# 522 - Doggie Disappearing Act

This past week has been full of ups and downs. First of all, I had wanted to go see my oldest daughter and grand-daughter in the Fort Worth area, but things around our own place have been chaotic.

Auntie Stefie with Coraline. My youngest
daughter Stefie with my grand-baby Coraline.

I didn't feel well this past week...for those of you who are long time readers, you might know that I have jumped a few MAJOR health hurdles, which includes two critical Cardio-Thoracic surgeries that were a year apart. I also have a rare condition that actually makes my blood pressure plummet, which can create jello body. Since I have had trouble this week keeping my blood pressure elevated, I knew that driving one-way for 4+ hours might not be the wisest choice. When this happens, I just have to wait it out. Usually, it does happen more often during the summer months because I am outside to do this and that and it causes my electrolytes to get a little off-whack, causing me major issues. Not fun. I have medicine I take to elevate my blood pressure, but sometimes it is more complicated than a little pill can fix, so I have to kind of take it easy and wait it out. I have learned that patience is crucial to getting through the frustrating times. I still have so much to do, whether I am doing outdoor work or handling necessary paperwork and home business to keep things running at home.

So, there you go with that angle. Tough week as my blood pressure yo-yo's.

To top it off, the dog we had rescued from the deep forest a few months ago is scheduled to be "fixed" in about a week at our country vet's office. Apparently, the appointment was off by a couple of weeks because Gracie went into heat and everything went into chaos around here as Howdy entered a zone-of-crazy-dogness.

For days on end, I felt as if I were living around events that closely resembled what I can only refer to as "live porn" and it was fairly traumatic. Thankfully, Howdy could not figure out which end was what, if you catch my drift. However, there was a lot of kennel time off and on during the day with a sharp eye on both dogs to usher my "STOP THAT" command.

You would have thought my blood pressure would've gone sky high with all the constant attempts of the dogs to be "involved" that had been going on around me.

Howdy still has the jewels because we were hoping to one day get another full-blooded Aussie for him to breed with, especially because he truly is one of the best dogs I have ever been around...awesome farm/ranch dog that is great with the animals, a natural lead dog for walks and an excellent guard dog with sharp senses and an ability to follow detailed commands.

However, after these intense days of Howdy being in the zone, I was ready to neuter him, myself.

In fact, Gracie has been a dog that has been prone to give in to her wanderlust, but Howdy has always remained by my side, true blue. We have tried to handle her wanderlust, but on a lot of acreage, that can be a challenge. The good part, overall, is that the older she gets, the less often she wanders and the more often she loves to linger directly in our yard with the chickens at her side. Gracie loves to find a stick or a branch or a bone from the forest and chew on it for a few days in one of her favorite spots in the yard. With the summer heat, she is more prone to elect to stay inside next to the fan.

However, this past week, in the chaos of a dog in heat for the first time, Gracie decided to go on an excursion and the especially bad part is that Howdy followed her.

He has never left the homefront and he flat out left. That morning, I had been outside doing morning chores as the dogs were outside with me. I was keeping my eye on Howdy to make sure there wasn't any "funny business" happening. In fact, Howdy had been commanded to get onto the deck and to stay as I walked a few feet away to collect eggs. In the amount of time it took for me to collect ten eggs against me and turn around to face the deck, he was gone, Gracie was gone, both were gone.

 

Setting the eggs down, I began to walk around calling for Howdy because he is the one who will turn on a dime at a command. The problem was...he wasn't showing up. Highly unusual. I kept walking from one side of the acreage to another, walking for acres and acres, probably a total of pacing hit around walking a minimum of ten acres as I called out commands to him that he has never ignored before this time.

Finally, I decided to go back to the home-site to wake Sgt. Dave, even though he'd been working long hours and had not gotten a full night's rest, I could not continue searching by myself. He woke straight up and headed outside to start his own calls.

Sgt. Dave even fired the rifle and the .38 because Howdy does NOT like the sound of gun-fire. But, nothing worked. It seemed that Howdy was completely out of hearing distance.

Knowing that we are surrounded by THOUSANDS of forested acres made me feel hopeless. Also, rain was coming, so I feared that their scent trail to find their way home would be wiped clean.

Also, the roads surrounding the acreage are very dangerous to animals because nearly everyone around here drives a huge truck. Then, I was concerned that Howdy and Gracie would come up to a neighbor's acreage and either be attacked by one or more of the neighbor's dogs or that they would be shot by the neighbor trying to protect his own animals from rogue visitors.

No matter...I had terrible thoughts and the more time that passed, the worse the thoughts became.

Sgt. Dave went driving around, looking for the dogs, with no luck. Eventually, he had to leave for work. I began calling local places to see if they could keep their eyes and ears open for anyone seeing or hearing about our dogs being caught.

And, nearly eight hours passed. I knew they would never come home again. I tried to not be angry at Gracie for her wanderlust and for the natural conditions that made Howdy want to stick to her like a piece of duct tape.

Then, after 5:00pm, I walked into the yard to find the dogs coming across the acreage to the deck. Howdy looked like HELL. He was filthy, soaking wet with debris sticking to his fur, and he literally could not make it to the deck...he collapsed on our acreage, in our yard, about half way to the deck.

Better days the followed the doggie-disappearance day.

Obviously, they had also found something to eat because Gracie was dragging a piece of heavy foil with bits of charred meat stuck inside of it, so they had their fast-food with them...no telling where they got that from, probably another reason to almost get shot.

Sgt. Dave had three problems on his hand when he had left for work...Gracie missing, Howdy missing and his wife, me, who was beyond furious. In fact, after Howdy disappeared, I called to vet to also schedule him to be neutered. My husband asked me, "Isn't that premature...I mean...he hasn't even come home yet."

And I have to be honest, I responded, "Well, when he comes home, it will be to face a ball-less future because his following her is because he is not thinking straight and we CAN fix that!"

Yes, I scheduled Howdy for a neutering as he was missing. I had to do something since I felt out of control and scheduling him for surgery to remove the source(s) of the reason for him to stray felt like the right thing to do at that time.

Sgt. Dave has been bringing home wood pallets for us to recycle for
various projects around the land, such as when building a new
chicken run-coop.

Anyway, the dogs came back. I gave them water, then put them in their separate kennels until Sgt. Dave got home from work. I had no energy left to give to them since I had already been feeling like puke and had walked enough that morning to get in a week's worth of exercise. My throat was raw from going outside every twenty minutes to call for them and the stress of KNOWING they had met some foul ending had zapped me completely. I kind of felt like Howdy did as he collapsed, as if I almost did the same thing, weak knees and feeling overwhelmed with thankfulness that they were able to make it home after being gone for so many hours in the Big Thicket forest.

Picture taken on another day when the dogs weren't so worn out.

So, I know that we need to make fencing a part of our construction plan. Acreage needs boundary fencing, but that won't really keep in a dog that is determined to wander off the property. Even though this is probably a rare occurrence for Howdy, I need to make sure these dogs have a proper fenced-in yard they can stay in as I go to town. For now, I cannot leave for any significant amount of time because they have to stay in the RV, which means no potty breaks, so I cannot be gone long.

The lack of fencing has restricted my own freedom and my own ability to live life as I please, so that fenced-in yard area will be crucial to our new residential site. Also, the chickens were left unguarded with the dogs gone, especially since they are mostly free-ranging chickens.

Howdy even listens and jumps up toward swooping hawks and he has taught Gracie to do the same. But, the day they were gone, I realized that I have the animals living too interdependent of one another. It's great that all of our animals can be together, but I do need each to have their separate quarters and fencing.

And you guys already know that I am fed up with having chicken under my feet as I am walking back and forth with laundry in my arms, unloading groceries or trying to just do something simple outside...chickens are great, but not underfoot.

They also have access to get upon our deck, which is a constant battle and a problem that I can only describe as creating "nasty" circumstances that is not acceptable to me. Sorry, I don't want poop on my walkway, on my porch or in my yard.

This one little chicken I call "Baby" might be a chicken
I would let move in, give her a bedroom, and act
chicken-crazy about her. She's fairly adorable. Lol.

So, fencing has become another element of my construction process and it will be given priority over the outdoor kitchen because we cannot even enjoy an outdoor kitchen without the dogs and chickens having proper accommodations.

There are stresses in life that can be reduced with proper planning and action. For me, fencing is now at the top of the list and my priorities are in order.

Having acreage is different from our last few houses that were located in the suburbs and required a few wood picket boards between us and our neighbors to create a nice fenced-in space. The problem was, the space was limited, directly against the neighbor and we had neighbors who didn't want to share the load or expense of fencing. So, I am glad to be out of that situation, but that also means that we have a different scenario with acreage...I will have to make sure we put up effective fencing that is affordable and that will do the trick to keep the animals in the designated place in a way that looks attractive or that does not block our views.

On top of it all, last night, Gracie evidently had a sick stomach and began having diarrhea, inside the RV. She had cried out and I should have immediately let her outside. I have learned that when she communicates with me, she does it because she means business.

Regardless, this week has been eventful and a challenge to search for the "good" has been my task as I have encountered a lot of activity that would disturb anyone's peace.

One of my goals with the new house is to set things up so that I do have peace and enjoyment in and around my home, not to be run over by animals, but a home that I have under control. This year of lacking control has not been a pleasant part of this experience. But, I can change that, and I will.

Fences are coming.

# 434 - The Country Life in EIGHT DAYS and Things I Wish to Know

The Country Life in Eight Days, and

Things I Wish to Know

Packing for our move to the country is a tedious process. But, we better get in gear because we are moving to our acreage in EIGHT DAYS! May 15th is closing day. As of May 15th, another family will own our house in the city and we'll be living in an RV on the acreage as we get ready to build the country cabin. Well, we will be living in an RV we have not yet purchased because we can't let it sit in the driveway blocking the garage door. We've got to be able to get a large U-Haul truck in the driveway next week to load up our household items and the garage full of OH MY LORD stuff!

Meanwhile, as I pack breakables, I am going through boxes of old photos and feel pressured to record everything for family reference and history. So, I put photos on to scan as I pack. And I know I will be setting my printer up in the RV so I can scan photos during the heat of Texas summer daytime hours.

Today I came across some family photos that are literally over ONE HUNDRED years old! I began to scan these photos into the computer and my dad showed up for an unexpected visit. He does that...he just drives over and visits...I LOVE that about my dad. I am a bit panicked that my distance from him will be so far to make that little luxury more difficult, especially since he is in the middle of rough chemo treatment.

Onward...

I showed him the photos I was working on and it gave him joy. He is very happy that I am interested in preserving family history and to helping future generations to know their origins.

I pulled out one photo I had already scanned and he got such a kick out of it! The photo shows my great-grandfather George, great-grandmother Lulu is standing outside of their house with their small boy, Raymond, who is my grandfather. We believe the photo to have been taken in the area of Grapeland, Texas around 1905.

My dad and I became so interested in the photograph that he asked for a magnifying glass. Good thing Deputy Dave needs one on hand, so I had a magnifying glass close by. We began to explore the photo, trying to figure out what is what in the photo.

Dad made a comment that he wished he could better see his grandfather's facial features. So, I went back to the scanner and rescanned at a higher resolution, cropping the photos at different segments so we could get a closer look at each zone.

I love that they seem proud, wearing their finest clothes and standing in front of a house that seems to be rather perfect for a home around 1905. My great-grandfather there had BOTH his medical degree AND a law degree. Supposedly, he was a hard man...mean.

Below is a photo I am slipping in that is a close-up of my great-grandfather George.

This part of my family came from Scotland.

Back to the photo with the house, that photo shows a lovely home with everything so perfect, especially for over one hundred years ago. In fact, I'd LOVE to have this very house on my acreage. LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

Then, I scanned and cropped the right side of the photo to get a closer glimpse of the things that were in the yard. We finally figured out that there was a wood pile in the back. A nice barn is in sight, and the picket fence looks to encircle the house. The horse is beautiful.

But, I especially love the wicker chair on the front porch and the front porch posts that are ornate. Dad looked for power lines and figured the house did not have any electricity. I cannot imagine living in Texas during the summer months without air-conditioning. And I hope my great-grandmother, Lulu Johnson, had some cooler clothes that were appropriate to wear during the hottest months because that long-sleeved, high-necked, long waist-cinching skirt seems to be very hot attire.



Lulu died young, when my grandfather (pictured) was about 5-6 years old. So, she must have died rather shortly after this photo was taken. My dad believes she might have died because of pneumonia. My great-grandfather married again and had several more children...one died while running with a flute in his mouth and another died because of the old-fashioned car door handles that stuck out dangerously. My dad remembers the second wife, Dora, as his "grand-mother" although she was actually his grandfather's second wife, not his dad's mother.

When a child, my father remembers his dad saying, "Your Uncle John might still be alive if door handles had been made differently back then..." and I found that to be so sad, even today.

My dad said that the horse probably pulled the family carriage.

And the other side of the picture has miscellaneous things that we were trying to see, but it is difficult.

Who knows what has become of this house? Who knows what has happened to this area of land? Who knows so many things?

I wish to know...

# 417 - Country Roads Ahead

Only one road around our acreage is paved. The rest look like this...

 

and this...

 

and this...

 

and part of one of the roads crosses over the lake to the swampy zones and the road is starting to cave in around the piping underneath. You can see the erosion in the road in the photo below that is taken  just as we passed over the part of the road that is deteriorating. While crossing this sinking area, I was holding my breath and praying we would not sink like a big rock.

 

Taking a trip around the block helped me to remember the reason for the term "rural" when describing the acreage.

One house had an angry, territorial Chihuahua on guard; that dog was a meanie.

Speaking of houses, they are spread a few acres apart in our "neighborhood and they look like this...

 

and this...

 

 

and a few other houses were built behind such HEAVILY wooded areas that you could hardly tell a house was tucked away. A couple of residences had barns so big that we thought they were the actual houses, then we saw the house peeking out from behind the barn.

 

A house or two was a series of one added addition after addition through the years, but they looked sturdy enough, even if they reminded me of quilts.

 

One thing I can say...everyone out here looks like they are thoroughly enjoying life. Maybe that's because the residents don't have to worry about a radical neighborhood association employing an obsessed critic to drive around with clipboard in hand so that threats can be mailed out.

 

Also, the people in this country area might not have city services available...except for electricity.

 

Then, there are those neighbors who look as if they would take trespassing deadly serious, so we stayed on the lovely dirt roads as we encircled the acreage through the connected neighborhood.

 

 

I am happy we were able to drive around this rural area of ours during good weather. Actually, it was a pretty hot day for March in Texas, in the mid-80's. The warm weather provided perfect temperatures to solidify the solid roads beneath our tires to allow us to explore. For those who live in rural areas, you already know what I'm talking about.

 

We've spent far more than our fair share of time getting stuck during the Fall/Winter months because the ground softens.

 

 

This kind of life is a lot different from cookie-cutter-land. Yes, my cookie-cutter house has served us well; it is scary to leave it. I love this house, but it's just too big and too close to chemical industries.

 

Regardless, this weekend will find me saying goodbye to my master bedroom furniture. If these buyers don't follow through with the purchase of our home, then I am NOT going to be happy about the lack of furniture that is valuable and adds comfort to our lives, especially since this is the first bedroom suit I ever owned for myself, and I was 40 years old when I bought it.

 

I need to sell the furniture now, at a time that works for the person needing the furniture. If I wait a few weeks, I might be stuck having to hire movers to load it into a moving truck and then would have to pay for storage and it would take up a good deal of space in storage. If I were "stuck" with this furniture, it'd be okay...it is beautiful and valuable, but I am hoping to pass it along to the next person to enjoy, and they are buying it for a great price. It is a good deal for both of us.

 

As for selling this house, we are still under contract and moving toward our close-date in April. It's a waiting game. It's a big game of Monopoly as we try to close the deal on our property.

 

Soon, I'll be driving down country roads and my neighbors will not be in sight. It will be weird.

 

But, I think weird matches my personality, so that is perfectly fine.

 

# 344 - Cary Grant Kept His Britches

Old movies on the Turner Classic Movie channel are great to have available to watch. I love to see how things looked in these days...the clothes, the homes, the furnishings...the art of conversation and entertaining.

One of the old movies I watched this past week starred Cary Grant, filmed around 1952. This movie, "People Will Talk" is about cutting edge material of the day, a man wanting to marry a woman that he knows is pregnant by another man.

Interesting topic for rigid thinking in the 50's, to be sure.

I froze my DVR for some pictures and since I have sited the source, I hope I will not end up in jail for crossing Ted Turner. After all, who can resist a woman drooling over a Cary Grant moment?

The photo below is of an awesome country front porch with an area that curves outward for more visiting space. Good idea. The porch is surrounded by bamboo screens, the same kind my mother always used. Today, you can get those at IKEA. Back in Cary Grant's time, I have no idea where they found them.

Oh, heart, be still!

I'm trying to stay focused...

This old-fashioned barn is amazing. I can only imagine the vibrant color it displayed. But, even with its black and white presentation, its grandness is evident.

Finally, I get to watch Cary try to open this fence, which seems to be the most sturdy I've seen, ever. The corner posts are massive. In this scene, the farm dog comes running out barking at him, so Grant high-tails it back to his car. I found it humorous. Run Cary, run! If it had been my dog Howdy chasing him, he would not have had time to make it back to his car without some damage to his britches.

I would be glad to move into this farm house that the poor pregnant girl could not wait to leave behind. Of course, she was following Cary Grant, so I guess the farm was not so important any longer.

I wonder...are there anymore Cary Grants in the world?

Well, as far as I am concerned, at least there are Cary Grants for the span of a movie and that is enough for me, then I can go back to doing boring things such as scanning more documents or back to cleaning baseboards.

Tomorrow, it's Jimmy Stewart day.

# 327 - I DID IT! Yep, Took My 1st Solo Get-Away!

I'm quick with my promises to myself regarding the post I made recently about taking solo get-aways. I had my first mini-vacation this past weekend...starting on Saturday and ending early Monday morning.

I arrived to the resort campgrounds Saturday afternoon.
Immediately, I headed for the beach.

First of all, I've known women throughout my life who made it a purpose to go off on trips alone, especially during times of transition. One of these women was Virginia. My life has been blessed by knowing Virginia. Today, I understand the deep reasoning for her making several trips on her own. At the time, I didn't have the capacity to comprehend why she'd go off on vacations by herself, but life has shook me around a bit and life itself can shed light on a subject that had previously been dark to you.

I completely get it. I wish she were here so that I could hug her. She deserved a lot of hugs and love; life sometimes has other plans, but she's now free from being tethered with pain to this earth in a physical body. Cancer took her within six months of my mom's own death from cancer. Two awesome women, they are missed tremendously by those who respectfully appreciated and loved them.

Nearly everyone has golf carts to zip around the
tight-night recreational community. What a life!

As for my trip, I prepared by washing my clothes Friday. Did the floors, cleaned the kitchen, did other laundry, dusted some furniture and went through some old things in my closet. I came across my suitcase and pulled it out. Yes, I really need to get out of here a little.  The next day, I would be leaving.


It took five trips, but I loaded up the truck and left.

I backed out of the driveway with a bubbling excitement growing within me for the anticipation of this much needed get-away. I kind of felt like I have now taken a path that cannot be ignored or forgotten. Going on a vacation alone was not what I ever thought I wanted to do, but as I've needed to do it, I've found it to become the most treasured vacation to my spirit for healing. I focused, during my time away, on the here and now...not on ugly words and action...I focused on being in peace at the water's edge. No one nor their cigar could crash my peaceful time away from home!

As of that evening, I was walking the beach, enjoying the sunset.

Red Tide cause by Algal Bloom, these are Shad all
over the beach because they are more susceptible to the
toxic levels of this algae. Also, it puts a stop to the
harvesting and selling of shellfish that become toxic
from Red Tide.

I walked and walked and walked...for hours, literally. Feeling the sand between my toes, hearing the waves, smelling the ocean...I felt amazing, better than I've felt in a long time, as if a heavy oppressing burden was off my shoulders. It confirmed several things for me and I thought about Virginia with her travels. Deeper understanding set in even further.

Stepping into the water's edge, I realized that this was the furthest I would let my Red Toes touch the Red Tide waters. Just a few warning bells going off. Besides, I don't like sharks that feed more in a frenzy at dusk. I'm happy with the beach and the waves, that's enough for me.

I continued on my peaceful journey along the water's edge as the sun completely disappeared and the cloudy sky blocked all stars. Darkness began to settle over the beach, yet the waves continued their comforting patterns of hitting the shore.

Walking along, I decided to turn back.

 It became so dark that I could barely see my hand in front of my face.


Taking pictures along the way with the camera set on "night" didn't help me see anything after the night engulfed everything.

I kept walking past huge beach front houses filled with people enjoying each other's company, watching their big televisions mounted high on the walls and their huge windows showed a side of life that I hope is as good as it looks. Onward I walked, looking for the part of the beach where I had entered.



Beautiful homes on the beach --- Hurricane Ike could not
kill man's need to live at the ocean's edge.

Soon, I realize...Darn, it sure got REALLY dark! I'm the only person on the beach, but isn't that incredible? Take the fear factor out of it...I didn't get close to sharks, houses were nearby, I could hear people laughing...but I was walking the beach alone Saturday night. It was MINE, ALL MINE!! HaHaHa--Evil laugh.

I admit, I also got a bit of the creepies and hurried back to my shelter for the night.

Last picture taken Saturday night on the beach.
Yep, it's dark as dark can get, even with the "night" setting.

Finally, I spied the area with markers for my entrance and breathed in a little sigh of relief because midnight-dark hits you pretty hard when you're a long way off from finishing your walk. By the way, all that walking made my short, chunky legs feel alive and tingling! I shouldn't say "Chunky," because my SWEET friends tell me that my legs have great curves. So, my curvy legs felt alive and tingling after the long walk! It did feel good to get back "home."

Temporary Home Away from Home

I need to get onto the beach more often for evening walks, it's liberating and great exercise for me. There's been a tremendous shift in me, down to my soul, and things will never be the same. I am a changed woman, it feels exhausting, but I like the way I feel and the freedom I am savoring.

The following morning, I took it easy and did some reading. Mainly, I wanted to avoid the heat of the day and to pace myself. I am very good at taking care of myself. As for the ocean, I felt blessed to be able to have this mini-vacation. My uncle is generous hearted and his place usually has someone using it for the weekend, but he reserved the next two weekends for me to use it by myself. He and my aunt have other properties and they've generously told me I can go to any of them, any time I'd like. It's great to have family like this and it's wonderful that I work on nurturing family relationships because family is there for each other.

Regardless, it felt liberating to leave behind the old role I've long played as the main fixture in the house, I fully embraced these days of alternating relaxation and excitement, it was long overdue. There is nothing better than taking myself on a date. And guess what I realized? I AM worth it. If I am to your irritation, I am to someone else's delight; if I am your misery, I am filling someone else's heart to lessen its aching; if I am your burden, I am another's joy.

Yes, this trip was good for me.

This little island resort and campgrounds has such creative little hide-aways.

Nothing special here except for the nice concrete pad!

The rule is that you can't technically "live" here, which only means you must be gone a couple of weeks per year, which can be satisfied simply by a making a couple of visits to see your awesome family and friends at their place. 

Another rule is that your RV must technically be able to be pulled away; however, during Hurricane Ike, these RV's were mostly tied down, but the hurricane waters blanketed the land and carried nearly everything out to sea. Anything left behind was utterly destroyed. I might be able to find photos of what this place looked like after the hurricane, but it has undergone amazing reconstruction to show our appreciation and respect for the ocean's power.

This place seems to offer each person an opportunity to show off their wood-working skills, their unique beach-style decorating and to make the most out of a small space. Of all the places in this resort campground, I love the bamboo fence...my favorite!

Moreover, I will definitely be taking more of these trips to different places and at different times. I will be doing much more than I can blog about doing. Somethings I can't share because I keep the experience close to my heart. Gratefully, I'm learning to enjoy my freedom with different scenery, on my own. Eventually, that little get-away will become the final get-away...hopefully to my cabin in the woods. If not, I'm sure I'll improvise and make it worthwhile.

After a surprisingly great night of rest, I awoke rested to a beautiful Sunday morning. The goal of the day, get back on the beach, which is buzzing with activity. With no time for television this entire trip, I focused on the beach. Sunday morning, I packed my drinks, got a towel, put on suntan spray and brought my new first book of a trilogy that Heather bought for her Momma.

Everywhere I look there is a different people scene taking place...people having fun, people dining outside under their veranda, people taking a stroll beneath the sunlight, people sitting by themselves deep in thought, people reading and people flying kites, others sleeping on the beach as they are burning to a crisp...people loving every minute of their beach-lifestyle. I tried to keep the drool from being too apparent. Anyone here need a room-mate?

Most of all, I understood what Virginia had told me about her trips...they confirmed that she'd be okay, no matter what. That's what the trips boiled down to...solidifying the knowledge within herself that she could make it alone. Her lesson is now my lesson.

I'm seeing that I will be okay, no matter what.

After the beach, I took a shower at the resort pool to rid myself of the sand, then swam a few laps and basked in the timeless joy of swimming and of being weightless; my joints experienced such relief that I promised myself right then and there that I'd someday have my own private pool. A private pool so I can work out the pains and aches in my body without a kid jumping on top of me...love those kids, but five jumping in at once in your lap line is not something to look forward to happening ten more times in a row!

Yes, a pool is now on my bucket list. It may be way down the line on the list, but it made the list! For me, it would be very beneficial and offer long-term means for me to get exercise and movement that feels good to my body that is full of hardware and sawed out bones and ick...cadaver bone. I'm a walking spare parts advertisement.

I might as well add to my life things that bring great relief and joy. I grew up with a pool, but my youthful body did not realize the benefits until I began swimming with a body that began to grow older. My mother always swam with her one usable arm and one usable leg to relieve her Polio impacted body and my grandmother will still swim any chance she gets. There's no doubt, the sun warming my bones feels great, getting vitamins from Mother Nature's beams was healthy for me and going for a swim, minus the sharks, gave me a welcomed break from spine woes. If I had a pool, I'm sure my kids and grandkids would enjoy it while visiting...Stefie's aquatic therapy was helpful, she's had a broken back with lingering complications, so she is my partner in being able to testify to the benefits of being in a pool when you have an ailing back.

Regardless, I'm planning on making quite a few trips, just to make sure the idea that I am well capable of being on my own is fully cemented into my brain and soul!

Back at the RV, I felt grateful to know how to do everything for a self-contained unit. I know how to dump the sewage/black water, how to turn on/off the water heater, work the slide-out, check the battery and so on. My Uncle Billy is a perfectionist in everything he does. If he builds something with his wood-working skills, he doesn't forget important details such as sanding until the wood is as slick as a baby's butt. You can see that his plumbing skills are just as awesome because his black water connections include a see-through pipe from the RV to the hose that allows you to check for flow and blockages. He also has a connection right near there at the RV outflow to attach a hose for clean-out.

You can see that each hose lays on concrete and is put together with great care. My uncle is probably the most amazing man I've known in my lifetime. He's a good, kind-hearted man; I'm so thankful to have had one such as him for me to admire; we share a beautiful bond and even though I didn't have any other first aunts or uncles while growing up, he sure made me feel as if I were surrounded by doting aunts and uncles. I didn't miss out on anything because of his very caring nature.

Overall, my mini-vacation has been a hit. As I said, it's the first of many to come. It's time I really do start putting myself first, and if I do, the first thing I'll make a continuous effort to do is to go on trips to see my girls. Things will be changing, for the better.


Perhaps my own continuous aching desire to see my girls more often will prompt someone else to have the desire to do the same. That would be nice. And since I am trying to find a vehicle that will be suited to my body size and be comfortable for long trips, I am happy over the prospect of not having to push the pedal with my tippy-toe any longer! More freedom is coming my way!

Time to celebrate!