hospital he had passed. They are the neighbors with the collection of pit bull dogs so we only saw them when passing on the road as the dogs were somewhat unpredictable in their demeanor. She occasionally would come by and we very seldom ate at their café as it was mostly fried foods. He was somewhere in his 50's and was a heavy smoker. We are saddened for the family as their son was killed in a vehicle crash a couple years ago in Germany. They are originally from Lexington.

Well we took a hike after supper and visited with the Browning's on top. They too had heard the news of Nub's passing. None of us were thrilled with their collection of vicious dogs which at times sounded like a kennel. We came back and worked outside in the yard. Ray Todd came by and gave us the particulars on his passing as he ate there everyday. Seems Nub had been having some chest pains from time to time but did little to help with his condition as he continued to smoke heavily and eat the fried foods he prepared which led to his fatal attack this morning.

Well it was a hot shower and then some Fox News before the sandman called around 10:30, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was one of those days where the sun was shining one moment then the clouds would form for what looked like a tremendous rain and then we would get maybe a sprinkle. The temps stayed down into the low 70's with even some 60's as fronts would move through. I managed to stay outside most of the day working on the stumps and in the gardens as well as cutting some damaged small pine trees and getting them trimmed up to replace some of the fences around my gardens.

The morning started out with me rolling out around 6'ish to start the day. After my handful of vitamins and supplements washed down with a cup of hot green tea I spent a few moments lifting up those I know who need some special consideration for their infirmities and needs as well as for our nation as we have let the secular progressives change our culture from one nation under GOD and then the posting of this daily ramble so my grand kids will know who and what their grandparents was like.

I headed out to walk around the yards and garden to check for deer damage and while they have been busy munching on Nancy's flowers the past two nights I think they by passed last night. Hopefully their taste for flowers have vanished. The recently transplanted lettuces and spinach seem to be taking hold. The cloudy cooler days have helped with getting them established as well as the rain that was needed. The tomato's are blooming and the beans are running, so I added another section of chicken wire for them to climb. That gives them about 7 feet or so to climb which will make it much easier to harvest. I transplanted another 6 hot pepper seedling that neighbor Gerald was thinning out of his pepper pots so if all of these make I can set up a veggie stand.

We took our late morning hike to the top of the mountain despite the threat of rain which never made. We are now making the climb to the back road without stopping which is a good sign we are finally getting into shape. The long pull to the top usually finds me not stopping, but Nancy makes one stop so in order to keep her safe from a bear attack I take a breather with her about half way up. The walk across was uneventful and we stopped an spoke with Dean who is looking after Norm's place while he is still in the hospital. His condition is not improving and maybe going down hill as there is little the doctors can do with his heart except make him as comfortable as possible.

We stopped and spoke with Joe and Jetta before heading back down to the cabin. Once more rain was evident but we only got a lite sun shower. We had clothes on the line and it wasn't enough to bring them in. After a lite lunch of salad I headed back out to piddle around in the woods. I had a couple trees that had partially blown down so I worked them up then cut up some that were down and piled them on my ever growing brush pile. On a cold day in October I will burn it and then spread the ashes on my back woods yard to help with controlling moss. I learned the old timers did that when they had no lime of course I can buy bagged lime and I do but what a way to use everything.

Well we ate some leftovers from last nights dinner with Joe and Helen and it was just as tasty. After the clean up we decided to take a golf cart ride out to the mailbox and I cut low hanging limbs on the way in and out. We then took off to visit Ray and Audean on the other side of the mountain but they were gone off to watch Carson play basketball in Mt. Airy. Their son David was there and we visited a moment with him before heading back up the mountain.

It was nearly 8 before headed in to watch the O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News channel and once more the news is all about the incompetence and scandal ridden administration that is in D.C. Now we are about to let Iraq fall to a bunch of terrorists because of the golf playing and fund raising president who should never have been elected in the first place due to his lack of leadership. Oh well!!! LATER We sat on the deck for an hour or so during the afternoon sun and read. Nancy finished our son's first book THE GREAT DARKNING in the trilogy THE EPIC OF HAVEN

Wednesday Morning

Well on Tuesday I slipped up and slept  in until 7:30, unbelievable for me, but it felt as if a big part of the day was missing, oh well!! After the late start I headed out after my usual morning routine(s) to check on the gardens. Well the deer have been in 2 nights in a row and decimated the hydrangeas as well as the cone flower's and few others. It looks as if a I took a weed whacker and mowed the tops off with the buds about to open into full bloom. Nancy was not a happy camper, oh well!

We decided since we slept in to just eat a large breakfast around 9'ish. We had some left over taters so she fried them along with a couple sausage patties and cackleberries, yikes was that ever a feast and I washed it down with a V-8 spiked with some Chrystal hot sauce. I was then ready to head out to the newest stump I had started to dig out so I loaded up the golf cart with my digging tools. Well I worked for about 2 hours when our old friend D.J. from Clemmons called and said he was in the area. The timing was perfect as by now I was dripping sweat and needed a break. We sat on the back porch for nearly a 1/2 hour or more visiting. After he left we decided to go ahead and get our hike in for the day. There were little rain showers in the area and we had a few that lasted maybe a few minutes but nothing heavy until late afternoon when we got a nice shower that left us with a 1/2 inch of rain.

The hike was uneventful and we saw no one but the views are always beautiful with the fog and mists in the valley's and hollers down off the mountain. We came back in a lite sun shower that lasted maybe 5 minutes but barely got the rocks wet in the driveway. Nancy made us a left over chicken wrap around 1:30 for a late lunch. I headed back out to the dig for another hour or so and except for sawing off the roots which I've exposed by the digging; the stump is ready for the explosive material. Hopefully next week we can get Caleb out here with his blasting materials and give us a show. The explosives must be set off with high powered rifle from a distance.

Well we had our "mountain mom" Helen and her brother Joe coming for supper around 4'oclock and they were right on time as always in a really nice rain shower that lasted for some time. This was the first we had seen Joe since last year and he looked great for a guy at 87 years young and who had his gall bladder removed last winter. Nancy had meat loaf, potato casserole, green peas, salad, rolls and a cinnamon crumb cake for dessert. The meal was very tasty and enjoyed by all. They left around 6'ish in bright sunshine so after the cleanup we headed out to walk the yards and gardens until it was time for the Fox News lineup.

This corrupt and inept administration is leading us down the road of destruction and loss of influence on the world scene. I had my doubts when they were elected and now I know those who vote straight party tickets are seeing that their decisions have left us in serious trouble and yet the media who helped get this party into control of our government is still trying to cover for them through all of these scandals. We must pull our heads out of the sand and hold these folks accountable and listen to the facts. Are we that gullible to think the IRS would lose records and e-mails?? Oh well!!!

 Well it wasn't long after a hot shower and the news shows that I headed for some horizontal lab and read a few pages when the sandman called around 10:30, LATER  

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday was a total work day for me after a 6'ish roll out to start the day. The cool damp air with fog in the area was ideal from bustin' another stump, actually I spent about 5 hours digging on this 3 tree stump. What a work out that was after starting the day with my usual routine(s). Sure beats lifting weights at the gym and I know I sweated a pound or two away. I still have a little digging yet to get back underneath this 5 foot across monstrosity so I can get either a chain or have my little buddy Caleb set off one of his explosive charges. I'm leaning towards the excitement of the charge some time next week. Boys love to blow things up and these 4 stumps will be a test for this explosive material.

We headed off for a hike to the top of the mountain around 11:30 as Nancy wanted me to take a rest from the digging. It was nearly 12:30 before we got home after stopping and visiting with the Browning's and of course we always wind up talking about food; by now I'm really getting hungry as the bowl of oatmeal had worn off some time around 11. We had a couple high priced tomatoes that needed eating so it was tomato, onion, lettuce and mayo on homemade bread for lunch, Yeow that was some fine eatin' along with some dill pickles.

I ventured back out to the stump site for another hour of digging then Nancy called a halt to that project so I headed for the upper garden. The clouds had moved in as if it was going to rain so I wanted to transplant the last of my lettuce and spinach seedlings. I just about have the garden fully planted except the 5 rows of sweet corn have not broke through the ground and I have this feeling these seeds are old as well. So its new seeds when we head to Galax on Thursday for an ear lowering and new okra and corn seeds.

I gave several of my new seedlings a drenching of the manure cocktail and already in just a couple of days from the first infusion I have noticed a difference. It seems the infusion Nancy gave her flowers in the front beds have not only caused them to grown but enticed the deer to sample them as well. They ate off the large hydrangea by the well house as well as several cone flowers, my butterfly bush and several other flowers throughout the yards. There goes those beautiful flower pictures we were looking forward to share. I will enjoy eating the next venison meal that much more, oh well.

We had neighbor Gerald up for a supper of marinated chicken breasts, Brussel sprouts, Swiss chard from Karin's garden which was superb and parsley taters and salad. We sat out on the deck as the air temp was around 70 which made for pleasant eating conditions. After he left we cleaned up then headed out to piddle around outside then took the golf cart to the mailbox. We put up a ghastly string across the front driveway flower bed of Wal-Mart bags to help with scaring the deer from munching on her tender flower; this looks so bad it scares me and I know we will have to explain this land mark and since it's Nancy's idea it will stay much to my chagrin.

Well we headed in for hot showers and a little of the Fox News channel until I headed off to read. The Ray's got blasted again big time by the Pirates and I love where they are dropping the name Washington from the Redskins instead of the other way around( I think it was a joke) as that whole town and seat of our government is inept and now has become a bastion of corruption. GOD help us is all I can say, LATER   

Monday morning

Well Sunday was a great day in all respects as we had an awesome worship service at Cornerstone, then a beautiful trip down the Blue Ridge Parkway to Boone and Blowing Rock with our friends Patrick and Kathryn. What a busy fun filled afternoon until we got back to the cabin somewhere around 10 PM.

The morning started the usual for me with a 6'ish rollout to start the day. After my usual daily morning routine(s) we got ready for worship at Cornerstone. The temps were quite cool at the high 50's mark but the skies looked as if it was going to be another beautiful day here in the mountains and it certainly was that and even more as we traveled down the parkway after a lite lunch at Subway in Sparta after the service. We traveled in Patrick's hybrid Toyota which amazed me to its power and fuel consumption. We barely used any fuel for the mountainous driving which was close to a 200 mile round trip.

We headed out to the Mast General Store in Valle Crucis outside of Boone for one of our favorite shopping places and I sat an listen to an old time mountain music quartet play and sing some great songs. We met several folks from Florida as well as Arizona who were shopping as well. After an hour or so the gals came out with shopping bags of goodies then we headed over to the annex for ice cream for Patrick. We took several pictures outside by the small trout stream before heading down to Blowing Rock.

We walked through this quaint small town and found the B&B where they will be staying the end of July for a reunion with some of Patrick's fellow employees at Johnson & Johnson. The manager was most accommodating showing us the rooms and then recommending a restaurant called Bistro Roca. Wow was the food the best ever to cross your palate. It's a little French and Spanish cuisine and you would never know it was there as its walking distance from the town square but off the beaten path. We had a really sweet and very pretty senior at ASU as our waitress from Winston-Salem. This was a dining experience and the place filled up quickly after opening at 5'oclock. It kind of reminded us of the Salt Rock Grille with the open cooking area. It is a little pricey but well worth the experience and the desserts were according to Nancy the best ever, especially the bread pudding. I had just a little taste of two of them but I was satisfied with my entrée which was a pork rib eye steak sitting on a bed of creamy corn grits topped with steamed carrots and some type of awesome sauce and greens, yeow was that ever delicious while Nancy and Patrick had salmon; one on a bed of salad and the other on a bed of rice and Kathryn had wonderful crab cakes.

We headed out toward Sparta after a couple stops. We did another major stop in West Jefferson at the Wal-Mart to stock up for the Botbyl's visit this next weekend. They will stay a couple days with us and then when we leave for Lancaster, Pa they will finish up at Patrick and Kathryn's beautiful rental cabin. We will be busy once again being a tourist when they arrive this week-end as there is much to do besides enjoying this mountain ambiance and the fine people who live here. It was close to 9 before we got back to Sparta after taking the winding road up 221. We had left out truck in the parking lot of Lowes while we did our trip so it was time to pick up a few on sale items before heading home to the cabin.

We noticed large thunderheads and lightning as we approached the turn off and we just got a few rain sprinkles on us as we unloaded the truck then the skies opened up with some much needed rain. It wasn't a long lasting rain as it had subsided by bedtime around 11'ish, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was a great day for working outside and we did get a little shower enough that was measurable in the rain gauge and then we headed over to the Woodie River House for it annual fish fry with many of their family members as well as local leaders and prominent county folks. The weather was perfect for most of the day as temperatures stayed around in the high 70's to low 80's.

I started the day around a 6'ish rollout as I wanted to get back to my stump digging efforts. After a couple soft boiled eggs and glass of V-8 juice I headed out to the back woods yard following my usual routine(s) of a cup of hot green tea after my vitamins and supplements, a few quiet moments and the posting of this ramble. The air had a chill as I loaded up the golf cart with my digging iron, post hole diggers, ax and hoe. I started on the stump I tried to burn out last year to no avail. I got all of the roots exposed in just a couple hours with some hard digging then we took off on our daily hike to the top of the mountain.

We met the new owner of the Fuller House or we saw him but spoke with his daughter Angela who has 3 children. She was most friendly and filled us in on her family as did we about ourselves. This will be a summer home for them and her father as they live in Ashboro, N.C. She was very  nice an informative. Seems they are related to the Fullers through marriage. We saw Dean Todd at Normans who looks out for his place while he is in the hospital and he was on the phone with Norm as we passed by. Seems Norm isn't improving as we all were hoping for as he is still in Baptist Hospital. We headed on across the top and stopped and chatted with Joe and Jetta before heading on back for lunch.

We had purchased some asparagus last week and hadn't had a chance to eat it so Nancy sautéed it with fresh mushrooms with garlic in olive oil and it was delicious. We finished up the last of the cantaloupe as well. I headed back out to the stumps and worked another hour or so before finally calling it a day. My shirt was dripping with sweat from the workout and the back and arm muscles were singing "enough" as well. We got a small shower of rain just as I finished and loaded up my tools. The rain felt great as it cooled me down as well as rinsed off some of the sweat. I sat and read for an hour or so on the back porch then headed down to check on the lower garden to see if my replanted corn is up. I think I have old seeds and must buy new ones. I staked the 7 tomato plants as well as my watermelon plants in the lower garden. The fruit on them will be small and the vines take up a lot of space so I'm going to hope they will climb a large tomato cage. The 1/2 runners are sending out runners and will soon be climbing the chicken wire fence. The zucchini is blooming and I picked several green worms from the cauliflower plants and smashed them between my fingers. The lettuce is really starting to take off and the cool nights really seem to bring it to life.

I jumped in the shower as we were heading over to what amounts to an annual get together with the Woodie Family. Several brothers and sisters live in the area and they have a beautiful outdoor/indoor area on the Little River which will accommodate a huge crowd. We have been fortunate enough to be invited for several years to this occasion and have become friends and acquaintances of the family. Patrick and Kathryn are renting a summer cabin from one of the sisters and they too were invited. We picked them up and they left their car at a locale near the river house as the steep drive is somewhat made for 4 wheel drive and lock rear end vehicles. The food was awesome as everyone brought dishes and they provided the catfish and drinks. We renewed lots of old friendships and made a few new ones as well. It was an awesome weather event.

We left around 8 'ish and decided to go by and see our newest friend Curtis and the old farm house he bought over the winter months. It is really a neat place and though he wasn't home we stopped and took a couple pictures and then decided to follow this road we have never been on before. Well it took us through some beautiful farm land and off in the distance we could see the towers that are at the top of our mountain so we had our bearings but had no idea where this road would lead us. We did stop as we saw some folks sitting on a porch for directions and it was like speaking with someone right out of the movie "Deliverance", yikes was that ever eerie. We follow their directions for a couple turns then recognized a familiar site which brought us to the Scenic Valley road. Wow was that ever gorgeous with the pink clouds over the mountains just before dusk.

Well we were home just as darkness fell and it wasn't long until it was bedtime around 11'ish. I was still wide awake despite all of the physical work during the day and we both had a restless night from eating late and so much. We sampled only about 1/4 of the many dishes available and we both stayed away from the desserts, LATER

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was once again another busy day that started with a 6'ish roll out. The temp's were very comfortable at first and then progressively warmed up to the middle 80's by the afternoon; however the lack of humidity and a breeze kept it nice. We did see a couple of sun showers which made the rocks in the driveway wet but that was about all. We really could use a nice rain as I'm hand watering the vegetable and flower gardens.

I roll out somewhere around 6'ish to start the day. After my usual cup of hot green tea after a handful of vitamins and supplements, a few quiet moments and posting of this ramble I headed out to survey the gardens for any slug or deer damage. The extra conditions have kept the slugs at bay as they like rainy weather and the deer fence seems to be working so far. I loaded up the back of the truck with several empty fertilizer bags as well as 5 gallon buckets and headed over to the Dalton Farm for some alpaca and cow manure that had been maturing in one of their sheds since winter. Wow was that ever some nice aged droppings and I worked it in to my garden soil. Nancy even made a cocktail for her flowers by soaking some in a bucket of water then spreading in into plants.

After getting back from my manure gathering we took a hike to the top of the mountain and saw some folks who were looking at the houses for sale there. We gave them what we knew about the properties then headed on across the top. The clouds had rolled in which made the walk on top much cooler for a change as the sun is usually broiling us. There was no one home at the Browning's so we headed on down the back road which is always several degrees cooler under the shade trees.

We cleaned up some leftovers from last nights supper for lunch then I headed out with the chainsaw to sever some roots from around my stumps that I have been digging on for the past couple of days. I still have several to cut but will require some more digging before I can make an attempt to remove the stump from the hole with neighbor Gerald's front end loader on his tractor.

Our friend Karin came by to retrieve her cell phone she accidently left after last nights get together. I dug her some kale plants so she could transplant into her raised beds. We do a plant swap as she always has too many seedlings for her small beds and is quite the gardener as well. I headed down in the cool basement for an hour or so to cool off while changing out saw blades.

We decided to have beef burritos with fresh mushrooms and onions sautéed in Italian dressing with sour cream and Chrystal hot sauce and a Serano pepper for me, yeow was that ever delicious and spicy. After the cleanup I worked outside in the garden and Nancy in her flower beds until nearly dark. I tried to watch the Fox News channel and drifted off to moments of sleep so I got a shower and then read until the sandman cometh before 10, nighty nighty, LATER     
I almost forgot to mention we skyped with the Ross Family. Ava, Sam and Eliza seemed to have all changed in just the 3 weeks since we last saw them.

Friday Morning

Well Thursday was another beautiful morning to start the day which eventually became a bit hot towards the afternoon with temps in the high 80's but the humidity wasn't much of an influence and by late afternoon it became rather pleasant out on the deck as we ate our supper there. We had a large gang for supper that includes games afterwards that lasted until nearly 9:30.

I started the day with a 6'ish roll out and then my usual routine(s) of a cup of hot tea after a handful of vitamins and supplements, a few quiet moments to reflect and give thanks and to lift up those we know who need some miracles such as our friend Eddie who by the way is still on the ventilator at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem. While he has some movement in his arm and leg the ability to breath on his own is not going well due to pneumonia. After the posting of this ramble and a slice of nut bread with a bowl of cantaloupe I headed out to check on the gardens.

The recently transplanted large plants from Karin's patch are doing as well as can be expected with the zucchini blooming. The small lettuce seedlings are hanging in there despite the heat and of course I'm hand watering daily due to the lack of any real rainfall. I fired up the golf cart and loaded up the heavy digging tools and headed to the backwoods yard to work on stump number two. There was a nice breeze which helped to keep the bugs away so I got in a couple good hours of digging on the stump. I had a soaked shirt by 11 and  Nancy rescued me from this hard work by insisting we take our daily hike before it got to hot, so we did.

We are now both making it up through our woods to the back road without a rest stop and only one stop from the road to the very top of the mountain. Wow was it ever hot on top and we never tarried as walked across to the Browning place. They were gone so we missed seeing them as well as Norm is still in the hospital so we saw no one top. I felt great to get on the tree covered back road as we headed down the mountain. It was at least 20 degrees cooler out of the direct sunshine on top to the back tree covered road. We came back and had a salad for lunch. I piddled around in the garden and replanted some bush beans as well as mulched some of the tomato's and watermelon plants with some of the aged horse droppings.

We were having the Dalton and Luffman gang as well as Karin, Kaithlyn and her beau Curtis for supper around 6'ish. I grilled bone-in pork chops and Nancy made a mac and cheese as well as had the dessert. The others brought a pasta salad, Cole slaw and a garden salad all of which was delicious. Mechelle bought her new puppy Piper and she was such a delight and very well behaved especially when she was chewing on a pork chop bone. We got in a Sequence match and the gals smoked the guys with 2 straight games so they have the first victory for this 2014 season with a best of 3 games. We then played Apples to Apples which is a fun game with lots of table talk. Kallie smoked us all with a big win.  A good time was had by all with great eatin' and fellowship.

After they left we cleaned up the dishes then I headed for the showers and read until it was nighty, nighty around 10:30, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday turned out to be a rather warm day after a beautiful morning. Despite the temps into the upper 80's the humidity wasn't terrible as a nice breeze kept us quite comfortable and by late evening it was back down into the middle 70's. The day started out with me awake before 6. I don't know if it's the new mattress top or what but sleep wasn't all that great despite lots of hard physical labor and of course a hike to the top the day before, oh well!

After my usual routine(s) to start the morning I ventured out once again to the tree stumps in the backwoods yard to work on removing them. I have almost finished with the digging on the first stump and about half way on the second one and with just one more to go this year. I will begin sawing the roots off in a day or so and hopefully that will allow me to extract the stumps completely about 2 feet under ground. Needless to say I can really work up a sweat with this job as well as working on building these upper body muscles.

I quit around 11 as Nancy wanted to get our daily hike in before the heat of the afternoon was upon us and besides we were meeting Patrick and Kathryn for lunch in town around 1 PM. We had a delicious lunch at the Mustard Seed Cafe located in the mercantile store on main street Sparta. The tomato bisque was superb as was the wrap and everyone seemed to enjoy their food. Afterwards the gals took off to visit the many stores all of which may be a dozen. Patrick and I visited the arts and crafts studios of which there are 2 in this small town and we met some very interesting and very talented artist.

We left town about 3:30 after a stop at the butcher shop and then Lowes grocery before stopping at our "mountain moms" beautiful cabin on the way home. Well it was a busy day once again and we decided to read on the porch until it was time to heat up the leftovers from the night supper and the pecan crusted trout was a delicious as the first time. Yeow is that ever some great eatin' as was the left over black beans and rice.

I piddled around in the garden, setting out some new lettuce seedlings in the shaded portion of the back garden and giving some of the new seedlings a shot of miracle grow to help give them a boost. It was close 8  before we gave up on skypeing with the Ross Family. It seems the roast Amy was preparing for a supper with GG was sour so she had to head back to Publix for a replacement piece of meat, oh well.

We showered and then read until it was lights out for me at 10:30, LATER

Wednesday Morning

We finally got a nice shower during the afternoon on Tuesday and the earth soaked it up. It wasn't a whole lot but enough to be measured. On top of the mountain they received about a 1/2 inch but my rain gauge showed only a tenth; but any amount was desirable.

We started the day with a 6 'ish roll out for me and my helpmate stayed in the sack until much later. It seems she is staying up late at night on the Internet or watching RFD T.V. My busy work days have me in bed before 11 at the latest. After my usual start with my hot cup of green tea, a few quiet moments and then the posting of this ramble so my grand kids will know who and what we did on a daily basis I headed out to check on the gardens. Finding no damage from the slugs as its been so dry I headed in for a glass of V-8 with Chrystal hot sauce and a piece of toast to start the gastric juices. That held me until it was time for a light lunch of peanut butter and onion crackers. Yeow that combination is one taste that to me is ambrosia.

I did find in the garden the recently transplanted seedlings from Karin garden were showing some promise that they will make. They did get a little wilty later in the day but the rain shower perked them up. On a sad note I checked as to why only one potato plant broke the ground and that's because the other 11 hills of seed taters rotted in the ground so I moved the one plant down into the lower garden to make room for some new lettuce seedlings that are about ready for transplanting into that bed.

I helped neighbor Gerald move a large pile of brush from his driveway up and onto my brush pile in the ravine behind the backwoods yard. This spot is ideal for burning and I will burn this huge pile when the ground gets a little wetter. I decided it was time to remove the stumps in the backwoods yard so I approached this job with a different plan. Instead of using a sledge hammer and wedges to break it apart which had me using a lot of unnecessary swinging motion I decided to dig it out with a post hole digger and a digging iron and then just saw the roots off below ground level. This requires a whole less energy and is much faster as well. I nearly finished the digging part on the first stump within a couple hours then Nancy made me give it up during the hot part of the day. I did work up a good sweat and the arms and shoulders did get a good workout, much better than using the heavy weights in the gym.

I actually sat on the porch and read as the thunder storm approached for an hour or so and the rain at times was heavy with lots of thunder and lightning. We unplugged everything just in case of a strike. We were having Patrick and Kathryn for a supper of fresh caught trout that our fishing buddy Caleb Dalton provided for us. We were preparing half of them using the Bonefish Grille recipe and the other half were pan fried in olive oil, Yeow is all I can say!!!! We had black beans and rice along with a fresh salad. The eatin' was mighty fine to say the least.

After the cleanup we took off on a climb to the top of the mountain. The views were awesome with the fog that mingled in an around the mountains from the recent rain. The temp had dropped down into the 60's from the 80's and the smells emanating from the woods and flowers were perfume to our noses. We saw our new neighbor on top, Shawnee and her daughter Allie who was visiting from Charlotte. We chatted them up a few before heading on across the top to chat up Joe and Jetta. Joe is back from Logan, W.VA. where it looks as if the state is going to take up the cemetery where Devil Anse Hatfield who is Joe's grandfather is buried and make this more accessible for tourists.

Well we came back and Kathryn made the hike albeit at times we were wondering as she is a cancer survivor and her stamina is somewhat suspect. Many kudos to her for even attempting this hike as it is quite strenuous. We are getting use to it as we do it every day but for her to complete the journey was quite a feat. After getting back Nancy drug out the fixins' for a brownie with hot chocolate sauce, ice cream with whipping cream and toasted pecans. I passed on this belly building concoction and stayed true to my conviction to lose some of this spare tire by summers end. I did have a handful of roasted pecans rolled in sugar and cinnamon that Kathryn made for us. They are like potato chips you just can't eat one.

Well we had a nice call from our son Bobby and he seems to be in better spirits despite the heartbreak in his marriage. He still goes by the house each evening and prepares a supper for the kids, bathes them and gets them ready for bed and spends a little time with them. After a hot shower it wasn't long before it was lights out

 for me after reading until about 10:30, LATER  Here are few pics from the day's activities.

Tuesday Morning

Monday was the warmest day so far this summer with temps in the middle 80's by the afternoon. The morning started out rather warm compared to last week's low 50's. We are still in need of a good rain as I'm hand watering the gardens everyday while the grass is still green I'm refraining from mowing until we get some rain. Last evening in Galax, Va there was a huge storm that dropped golf ball size hail as well as a gully washer, oh well. We had thunder in the distance and huge thunder head clouds but no liquid sunshine.

The day started with me rolling out around 6'ish. I did my usual routine(s) before heading out to check on the gardens for slug and deer damage. The dry weather seems to have helped with keeping the slugs at bay as they like moist and wet weather. I could stand a good foggy day to bring back some much needed moisture. We aren't in a drought yet but the rain would sure green things up and help with me having to drag the hose down the hill to water.

I headed over to our "mountain mom" place to see if I could fix her door problems. Seems the front door has swelled for some reason and if would not close properly so I used the hand sander on the frame and solved that problem in little time and effort. I still don't know what could have caused the door to swell as it's been there for years with no problem. I headed back to the cabin to pick up Nancy and we headed over to our friends Karin and Kaithlyn's place to pick up some extra seedlings that she no longer had room for in her raised beds and to scooped up some horse droppings for the compost pile. We gathered several 5 gallon buckets as well as several feed sacks of the garden elixirs before heading back home. They have 2 cute puppies or small dogs that are hilarious and just full of energy.

After a lite lunch of sardines on crackers with mustard and onions(one of our favorites) I headed out to transplant the seedlings. The sun was off the lower gardens so I set in the ground 3 cauliflower plants, 1 large zucchini plant and 3 watermelon seedlings.

I did use several buckets of the aged manure to top dress the sugar peas and green beans. Nancy helped me to install the chicken wire on poles set at the end of their rows for these 2 vegetables plants to grow up and climb on. That makes it so much easier to harvest without breaking your back bending over. Well it got so warm and hot in the sun I decided to read on the back porch for an hour or so before we started an early supper. I was playing pickle ball at 6:30 so I wanted time to digest before the match. I grilled some marinated salmon steaks and along with fresh broccoli and a salad we had a good feed.

I picked up neighbor Gerald and we heading out to the Roaring Gap Club and along with 3 other players we played for nearly 2 hours. Gerald and I were getting tired a little after 8 so we let the younger guys continue with some cut throat play. It was a beautiful evening and the setting was awesome. Our shirts were soaked. Our combined age as a team(Gerald and I) was 134 years and we were beating teams with combined ages of less than a hundred.

Well it wasn't long after a hot shower and watching a little of the Rays on the Internet that I decided to read in the horizontal position; well that lasted about 10 pages and by 10:30 it was nighty, nighty for me, LATER  Oh I almost forgot we had a somewhat welcome guest arrive slithering through the grass while reading on the back porch. We had seen one earlier in the driveway and Gerald mentioned he saw 2 different ones down by his place as well. Mr. Blackie was a rather large one; lets hope he isn't related to the one last year who would not stay away from the porch and the birds nest underneath which eventually cost him head. We branded that blackie the snake from hell.

Monday Morning

Well Sunday turned out to be another gorgeous day here in the high country with a chilly 58 degrees to start and it did reach 80 by late afternoon but very little humidity. We did our usual Sunday morning routines as we got ready for worship at Cornerstone. Today was a special graduation for the Top Gun men who finished an intensive 9 month course of study that brought them into a brotherhood of believers.  The results were a change in lifestyles and relationships with accountability partners and a commitment to being the best for their families with GOD at the forefront. Many family members testified of the change in these men's lives and their desire to leave the community better than they found it.

We went out to lunch at the local eatery with one of the young single men graduate and his girlfriend who is a sweet friend of ours along with her mother, the Tracy's and Kallie and Caleb Dalton. Curtis the graduate is a former marine and served us in Afghanistan and he and Caitlyn have been a duo for nearly a year. She and her mom Karin are strong believers and have made such an impact on this young man life and now this program has helped him win not only their confidence in him but many others as well.

Well headed over to visit the Dalton Farm and see their new puppy, Piper. It's an Australian shepherd and will become a ranch hand with Mechelle; she is now a farm manager for a huge farm in the area. This dog will be her side kick and will help herd the cattle as well as be a family pet. The girls messed around down at the barn with the horses while Caleb and I picked some fresh lettuce and spinach from Kay's garden. Caleb caught 6 nice trout on Saturday and decided he didn't want them so he gave them to us and when I got home I filleted them. I want to try a new recipe with half of them for the Tracy's and fry the other half the way I like them.

We took a hike to the top of the mountain and the views were once again awesome. I made it up without stopping and Nancy was a close second with only a couple minor rest stops. We saw no one on top and after the walk across we headed down to the cabin. I hand watered the gardens as things were really drying up as well as the flower gardens. I replanted the corn as the seed was probably too old. I hoed around the peas and beans and found where I had lost one kale plant to a cut worm. The tomato plants are greening up as well as I see a few blossoms that should bloom in a few days.

We settled in to the "mountain man" show before it was time to hit the showers. I never heard from Bobby today but did see some pictures where he got to be with his kids for Fathers Day. I got a sweet card from daughter Amy that had me in tears, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was another day of firsts for us as ventured down off the mountain to HOT Winston-Salem, Yeow it reminded us why we left Hot Florida just 2 weeks ago. Wow have we been busy in just these 2 past weeks. We saw a couple of our friends at the Wake Forest Baptist Hospital, did a little shopping at Sam's Club and Aldi's before driving back a different route through the beautiful foothills.

The morning started out with a 6'ish rollout for me. After I did my morning routine(s) that started with a cup of hot green tea, a few quiet moments, the posting of this ramble from the activities from the day before Nancy decided to use up a couple over ripe bananas in the batter for some buckwheat cakes. Wow that is one fine breakfast to start the day and they held me until we ate supper with Kathryn and Patrick around 6 in the evening. I headed out to check on the gardens before we started down the mountain around 10:30. We took the interstate into downtown and easily found this humongous complex called Baptist Hospital. I've never seen anything so large like it anywhere in Florida.

We finally were able to get in to see Eddie and he was attached to many tubes and lines that basically kept him alive but he was conscious and alert despite not being able to talk. We did all the talking and at times he was able to lift his left arm and move his right leg and could turn his head from side to side as well. We had a good visit with him for about a 1/2 hour and I really felt much better for his being able to beat this and make some recovery after seeing him. We both felt good that he would recover more quickly if he could just get back to breathing on his own and fight this pneumonia. I think he has some feeling in his lower extremities which we felt was a great sign. Eddie is such a fighter and if only he could get back to communicating that would give him some confidence to recover.

After leaving Eddie we found what room Norm our mountain top buddy was in so we stopped for a visit with him. He is suffering from congestive heart failure and his legs are in terrible shape with fluid retention. He is in his late 80's. He is another tough hombre as he spent the winter alone on the mountain. He acted a lot better than the last time I saw him and I think being in total care at this facility will give him some renewed spirit to fight this malady. He seemed really thrilled that we came to see him while we were in town. He is in a private room and was about to get some physical therapy while we were there so we headed out after a short visit.

We had our GPS so we were able to find our way around albeit we back tracked and eventually left town a different way than we arrived which turned out to be very interesting. The route home took us through small towns on a 2 lane road that we had never travelled on before. The farm land was beautiful and some of the houses were majestic outside the big city. I think the next time we go into the city we will travel this route as it shorter in miles but takes a few minutes longer but the scenery is awesome. We got back around 5'ish and unloaded our bounty before heading once again to Sparta.

 We had ordered some meat from a local butcher shop at some great prices and wanted to pick it up before they closed at 6. I loaded the cooler up with ice packs and then we picked up our order and headed to the Tracy's for a delicious meal. They are staying in an awesome cabin with a fantastic views on the other side of Sparta which takes about 35 minutes to get there on a good day. After stuffing ourselves on pasta, chicken and salad with some delicious order'ves to start the juices working we or Patrick and I took off down the hill to feed the alpacas and burrow. We came back and sat on their deck to watch the incredibly beautiful sunset that entertained us until nearly 9 o'clock and then the lightning bug show began. We headed out shortly thereafter as we had to pack up our meat and get it in the freezer when we got back to the cabin.

Well Saturday was a truly a busy day as we never let any moss grow under our feet. After a hot shower and a few moments reading the sandman called, LATER

Saturday Morning

Well Friday once again had magnificent temps with the lows in the high 50's and the highs somewhere around 75 with no humidity. The thunderstorms we had on Thursday evening passed us by and the evening was perfect for an outdoor graduation ceremony held for the seniors at Alleghany High School in Sparta. We had 2 invites from 2 very special Cornerstone families; Summer Blevins is our youth pastor's daughter and from Kallie Dalton our best friends daughter who by the way graduated with honors and was third GPA in her class separated by just a point from the top position. Not only is she smart but a beautiful young lady as well. More on that later.


I started the day with a 6'ish roll out where as Nancy slept in until nearly 8. After my usual routine(s) I headed out to check on the gardens and found just a couple slugs dispatching them with a hoe. They are a voracious eater at night and seldom do you see them in the daylight but the wet ground in the garden is their idea place of residence and since the sun doesn't strike the gardens until later in the morning they are usually still out when I check early in the morning. A couple years ago we had a terrible infestation of them but so far this year just a few as it's been relatively dry to speak of  as they love moisture.

The recently sown beets are up as well as the radishes, okra, bush beans and even a single cucumber plant. The spinach, kale, cabbage and sugar peas as well as the 1/2 runner beans are growing nicely. I'm still waiting on the sweet corn and potato's to pop through the ground. I noticed the wine berry bushes are starting to produce the berry hulls that a delicious berry will pop out of in a month or so. The cold freeze seems have held them back a little compared to last year.

Well I spent the morning applying some polyurethane to the windows frames on the down stairs floor then used the vacuum to clean the dust from the cabin walls. Seems we had such wind this spring that pollen and dust some how made it to the walls to where it was noticeable to us. That kept me busy until lunch time. We had a salad after just 2 soft boiled eggs for breakfast for me. I had one person say to me last night that I looked as if I had lost some fat; that was music to my ears as I've been conscious of my eating habits especially portion size and carb intake. I did break that fast last evening at Gerald and Kay's graduation supper for Kallie as I had a delicious twice baked potato along with barbeque pork, baked beans and cantaloupe. I passed on the strawberry shortcake which looked marvelous.

We headed to the top of the mountain for our daily hike around 3 PM and saw our old friends the Clines; Sandy and Ann. We sat on their front porch for a spell and they are trying to sell the place and wouldn't you know a feller drove up and inquired about it. Well we continued on across the top and they were still showing this feller around the place as they were walking down in the woods onto the back road which is their property line. So who knows maybe this was a good prospective buyer as Sandy doesn't like staying there overnight anymore. We learned that our old buddy Norm who is in poor health was admitted to Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem this day as well. He can barely breathe or get around so we will visit him as well as Eddie who is in the same hospital when we head down off the mountain today.

We met up at the Luffman House which is Kallie's grandparents and many of her relatives for a delicious supper then headed to the football field at Alleghany High. The setting is awesome as you look out over the mountains from the field and the weather was perfect. The grandstands were full as many friends and relatives came to applaud their seniors graduation. Kallie gave a nice speech as well as did the other 2 students with high a GPA. She will start her freshman year at NC State this fall and her boyfriend Juan will start at UNC. I always get these 2 schools mixed up as they are within minutes of each in Raleigh and I can never get their mascots right. I know one is the Wolfpack and the other is the Tar Heels.

Well we got home around 9:30 and it was just starting to get really dark out. It wasn't long before I hit the hot shower then read a little before nighty, nighty, LATER

Friday Morning

 Well Thursday found us once again in Galax to do some shopping which took up the better part of the morning after our usual routines. We got some good news if you can call it that for Eddie as he did have some voluntary movement in one of his legs but on a down side he now has developed pneumonia. They are giving him some physical therapy which leaves him exhausted. We are planning on going to Winston on Saturday for a visit. It seems as if he makes a couple steps of progress but then is pushed back with another malady. He is still intubated which leaves a few limited forms of communication and Kimberly suggested making an ABC'S board to present to him so we can have some limited conversations.

The temperatures were once again exhilarating as I exited the cabin to start the day after my usual morning routine(s). The gardens are looking good and I found only a couple slugs to do away with after once again tearing down the nest the bird is trying to build in the peak. I still don't have any corn or taters up and I'm wondering that maybe the seeds were to old. We finally got a decent rain shower last evening as it washed out our pickle ball play outside so we headed to the church where we had to remove and then again set the chairs back up after playing. We had 5 players and the wet shirts were evident. I was bushed after 2 hours as it was a bit warm in the building but a couple of the new players have really picked up on this game.

I'm still restricting my caloric intake with just one meal a day so we had our big meal around 3 PM after getting back from town. I actually think or feel as if my pants are a little looser. We stopped and visited with Heglar's on our way in to the cabin who were up for just the day mowing their yards. We chatted for nearly an hour and they seemed to of had a good winter health wise. We finished up the smoked ribs dinner leftovers then headed out for our daily hike to the top of the mountain. I piddled around in the gardens until it was time to head out for pickle ball at the church and picked up Ted in a really heavy rain at his house on the way there.

Well that was about it after a rather uneventful day. The hot shower felt great on these old aching muscles and it wasn't long until I hit the sack and read until the sandman called, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday turned out to be a very busy day that saw me doing lots of little "fixer upper chores" not only for us but some good deeds for our "mountain Mom", Helen. I started the day off with a 6'ish roll out with temps in the high 50's and the day stayed very comfortable all day long. We had lots of high clouds and a few little sprinkles and by late evening a couple lite rain showers but the breeze was awesome as well which helped to keep the bugs at bay.

After my usual morning routine(s) of a cup of hot green tea, a few quiet moments and the posting of this ramble and a glass of V-8 juice I headed out to check on the gardens. I've skipped breakfast all of this week as well as lunch except for a banana and an energy drink and I've not missed either of the meals. I'm hoping this reduction of food will help me reduce the spare tire as my energy level has soared and that I'm using up some of the stored belly fat.

The gardens are looking great with bush beans poking through the ground as well as okra. Still looking for some potato buds, corn and cucumbers all from seeds. I've found a few slimy slugs and quickly dispatch them with a hoe or my shoe. The recent transplants of perennials from Lowes are doing well. The sugar peas and 1/2 runner beans are really showing colors so I headed up into the woods to gather a couple new posts to anchor the climbing fences made of chicken wire. It's so much easier to harvest them standing up instead of bending over to the ground, plus these plants will climb as high as you put the fences.

We were phoned by the Lowes delivery truck that our new flat top stove was being delivered within the hour. We are thrilled or at least Nancy is with the product as we no longer have to buy burner trays and the new stove has a light inside the oven and now she has some extra counter space as well. I managed to successfully re-level the stove and raise it up from where it was initially installed. I then headed upstairs to install a new water intake valve for the commode and that proved successful the first time. We decided to head over to our "mountain moms" to help her with a few chores. I fixed a table with new screws and bolts on her outside deck, put in her window a/c unit and fixed her garage door that got out of its track. I broke my diet with an orange dream sickle as we sat on her back porch over looking the beautiful mountains in the distance, wow was that ever tasty and took me back to our grade school days when we use to get ice cream after school. She gave us a small pomegranate tree she had ordered so when I got back to the cabin I had to clear out an area that got mostly afternoon and evening sun to plant it, hopefully it will grow here as their fruit is very healthy for you.

We had driven the golf cart over to Helen's and on the way back home Nancy got chilled. It was probably in the high 70's but her blood is still thin from Florida living. I thought it was perfect for working and

 being out doors. I once more tore down the dang bird's nest that keeps wanting to build above the windows that leave a trail of crap all over the side of the house. This is the first year we have ever had that problem and these birds are persistent to say the least. She or they keep building and I keep tearing it down at 3-4 times a day. I left the ladder position thinking that was acting as a deterrent; but No.

I grilled a couple marinated salmon steaks and along with a rice dish and some black beans we had supper with a little homemade apple sauce on the side with some leftover cornbread, delicious!!! After the cleanup we headed out on our daily hike to the top of the mountain. The views were once again awesome and we never get tired of them. We stopped and visited with Jetta and Zeke as Joe is off on a mission with his brother for a couple days. We will check on her and Norm while he is gone. We got back in time for me to do some hoeing and transplant some lilies that is crowding on of my climbing rose bushes. I need to find a trellis out of mountain Laurel for it to climb on. This rose bush has the best aroma of any I've ever found. It's an old time bush that Helen brought from her grandmothers place many years ago and this was a cutting or a shoot she gave me several years back. The flowers are small but plentiful and it climbs as well.

Well I stayed outside until nearly 9 before heading in to the hot shower. I did manage to check on the back sliding Ray's and they were winning for the first time in several games; but the game wasn't over so that could have changed with their bullpen woes, oh well. We have no change on Eddie's condition to report so please keep him in your thoughts and prayers, LATER