Cars

The only good reason I can think of to live in the city would be that you would not necessarily need a car to get around.  Buses, subways, or taxis could pretty much take you where you needed to go.  

I've never been a lover of cars, but see them more as a necessary evil, and a hateful way to spend my money. 

Take yesterday for example.  There I sat at home, waiting to hear from my mechanic. Why? Because on the way home from work night before last, my car overheated.  I happened to glance down for some reason (thank you, guardian angel!) and noticed the temperature gauge needle ALL the way over in the red section - as far over at it could get.  I pulled over to the shoulder of the road as soon as I was able and immediately turned off the car.  It was then that I noticed smoke coming from under the hood.  Scared me to death.  I made a panicky call to my husband first, and once I told him where I was and he assured me he was on his way to "rescue" me, I then called AAA so they could send a tow truck to get the car. 

Seems the car lost all it's coolant because my "crossover pipe" which connects the coolant hoses to the radiator (new one on me!) had cracked, which meant there was nothing to cool down the engine. Guess you learn something new everyday, huh? Although I may come across as a "dumb woman" to some of you when it comes to mechanical issues, the truth is, I just don't care!  All things mechanical bore me to tears.  God bless the people (like mechanics themselves!) who find this stuff fascinating, but I'm certainly not one of them.  In any event, after talking to the mechanic later in the day, he also broke the good news (can you hear the sarcasm?)that I was also going to need new front and rear brakes, rotors, as well as tires and a front end alignment.  See? This is why I hate cars.  I know nothing lasts forever - including brakes and tires - but I just HATE spending my hard-earned money on this stuff. Especially when I don't even like cars to begin with! In fairness to my car, however, it's been pretty good to me (other than the pipe that cracked).  All in all, I've had very little work done on it since I've owned it, other than routine oil changes, which I'm good about getting done every 3,500 miles. It's just everything else that I don't want to be bothered with.  But what can you do? You can't ride on bad brakes or tires.  In fact, there are just SO many expenses associated with owning a car which you can do absolutely nothing about; renewing your tags, insurance, emissions inspections,  and God knows the oil companies can crank up the price of gas anytime they get the notion to, using one of their lame excuses.  I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that cars are money pits that depreciate in value every day that you own them!

But car companies continue to spend ridiculous amounts of money on advertising campaigns that deceive consumers into believing that "we are what we drive." And it works, too, because sadly, a lot of people actually fall for this nonsense.  As if their worth as a person depended on it. Some even believe it to the point that they get themselves into needless debt with car payments in an effort to live up to the image associated with driving a certain type of vehicle. I think this is awful.  For me, a car is a utilitarian object, designed to take me from point A to point B.  A collection of metal, plastic, rubber, etc., does not define me as Madison Avenue would have me believe.  I define me.   

I remember car shopping as a young, unmarried woman.  What a nightmare.  My experience with car salesman has been that they seem to think that every woman who walked through the door without a man by her side could be conned into making an emotional decision with no regard to price, a car's reputation, or consumer reports about its reliability.  I actually had one salesman say to me, "This car would look GREAT with your hair!" I just looked at him and didn't say a word, then turned right around and walked out.  I was completely insulted that anyone would think I'd be stupid enough to make a big decision like buying a car, based solely on how well it complimented my hair.  Still makes me mad to this day when I think about it.  GRRRRR!  

This is my current car.  Very average as you can see.  I guess I'm really showing my age, too, to have chosen a wagon.  But for my lifestyle, it's totally practical.  With 3 dogs in the family, it's nice to have that extra area in the back so when we take them to the lake near our house, there's plenty of room for them.  Or if we take off for the mountains there's more than enough room for all our stuff in the back.  I've pretty much driven Fords since I've had my license. This one included. I don't know why they get the bad rap they do either, because I've always gotten at LEAST 200,000 miles on all of them - run them into the ground actually until they won't run anymore - and never remember any of them being lemons. In fact, the most mechanically unreliable vehicle I owned was a Chevrolet (my first and last), many years ago.  I'm sure it never made it to the 200,000 mile mark like my Fords, who all died of old age and natural causes ;-)  

This one's got another 60,000 or so miles to go before I send it out to pasture - but first it needs new tires, brakes and an alignment. Sigh... Remind me again why I don't live in the city? 

 

Come Join Us At the Party!

In case you're looking for me, I'm at Patrice's barn party
(http://www.everydayruralty.com/.)  She's having a Blog-aversary and we're celebrating in the barn and was kind enough to invite me.  Come on along with me and don't be shy! She would LOVE to have you!

1.  WHO WOULD YOU BRING WITH YOU?

My husband, who always likes to be where there's LOTS of food!  I'd also bring my little dog, Lilly, who, if you've seen her pictures, also likes to be where there's LOTS of food!

2.  WHAT WOULD YOU WEAR TO THE PARTY?  

If it's in the 60's during the day, I'll be wearing a long sleeve Gap tee-shirt (I think I have one in every color they make!), Levi's jeans, then slip on my barn coat when it gets chilly later tonight. Oh, and my cowboy boots, too, in case Patrice allows me to saddle up and ride one of her horses :-) 

3.  WHAT WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO SEE ON MY FARM?

I'm most looking forward to meeting Patrice and her whole family.  They seem like such nice people...and then all of her animals, of course! Especially the horses wearing the scarves and hats that Patrice has knitted for them.    

4.  WHAT DISH WOULD YOU BRING WITH YOU?

I sure hope Patrice has an electrical outlet in her barn because being a native Marylander, I'd like to bring a big crock pot of ... 

Maryland Crab Soup

Ingredients

2 (14.5 ounce) cans stewed tomatoes
3 cups water
1 cup fresh lima beans
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup sliced carrots
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning TM
2 cups beef broth
1 pound blue crab crabmeat
10 blue crab claws, steamed (optional)
1 gallon water 

Directions

1.Place whole tomatoes, water, lima beans, corn, sliced carrots, chopped onion, Old Bay seasoning, and beef broth, in a 4 quart pot. Heat to simmer, cover, and cook for 5 minutes.

2.Bring 1 gallon water to boil. Add crab claws and boil 6 minutes. Drain crab and set aside.

3.Stir crabmeat (and crabs claws, if desired) into tomato and vegetable mixture. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes longer. Serve hot.

5.  WHAT GAME OR ACTIVITY WOULD YOU LIKE TO DO DURING OUR GET TOGETHER?
I liked Kim's idea at http://fieldofmydreams.blogspot.com/  of bobbing for apples.  Haven't done that in forever, but think it would be fun. Great idea, Kim :-) Or how about a group of us making caramel apples? Haven't had one of those in forever, either. YUMMY!!!

Let The Moulting Begin

Look at this pathetic girl.  It's that time of year and Lucy, my white leghorn, is always the first to start moulting, then the others girls follow suit. 

Lucy is one of the first chickens I got about 4 years ago, and although she's at the top of the pecking order, you'd never know it to look at her since she's so skinny and scrawny now.

I can tell that during her moult she loses her confidence, too.  Normally she marches around the yard with an attitude like a rooster.  She's always in charge with a very determined look on her face that says "Stay out of my way! I'm on official business and have NO time to talk!"

But I notice that in this condition she's needier and wants to hang around me more - not like her at all. She's always been very stand-offish and refuses to ever let me hold her. 

Twinkie, my Buff  Ameraucana, is also starting to moult, but doesn't look quite as bad yet. 

This is Twinkie's first moult so I have no idea if she'll lose as many feathers as Lucy has. 

 

Along with their regular food this morning, I also made them a treat of cooked oatmeal and threw in some raisins, diced strawberries, and a  crumbled up waffle, too.  They went NUTS for it!

 

 

Two moulting girls in search of bugs.

 

Happy Sunday Everyone :-)!

Thankful Thursday

This is my first Thankful Thursday  post (thank you, Kim, at My Field of Dreams), so last night I started to write down all the things I felt so blessed for in my own life, but after watching the TV coverage and reading all the news stories about the miraculous rescue of the 33 Chilean miners, it seemed like a no-brainer to dedicate today's post to these men, as well as  their families.  I am SO  thankful that these men made it out alive and safely into the loving arms of their families.

I have no relatives, friends or any connection to Chile whatsoever, but as a human being, when I think of how I'd feel if my husband or any family member were in this situation for the last 69 days, I can't help but cry (and cry, and cry...).  It's such a wonderful/inspiring/thrilling story and a bright light of hope in this dark world. I truly believe that this happy ending would not have been possible without God's intervention.  There are NO limits to his power! Praise God for another job well done! 

Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me;
       O LORD, be my help."

  You turned my wailing into dancing;
       you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

  that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.
       O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.

Psalm 30: 10-12

Walk For Farm Animals

 In case you think I spent the whole weekend decorating my yard and building scarecrows as mentioned in my previous post, allow me to set the record straight.  Last Saturday I did my part for the animals when I participated in the "Walk for Farm Animals" sponsored by Farm Sanctuary http://www.farmsanctuary.org/ whose mission is to "protect farm animals from cruelty, inspire change in the way society views and treats farm animals, and promote compassionate vegan living." Although there were organized walks all across the country for this purpose, I walked in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where our group walked up and down the boardwalk, holding up our signs and distributing pamphlets and literature to educate and raise awareness about factory farming and Farm Sanctuary.    







Battery Hens: NO way to live!



Until about a year ago, I'd never heard of Farm Sanctuary until I got a piece of literature in the mail. Considering all the mail I get on a daily basis from all kinds of charities requesting my financial support, it's a wonder this didn't end up in my recycle bin, as much of it does in my house. Don't get me wrong; there are many, many worthy animal and environmental charities out there, and I contribute to a lot of them, but I simply cannot afford to give to everyone that asks. Believe me, I'd love to, but I can't. In any event, I clearly remember opening up Farm Sanctuary's mailing at the kitchen table and it not broke my heart, but it opened my eyes to the horrors of factory farming, which is where the majority of the meat, eggs and dairy in our grocery stores come from. When I read and saw the horrendous conditions these animals are forced to live in for the sole purpose of human consumption, it made me sick. It also made me question my own eating habits. I've never been a huge carnivore to begin with, but I have to be honest; I did enjoy the occasional cheeseburger or a couple of strips of bacon with my eggs and loved smothering my Thanksgiving turkey with big helpings of gravy and mashed potatoes. Never again. Please don't misunderstand me; I'm not sitting in judgment of ANYONE who does eat meat (my husband, for example, will never go meatless and I wouldn't even attempt to win that battle) but it's something that I choose not to do anymore. And I don't miss it or crave it at all. That is, I guess you could say that I don't eat mammals (beef, pork or chicken), but I still eat seafood (fish, shrimp and crabs). I don't think I can ever completely go the vegan route, which would also mean giving up dairy and eggs. I think if animals are treated humanely and live in environments where they can thrive as God intended them to (case in point; my chickens!) and are not shoved up against each other in tiny cages and shot up with growth hormones and antibiotics, as they are in factory farms, then drinking organic milk from a happy cow who is allowed to field graze, not a confined, stressed out one, doesn't make me feel like I'm contributing to what I consider a crime against animals. In fact, I'm now drinking more soy and rice milk than I am cow's milk, which is truly not as bad as it sounds. Really. As for eggs, I only have to walk as far as my backyard for those and if you've seen some of my earlier posts,  I don't think I have to convince you as to what spoiled queens those ladies are! Maybe this logic sounds completely looney to you, but so be it. I feel better - or should I say that my conscience feels better about living my life this way. Remember the "just say no" campaign started by First Lady Nancy Reagan back in the 1980s to discourage kids from engaging in recreational drug use? I guess this is my own personal campaign where I will "just say no" to animal cruelty in factory farms.



A Compassionate World Begins With You.





























How I Spent My Sunday

I've kicked the bug that rendered me almost helpless for a couple of days and I'd like to send a big THANK  YOU(!) to all my blogging pals for your kind words and well wishes for a speedy recovery. So now that I'm back to my ornery old self, it seemed like a good day to start my Fall/Halloween decorating.  I had a general idea of what I wanted to do, something cute but simple, so I ran around the last couple of weekends and got 2 bales of straw, mums, pumpkins and gourds.  







I also had the idea that I'd like to build a scarecrow, which I've never done before, so I was just flying blind about how to put it together.  I used a big branch that I got from our woods in the back and nailed a board across it in a "T" shape so his arms would be up in typical scarecrow fashion.  Not as easy as it sounds - at least for me, anyway. I had to use my husband's handsaw to cut the branch to the right height and the electric jigsaw as well for trimming the little branches that were attached to the big branch (another first for me today).  All this took a lot longer than I anticipated, but it was a beautiful sunny Fall day, so I took my time and tried not to get frustrated when it didn't all didn't come together instantly.  I stuffed a pillowcase with straw for his face and body, and covered his head with my favorite gardening hat.  In fact, his whole outfit is from my closet; overalls, flannel, bandanna and hat.  After I put him together, keeping him upright was another challenge, but I stuck with it and finally got him to stand on his own. Once he was upright and we no longer looked like we were slow dancing together in the front yard, I stood back to look at the whole thing and decided that his face was too blah with just the pillowcase, so to give him a little more of the Halloween spirit, I ran up to the Dollar Store and came up with this skeleton mask, as well as the crow, which I think adds a nice touch.

Believe or not, the whole process took me around 2 hours. I bet you're thinking "WHAT?! Wow, you must really be inept." Okay, guilty as charged.  I know it would have taken less than half the time if my husband was around to lend a hand (i.e., do 95% of the work), but I had already given him a day pass to go fishing with 2 of his buddies, so this was a solo effort by yours truly at my first ever scarecrow. Besides, I was in the mood to do this today so I didn't want to wait until he got home - or until next weekend.

 

In other news today, around dusk after all the scarecrow building and decorating was finished, I decided to wind down in the backyard and enjoy my favorite form of therapy, better known as  "watching chickens" when I noticed a movement in the corner of my eye.  When I looked over and focused on it, I saw it was a lone wild turkey spying in the fence on all of us.  He was a huge rascal, too! I slowly walked up to the fence to get a better look, wishing I had my camera with me, but when I got about 4 feet away he took off.  I don't think wild turkeys are all that common around here, although I know they do exist, even if in small numbers, since I remember seeing a group of them a couple of years ago coming out of the woods across the street, so I was pretty excited about another appearance.  

The only other thing I enjoyed watching today was Lilly run herself ragged up and down the yard when she'd see various squirrels perform their  acrobatics, jumping from one tree branch to the other. I personally found it very impressive, but she literally loses her mind when she sees those squirrels! Must be the terrier in her.   You'd think she'd be used to them by now, but oh, how she hates them with a passion!  Age has not mellowed her at all in that respect. 

All in all, it was a very good day.  The only regret I guess is that since I spent the majority of my day outside, I didn't get the kind of housework done that I was planning on today. Rats! Of course I justify this by telling myself that there aren't going to be many more days like today in the coming months, so I might as well enjoy the great outdoors while I can.  When the temperatures drop below 50, there will be plenty of time to stay inside to vacuum, dust, wax, etc. Yuk. I can't wait.  

No Rest For the Weary

Out of nowhere I seem to have caught some sort of stomach bug/flu/yucky thing that started last night after I got home from work and caused me to be up just about every hour on the hour until the next morning. No fun whatsoever.  Normally, I would just call in sick the following day, but wouldn't you know it, today of all days  I had a project to finish that required me to be there at least until noon. Luckily, before my husband left for work he found some upset stomach medicine in the cabinet and thankfully, the "good until" date had not expired, so after downing that and waiting for it to kick in, I went about my normal morning routine of feeding the animals, then  rallied enough energy to shower, get dressed and then head to the office. 

When I got there I told my boss I was feeling a little under the weather, got no sleep the night before, and as soon as I finished what I had to do, would be out of there to go home to let this thing run its course, as well as catch up on the sleep I missed and needed.  As planned, I was able to leave by 12:30 and when I walked outside, it was an absolutely spectacular day, with temps in the mid-70s and sunny with a light breeze. As perfect as you could ask for. On the way home I daydreamed about falling asleep on the chaise lounge in the backyard with the sun on my face, and the girls and dogs close by keeping me company.  Before I got home though, I thought I should make a quick stop at the grocery store to get some chicken broth and crackers since my stomach was completely empty and it would probably be best to ease back into eating with some bland food. 

After wolfing down the broth and 6 crackers (I hadn't eaten since the day before!), I headed for the chaise lounge all ready for an afternoon of rest and recooperation. I was feeling a little better, just really tired, and thought this is great; I'll just lay here and listen to the birds sing while the sun and the breeze lull me to sleep.  I wasn't there long before Scarlett and Peggy wandered over and decided that my lap was a good place for their afternoon nap, too. It was all very cozy with the 3 of us, but being the fickle young ladies they are, that only lasted about 10 minutes and

then they were off for bigger and better things in the yard.  Kids. So I closed my eyes again waiting for sleep to overcome me when a thought came to me: "Now would really be a good time to clean out that hen house." The (logical) part of my brain  said, "Forget it! Stay where you are, RELAX and don't move. No more working or thinking about work today!" But I couldn't help myself.  My guilty conscience (which curiously always sounds like my mother's voice) won out when it said, "How can you just lay there being unproductive when there's a million and one things to be done around here?" Get up! You're not dying!" So after retrieving the shovel and wheelbarrow, I cleaned out the girl's house, followed by ...

Filling up the bird feeder...

Changing the house flag... 

Then tearing down the tomato vines and giving a few rogue tomatoes I found to the girls.

I really need to get over this guilt trip I put myself through about laying around "too long" - especially when I actually DO need the rest!  

I should learn to be more like Lilly, who watches the world go by until she dozes off, completely unconcerned about what did or didn't get done today...

Or even Loretta, who slips away from the rest of the girls for her "me time" dust bath without a care in the world or a trace of guilt to be found on her.