I figured I go ahead and start this since EvaMae isn't here to jump start it. It got nice and balmy today. High 20s. I was able to walk around without my bibs, coat, gloves, and extra sweater. It was niiiiiice. Now only if tomorrow could be that nice. Would melt even more ice and snow and take us one step closer to getting the ground reclaimed. I want to see mud again. lol. I miss being able to hit all the muddy spots on my road to make my truck dirtier.
NEW THREAD FOR FEBRUARY 2007
Thanks, Pepper. I just announced on the old thread that I was getting ready to do this but I'm glad you went ahead. I didn't realize until late afternoon that it was now a new month. How time flies when you are having fun. LOL
I think I heard that we can expect single digit temps tonight so I don't think the mud will be coming very soon, Pepper. Anyway, I just got the house cleaned up pretty well so I'm not too eager for the mud. That is one thing I could do without gladly.
I need to go lock up the birds before a predator decides to visit. If I get it done early every evening there isn't much tempation there for them. Just the compost heap which is in an old hay ring.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
Hi! I just came from the other thread.
Pepper, I saw mud! The niger seed in the garden did a good job of melting the snow.
EvaMae, DD has chickens and ducks so it's her job to lock them up at night. I am the predator. I had a bowl of ''real'' chicken soup tonight. I heard the flu is starting in the schools so I put a whole head of garlic in it!
February. All we have to do is get thru this month!
At least it's a short month. And bring that mud down here!! LOL.
EvaMae, I found out yesterday that Bill Smith has to have a perment plate and some screws put in his ankle. I think I told you he broke his foot last week. He messed up some more apparently by hobbling around instead of taking it easy for a few days. I was thinking about starting bets on on long it would take for him to disobey doc's orders but didn't. LOL. I knew he wouldn't last long sitting still.
Thank you for the new thread. I was wondering if there would be one.
We are supposed to get even colder overnight. And the wind is supposed to start blowing really hard. Great!!
billy, that was funny about the nijer, we have a spot too where that is and no snow. LOL
I am going to make my own suet tomorrow. Should be interesting. My neighbor gave me the recipe. I just need to figure out how to make the molds so it will fit in my suet holders. He just uses a big pan and hangs that up but I don't have anything like that.
It should be cheaper than buying it and besides WalMart has been totally OUT for two weeks.
Susan
=^..^=
Is Bill married to a former gardener named Carolyn who is going to nursing school in Iowa? That is the only Bill I can think of right now. I'm so sorry he is having the problem with his ankle. Perhaps now he will take the doctor's orders more seriously. Or someone in administration may just have to enforce the time off in someway.
We did get the single digit temps this morning and thankfully we still have water. I don't think we would have if I hadn't done all that insulating. There is still a lot left to do but I think we'll be ok for a while. It seems the oldest son had seen the lack of it and strongly suggested it be taken care but it wasn't so he is a bit upset.
I am looking forward to the cafe' this weekend. I enjoy the duties and comrade' we have there. There is real feeling of family there. Of course there is bickering at times, but lots of teasing, etc. too. We are all 'there' for each other.
My youngest daughter and her 14 year old daughter are suppose to come to see me tomorrow morning. I finally got to talk to her last night. I'll be glad to see them. Means that I'll need to go to WalMart in Marshall after work for dog food after work tonight. I made a rice and meat mix for them to eat yesterday and today but after that I'm kind of lost for ideas.
Sally, if just slowly melt down the fat(rendering), then add cornmeal, p. butter, raisins, cranberries, etc. Don't add unshelled sunflowers as it makes the shells impossible to crack and the birds can't diget the whole shell. I pour it all out into a large pan, then cut it into the size I need to get it into the hanger. I haven't made any so far this year.
I'm dreading coming home from work tonight because the dogs will have to be locked in the utility room all afternoon and evening. Holly lets them out for me, but only Penny and Hogan will come right back in so that leaves Darcy and Nita outside for several hours. In these temps it is just too long for dogs who are used to being inside at least 1/2 of the time. I may not go to Marshall after all. LOL. I'll be so glad when it is once again warm enough to leave them outside all the time.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
This message was edited Feb 2, 2007 10:40 PM
Susan, I made my own suet blocks one year. It was a mess, but successful. It helps to have kept some of the storebought containers. (I've been paying 99 cents for the energy blocks.) I used peanut butter in my recipe.
I bought one of the feeders that is built like a birdhouse with only the bottom open. It keeps the starlings out. Problem is, it isn't big enough for two blocks. I have to cut some off and stuff it along the side. Messy again!
EvaMae, it is Caroline but otherwise you got it one. lol. I drove my truck around today again. I don't think my cart will start next time since it's not on the charger and I think that is what has kept it going in this cold. Oh well, haul it in the shop, warm it up and it's as good as new.
I'm so tired tonight that my head is spinning. I didn't go to Marshall after all. Just fed them a bunch of Milk Bone and some chicken jerk stick. Then made sure they have enough water to make all that swell up make them feel full. Kris is going to stop somewhere and get the cat/dog food for me on the way down in the morning. We had about 65 at the cafe' tonight. It is cold here but nice and clear.
Susan, you can even just put out fatty meat, pine cones rolled in p. butter, whole or chunks of fruits, etc. for the birds to eat. The whole idea is to replace the protein and fat in their diets that bugs would have supplied as well as the fruits from vines, trees, shrubs, etc. I have American Cranberry shrub, nanking cherry, etc. just for the birds to have the berries in the winter. I also leave quite a few grapes on the vines just for the birds to eat. We have one big shrub rose, Hansa, with nice sized hips for them to eat too.
Thankfully Holly &/or Kyle came up about dark and locked up the birds. And the dogs managed to hold themselves until I go home unless she/he let them outside for a potty break. That was a thrill to come home to. I was prepared to have to spend a lot of time cleaning up that room after 4 dogs being locked in for 10 or more hours.
I'm going to sleep so I'll close. GOD bless and keep each of you.
Good morning all. It's very cold in our neck of the woods this morning. It's about 1 degree and we are under a wind chill advisory until 10 am. Dangerous temps with wind chills of 15 to 20 below zero this morning. Frostbite and hypothermia are possible to exposed flesh. The groundhog said less winter so we will have to just wait and see!! I will be glad to see March and some moderating temps. I would love to do some prunning on my fruit trees but it's way to cold. If your an ice fisherman then now would be the time to check out some safe areas. Hope everyone is warm and safe. Try to avoid looking at your spinning electric meters, fuel gages, etc. because usage will be up from this cold! We are total electric which is fine until the power goes off. Have a great day everyone. Bye for now.
Cuckoo
Hello all-
Wow, I had no idea it was that cold in Missouri! I am up in Michigan and we are having the same cold, plus blizzard warnings. So glad my fuel tank is full. But, like Cuckoo said, if I lose power, I'd have to abandon ship with my five dogs. The winds might pick up as high as 50 mph this afternoon. Hope all the tree limbs and wires stay where they belong!
I have some venison I thawed for my dogs before I got bagged dog food. Could I hang that out for the birds? It does seem to look fairly fatty. (not like good cuts of venison!)
Does anybody start seeds this time of year? In Michigan we don't usually start them until March. I would be interested to know if and what you start now in your area.
Stay out of the cold, everybody. Gina
Cuckoo, DD is all electric too. They have the cement heated floors and if I could do it I would. I never felt such a warm house set on 65* The floors are cool to the touch, but sit on them and you start sweating. It seems like a terribly hard floor, but it isn't noticeable. They have an area rug for the kids to play on.
We had 2* at 6:30 am and a high of 5*. It's windy, but it's a high wind so not bad walking out to get the mail.
I'll start peppers in the middle of March, but tomatoes in mid April. I haven't checked any of my other seeds yet, but have the calendar marked by weeks till last frost date.
Billyporter we have friends who put heated concrete floors in there home and like it. I'm not sure just how they work though. Often I think we should have supplemental backup heat but we don't. During a severe ice storm a few years we lost electricity for a long time and I know it could and probably will happen again.
muttimer I don't really do the starter beds anymore. I usually just wait and go buy many of my plants in late spring or use seed planted right in the ground. I have in the past but seems like there's too much going on to take good care of them. One year I planted too early and wished I'd waited a tad bit longer. I used a grow light and use it now for greening up our houseplants during the winter. Growing your own plants is actually more fun.
Sure am tired of this very cold weather right now. I'm ready for a warmer temps.
Cuckoo
Couple of inches of snow on the ground here, brrr. I'm ready for spring.
EvaMae, did you get the snow in summer seeds I sent?
Hugs everybody,
Mary
Yes, Mary, I got them. I'm sorry, I thought I had written to thank you.
Cold here this morning too. 7* at 7 a.m. but already up to 11*. My sensor in on the east side of the house so that makes a difference. Our son's is on the north side and he is often colder than we are. And just a block or so away.
I'm glad we have one old nonelectric related LP gas stove. And a wood stove in the machine shed. Not that there is any wood handy but I'm sure we could find some if needed.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
It 7am which is 14.8* with wind chill 7*! I has snow last nite about a inch.
The entire Gavois arm of Lake of the Ozarks froze last night so now the fun begins.
EvaMae, if you ever need wood just say the word. We have places where we can get some for free.
Oz, if you break your neck on that ice, I'm coming down there and will make it worse. Be careful and don't do anything stupid.
Cuckoo, it's heated water that circulates. It runs thru tubes and reheats when it gets cooeled off. We have a gas space heater that will warm some of the house in emergencies. Otherwise the good old stove burners help.
We had 6* below zero this morn, but no wind. It's 6* above and windy now. I need to put out another ear of corn for the squirrels.
Hope everyone is having a warm safe weekend!!
Hey Oz, she don't know how we are down here at the Lake, huh? It's fun time here when it freezes over. You can walk from one side of the coves to the other and it can be solid all the way.
I use the cheap netting from walmart to hang my suet balls from, I just tie them to the tree with bright ribbons and yarm. The birds use all the materials for their nests. They love pretty colors.
We just hit 33*, a tropical heat wave, going skinny dippin later.
Robyn, I don't care how frozen that ice is, unless you can drive a big truck out on it safely I'm staying on shore. Probably would anyway. I have never been thirsty enough to drink as much water as there is in that lake and I can't swim.
Onion & potato sacks work well for hanging suet and fruits, etc. out for birds. They can hang onto the sack and eat thru the holes.
Penny is limping badly on her right back leg again so I gave her an 81mg. aspirin. I think she injured it in a fight with Nita not long after Nita came to live with us. I tell them they are both little b-----s and act like it too. After all, that is what female dogs are so I'm really not saying anything bad. Both are determined to be top dog and neither will back down for a second over anything. I had to kick them apart this morning and then lock them in different rooms. All over a piece of dried bread! Penny is short tempered and very posessive of anything she decides is hers and Nita likes to make her mad and just pushes until Penny erupts into a fury. Even after I had them separated Nita kept trying to get back to Penny to push for another fight. A prolonged separation is the only answer in times like that.
It's up to 29* here right now. Real heat wave going on. I am eagerly awaiting spring and the yardening I will get to do. I have plans but they are rather scaled down from former years. Of course I know I'll raise more tomatoes than I have any need for because I'll have voluteer plants all over the place where the cherry tomatoes dropped.
Not much going on here. GOD bless and keep each of you.
Robynznest------ NOT ON MY COVE. I live at the mouth of Mill creek cove. the cove here is about 3/4 of a mile wide. the ice was about 3/8 of a inch thick this morning and the 30 degree weather melted a big hole into the center of the lake. Thank god there was a good wind going. The wave action took out most of the ice. Had it been a real cold day with light wind I can guarantee you that ice would be at least 1 inch thick right now. had that happened it would have kept freezinbg for the next few day of real cold weather and would be 3-4 inches thick. My main worry with the ice is when it breaks up. Great sheets of it hundreds of ft long and wide and many large start to move. The force they have when they encounter a dock reasults in a lot of damage. Especially if they are pushed by the wind and wave action.
I know Oz. We lost our dock a couple of decades ago when we had a real hard freeze. We could literally walk across Rainy Creek Cove from Edwards/Climax Springs over to Coffman Bend. The ice was 20 inches think. In the smaller, shallow coves they ice skated and drove their cars across them. The damage when that all broke up was horrendous. I wouldn't do any of that nowadays. We moved off the lake and onto a farm. Don't miss it a bit. Especialy the waves.
Oz, do you own a dock and boat that you need to be personnally concerned about? Or are you just the good hearted person I think you are and try to help others in spite of the danger to yourself? I'm sure it causes your poor wife lots of headaches and worry either way. Jack allowed me to be the person I am even when it meant we sometimes had to do without somethings we wanted(not absolutely needed)at times. I'm not sure most of us Americans really give sacrificially. I know some do, don't read all into most & I know there are some who do or at least think they do.
I'm in a really bad mood this morning. Very achey and too many animals wanting to comfort me and demanding my attention which I don't want to give right now. Sorry, just venting. I know they all mean well. Some know from experience to just leave me alone in the mornings. Poor little Nita is so sure she can cuddle and make me feel better so she tries so hard. And the new kitty Guy is sure him winding around my legs will help too. NO IT WON'T. I'm sure many of you have these times too when the weather is wet and cold. So I know I'm in good company. I keep telling myself there are many others so much worse off than me and I pray for them to divert my attention away from myself.
It is 14* here right now. Heat wave again. LOL.
Penny is still limping badly this morning. I'm giving her pieces of my milder muscle relaxer with the 81 mg. aspirin. It's a tricky rope to walk since I take adult doses and she only weighs about 14#. I expected more results from the muscle relaxer than she demonstrated. A trip to the vet in Warsaw may be in order. Old Hogan had a similar injury years ago and it still plagues him at times. I think she may have a dislocated hip this time. And to be even more confusing she was grooming Nita last night!!
My only living brother came to visit me yesterday evening. I had been debating with myself on whether to get out and go to church for evening services. It is the first time I have seen him since Jack's memorial service and that was probably the first time since his wife's funeral last early spring. We only live 13 miles apart so that is a shame. He is a very lonely man with few friends by choice but I think he would like family ties. He's about 13 years older than me.
I'm going to be meeting a friend for lunch at KFC. We use to see each other every weekend at the cafe' but she hasn't been there for a long time. She is a widow too. But is where the similarity ends. She is several years younger than me, her husband committed suicide, etc. But we are sisters in Christ and there is that bond. She is also dating which I don't see myself ever doing. Those size 16 shoes of Jack's would be mighty hard to fill after 43 years of life together. Tho I always said we went our own separate ways together and let each other be our own person. I'm going to be asking some questions about the part time homemaker aide work she does and where to get started finding part time employment. I don't want, can't handle much, but some extra income would help a lot. I know I just have to restructure how I do things financially.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
Leaflady---- Yes I own a dock 32 ft by 32 ft with two stalls with a boat lift and boat in one. I am also one of two trustees in this development that live here, and actually watch and take care of things. I have keys to several of the 42 homes in here so that i can get in in case something happens. I also maintain our blaktop road, send the annual news letter and try to find speakers for our annual meetings. I do not attempt to save anyones dock except my own. They have all been told numerous times that if the ice starts to move because of wind and wave action, in massive chunks that they are at the mercy of the spirits because there is nothing going to stop it. I have seen piece as big as a football field go down the lake at 5 to 10 miles an hour. Fortunately when it is breaking up is crushes pretty easy. In many cases the cruching when it hits a dock acts like a cushion. When it doesnt it will do what it wants. I tried onetime to break ice as it hit the dock to make a cushion that was the most violent ride I ever had on dock. Was a silly thing to be doing.
You have a really responsible position, Oz. I'm impressed. It says that you are a reliable, trustworthy person and in this day that is a huge compliment. Especially when 42 homeowners let you have a key to their private dwelling.
It is still cold, our drive and a couple places on the road going to 65 highway are still very icey and slick. One has to drive very slowly and carefully over these roads. There is an intersection of 2 roads that is really bad. I don't understand why it hasn't given way to all the traffic that goes over it like the rest of the road. Our drive just doesn't get that much traffic. A renters tractor has been up and down it a couple times tho & that helped to make a wider track for me.
One of our Welsh duck hens isn't doing well so I brought her into the house. I realize this means I likely have a duck in the utility room with the banty hen and her 2 chicks until warm weather really sets in next month or after. I thought maybe she had been injured when the other one was killed a few weeks ago but haven't found any injuries. Of course they may be internal and I will never see them. But at least if she doesn't survive her last days will be comfortable & warm. Keeping enough water for her in the pen without her making a horrible mess of the cage is going to be a challange.
I'll volunteer at the food bank tomorrow and hopefully at PG on Wednesday. The well house should be ok for the rest of the winter unless we get a really bad blizzard. Even then it stands a good chance of being ok. More work was suppose to have been done Sat. afternoon. I haven't gone down to check on it. I don't need hard feelings with the children.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
Leaflady, you will have a very wet room with the duck, but you're right, at least she will be better in than out. Does she lay eggs? DD has white Peking ducks and we use the eggs. How is it working with the Banty inside? Is she pretty tame?
The old duck isn't laying any eggs. She seems more content and alive today. So far the only water I have given her is drinking water. I don't think she has the strength and energy yet for any playing in water. The chickens have accepted her ok now. The hen was raised with the duck so she is no stranger to her but she is a newcomer to the little chicks. The banty hen is fairly tame. I think she is one that was raised by hand last summer. She should start laying eggs again before long. I have about 20 banty hens and 7 roosters. Many look so much alike it is hard to tell them apart.
It got up to 50* here today and lots of thawing has gone on. But when it hits 17* or 19* tonight all that stuff will turn to ice again. Hazardous driving most of the time until I get to the highway. The corner farthest from our drive is better but the one at the end of the drive is just as bad as before. I guess no sun is hitting it at all.
I was at the food bank all day today. Same task, cutting 10 cent tags off the tops of taco dinner kit boxes. The lady I was with again today said something about 90 cases to a pallet and they got about 100 pallets. Those figures may not be quite right but there was a lot of them. 12 boxes to a case. Somehow I had it figured that there are about $9,000 worth of those little tags. They go to local schools. My math leaves a lot to be desired so I may be way off on my figures.
I'm going to PG tomorrow. I wonder what we will be doing? Maybe more mosaics. I do enjoy that project. I can hardly wait to see the finished fountain. It should be stunning. And it will be for sale after the K.C. Home and Garden show the end of March by silent auction. I'm sure it will bring thousands of dollars and hopefully be donated back to PG. I can think of so many places that it would be lovely. Like the middle of the pool in the conservatory.
GOD bless and keep each of you. .
Yeah!!! You're coming!!! LOL. It got to 59* today!! WHOOPEEE!!!!!!!!!! It felt NIIICCEE!!!!! LOL. No coat, sweater or long sleeved t-shirt. Just a regular t-shirt.
Leaflady------ I am not all that you think I am. I do these thing with a selfish reason. Many of the people who own homes here are summer people and spend most of their lives in KC and StL. For some reason city people have mostly forgotten what the word neighborly means. I do these things to promote co-operation. You see we all pay $100 a year to a fund that is 99 and 9/10ths used to maintain the road and recap it when the time comes. The problem is we do not have a indentured area ,that $100 is a voluntary payout. That road and the appearance of the area is worth tounsands of dollars on the property value of the home here. Our little 2 roads in here comprise 42,960 Sq Ft. At current levels it will cost about $90,000 to have them capped. So what I am trying to do here is promote goodwill among everyone and the old kind of neighborly co-operation you and I knew many years ago. I want you to know it is not easy. In the 42 homes in here there is everyone from little people like me to Dr's and bussiness people who are millionaires. Some of the properties in here are worth 3/4 a million.
Ozark~ we need more good neighborly people like you, who promote goodwill and cooperation! Wasn't too long ago when as a little girl, a good neighbor saw me in the convenience store trying to buy candy, it was only a half mile from school, but definitely off route from the walk home. She marched me directly to my DM with my hand held firmly in hers and I tell you, I did not stray far from the direct route home after that! LOL!
This message was edited Feb 7, 2007 3:09 PM
We are back to winter today, Pepper did ya scare it off.lol. Oz that is a lot of responsability you have,and it does mean you are trustworthy,and alot of people depend on you. We are going to s.c. next week to see my neice and great neice. My DB passed away in 2000, and his wife just passed in Dec. My DB's grandchildren are missing family. My GN calls me every week, she has 2 boys of her own now. Will be nice to see them, My DD and 3 GK's are going with us, should make for an interesting trip lol, but she can do most of the driving. I checked and it is going to be 45 & 50 there all the days we are there so at least it will be warmer. Take care all have a great one
This message was edited Feb 7, 2007 1:54 PM
Allysgram---- They do not depend on me they just do not want to do anything for themselves. That is the truth of it.
Oz, doesn't mean you are selfish. If you were selfish we wouldn't like you so much and EvaMae wouldn't brag about you like she did today. So there. LOL. You can't change our minds. It would be like beating your head on a brick wall. So you are a great person whether you want to be or not and I have proof when you show up in April. So there again. LOL
I just received this from a 'friend' of mine. Hope it is OK to post on here. LOL
Because of the climate of political correctness now pervading
America, those of us in Oklahoma, Missouri, and
Arkansas will no longer be referred to as HILLBILLIES.
We ask that you now refer to us as ..................OZARK-AMERICANS.
Thank you!
Now if you will excuse me, I got possums to fry.
LOL. I have always been a redneck anyways so...
I prefer Hillbillies myself Susan. It beat being called a yuppie, a summer person. Geez we got hillbilllies here that are millionaires many times over. Have three homes on a point down the lake that belong to locales that serve the almighty yuppies and such. The smallest one sold for a million and a quarter.
Tuesday we broke a record got to 72°.
felt good got some yard work done yesterday was in 40°,
today below freezing sleet predict tomorrow
Only in OK , !
can you go from that high to so low in 24 hours .
Its like electric shock treatment hard on old bones and bodies .
Thank God for the one great day it was a blessing .
DH is doing ok not great, but he can still walk and drive
He just poops out fast any stress at all send him in to heart flutters..
with 8 kids 23 grand kids and 3 of kids are LOSERS by choice , it hard not to stress
Stay warm, God bless ,
and smile even if it hurts it might make someone Else's day better
Tazzy, I just love the little pictures you put in your posts. I understand about your DH getting tired quickly. Just remember how you felt when you went thru the cancer bout and be loving and patient. It will make life so much easier for both of you. With children who, as you said, choose the wrong paths in life you need each other for strength and comfort. We have been there and I remember all to well the heartache we felt. My prayers are with you. Just remember too that men react to life's troubles and joys almost the opposite of how we women do so don't ever feel as tho he doesn't feel the pain. Jack had almost no social skills and relating to people was so hard for him. I'm glad you hubby can still drive and walk. As long as he has some sense of freedom he will feel much better.
That weather change you went thru was something else! I glad you got one really nice day and a fairly good one out of the 3. MO can sometimes do that. Just before the next to the last storm or maybe it was the last one we had a couple lovely days. That was when I went and got the rabbit droppings 35 miles away. Got home and spread that wet stinking stuff out on the leaves around the asparagus and the next day it was freezing. Then the ice, snow, sleet, etc. hit and hasn't left yet. We had a lovely day Tuesday I hear. I was inside most of it. So were the poor dogs. They could have used a day outside.
I'm trying to do my weekly housecleaning today. Not as bad as it could be. I did a really good job of vaccuming last week and that helped. I think I'm mostly sweep and use a damp cloth on the swiffer to pick up what the broom misses. I've washed one load of laundry and have at least 2 more to do.
The sun is shinning brightly so I took the styrofoam off the living room windows. The skyscan says it is 34* outside.
GOD bless and keep each of you.
We have more snow coming in and the snow and ice we got from all the other storms haven't even melted all the way yet!!! I feel like we are living in Alaska. LOL. Everyone prepare for a big accumulation by the end of Tuesday.