Our Unexpected Adventure

Our Unexpected Adventure

I’ve always told my old geezer I would follow him to the ends of the earth.  That was true 50 years ago and it’s still true today.  But I have NEVER EVER said a word about following him thru 6 lane…shoulder to shoulder..bumper to bumper..rush hour traffice…in St Louis…with him in his new black Ford Ranger and me in my black Squad car and me holding up one droopy eye lid so I could see where he was in front of me…..OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHH my GOODNESS!!!

Now I know some of you ladies drive cross country by yourselves…or follow your husbands in the car while he drives the camper on trips….But “I” am June Clever…I’ve lived a very secluded and over protected life in La La Land for almost 50 years and before that I lived and was overseen by daddy and mom and in my whole 66 years…have very seldom made many decisions on my own……and YESTERDAY…was a CHALLENGE…for ME.

Most of you know that Billy has been wanting a new Black Ford Ranger for about a year.  He wanted to give his old 1994 Ford Ranger to a grandson and HE was going to get him a program Ranger…black…certified and with not too many miles on it..that’s just the way WE buy cars…We don’t go looking for anything brand new..or snazzy…and we’re not the type to want a ‘look at me’ car..we just like dependable/neat and classy cars and trucks…and we’ve always owned Ford’s…
And Harper Ford in Vienna, Illinois has always been our car dealer…Billy would follow Bob Harper to the moon…if Bob asked him too…Bob has been a super DUPER great friend to Billy and he always finds us just exactly what we want…even if it takes him a few weeks.
It took him 3 weeks to find my black Ford Fusion…back in 2007 but it took him about 10 weeks to find Billy’s 2011 black Ford Ranger….But Billy had things he wanted ON it…like running boards..because with my knees I can’t hardly get IN a truck without them anymore…so we got that on it and a few other little things…So when it was finally found….it was an hour out of St Louis and Bob was going to have to send 2 men to get it and that would cost Bob another couple hundred dollars so Billy said “Well Katy and I will go get it and make a day trip out of it”…So that’s what we did…..

When I found out we were going to Sullivan Missouri, I typed that in to see how big the town was and if they had any good places to eat there…and that’s when I found “Homer’s Barbecue”.  I was SO SO excited to find Homer’s…it said online that it was one of the few mom and pop diners on old Route 66 that’s still in business and it said you just can’t find better barbecue….so I was SOLD.  It also said that Homer still runs the place himself and it’s small enough you can almost set at your own table and slap everybody else IN there…AND Saturday mornings breakfast at Homer’s is FREE…BUT you have to set thru his bible study…help cook the breakfast AND serve it….I COULD SEE REAL QUICK…THIS was a little DINER with my name..written all over it and I was SO excited that Homer was about to get to meet us…..

I have about 5-6 readers that email me regularly and have become actual friends…we talk about family and hobbies and email quite often back and forth….But there has just been a special connection between “Brenda” and I….She says we’re twins that were born a few years apart and we have some how been disconnected in our early years but we have now found each other…hahaha  But Brenda and her husband live on the outskirts of St Louis..about an hour out.

Brenda and her husband had gone to see Solomon Wickey this week and I was so SO excited about that and she was emailing me back and forth and even called the day of her visit there so we could really talk…and I was telling her Bob Harper had found Billy’s truck and we were heading for Sullivan on Friday…She said, “Oh KAY…WE WILL MEET YOU at Homer’s and we can really meet and get to know each other!”  I said, “But YOU are in Auburn INDIANA!!!”  She said “We’re heading home tomorrow and going to make it in one day…we’ll meet you at Homers on Friday”  🙂 I WAS SO THRILLED…Billy was laughing and laughing….He said, “YOU girls are CRAZY…her husband has just driven hundreds of miles because of you two and now you girls want him to spend another 3 hours on the road so you two can have LUNCH together?”  hahahaha  But her husband is so SO sweet….he was ready..willing and able…AND I think she must have told him about HOMER and HE was wanting to meet Homer TOO… 

So we headed for Sullivan bright and early yesterday morning and Brenda and I tx’d during the morning with updates on our plans….We went straight to the Ford Dealer in Sullivan to get lined out and pick up the truck and Brenda and D. went on into Sullivan and found Homers….But she tx’d me and said, “BAD NEWS!!! Homer is in the VA Hospital and Homer’s BBQ is closed until further notice….” I WAS JUST ABSOLUTELY SICK…..SO she said “We’re going to the Cracker Barrel and we’ll wait for you there”  Well it took us TWO AND ONE HALF HOURS to get this truck…AND we were paying with a cashiers check…I shutter to think how long it would have taken if we were buying it on time…We were almost done with all the paper work and another man came in and said, “Give me the keys to that Ranger and I’ll run and wash and vaccuum it” Well it already looked show room ready…but he took off….an hour passed and he wasn’t back and I was getting SO aggrevated…because we had been there long enough to adopt a baby ..for goodness sakes…and we couldn’t get our truck and get on the road….FINALLY the man came back and he had serviced it and washed it and it was shining like a new penny….so we headed to the Cracker Barrel just down the street….

It was SO good to finally meet Brenda and D….and we had SO SO much fun…giggling and telling stories….I had a gift bag for her and she had one for me and neither of us knew the other one was going to DO that….and she said, “SEEEEEEEEEEEE I TOLD you ..we were twins”  🙂  She gave me a big round crock with a lid and a vintage Ladies Home Journal hard back book…from 1907…I gave her a couple of books and a pocket and also wall calendar and a couple other little things and we said our good bye’s and headed home….They’re coming for a barbecue soon and we’re going to just have a big time….The guys really hit it off too and they can play pool and tell stories and no telling what we’ll do….

But that trip home….OH my GOODNESS….Once we got on I-64 again…I was fine…but that St Louis traffic…THEY can HAVE it…just give me my old dirt roads and woodland paths…….
We were coming across 155 I think it was and I saw a sign that said “VA HOSPITAL..NEXT EXIT” and I wanted SO bad to take that exit and go see if that’s where Homer was…but I knew Billy wouldn’t want to take the time….
But what an adventerous day we had…..

Ok…quick question…Has anyone reading…had the droopy eye lid surgery?  I think I’m going to have to have that…when I’m stressed or tired…my eye just droops until I can’t keep it open…But I’ll figure something else out if they put you to sleep to DO it…so that’s my question…DO THEY PUT YOU TO SLEEP to have the droopy eye lid surgery….AND…WHY do you have to sleep setting up for 3 days after it….?   If you know these answers….please let me know….

I’ve gotta get busy….Peace and love from the canyon and I love you all…thanks so much for stopping by.  This has been a bird’s eye view of the world of the katydid and until next time…you are loved…

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Updates…Emails…& More

UPDATES…EMAILS…AND MORE

It’s a grand and groovy….zippity doo dah day in the canyon this morning…but goodness gracious…
It’s a cool and crisp Saturday morning this morning…and it’s kind of gloomy….I’ve already been out to feed the wild and tame critters….I SLEPT TILL 7:10 THIS MORNING!!!   I can’t even begin to tell you…the last time I woke up as late as 7:10….IT”S BEEN DECADES!!!   I TOLD you I need a
break  🙂   And I’m hoping to start a good one…on Monday….I’m even making menu’s to stock up
today to get ready for a week of hibernation….We’re going to do some juicing…I’m going to try some yoga and some slowing down…walk on the treadmill daily and maybe even outside….I’m going to clean house like crazy AND I’M SO EXCITED!!!!!
I LOVE cleaning and foo fooing around the house…..And get your umbrellas ready
if you live near ME…because I’m thinking I’m taking myself down to Sisters and Friends Shabby Chic Shop…while Billy goes to geezer breakfast next week….so I’m sure we’ll have bad weather THAT day….Haven’t been back down there since Kim and I caught the truck on fire going down there back in the spring….

And speaking of trucks…we’re about to buy a new truck….Our truck is 18 years old…we bought it in 1994….And I told Billy….”All I ask is that you get a truck with running boards on it…because when I was put together before birth…I must have been given a back and knees of someone MUCH older…because they have given out on me waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay before I’m ready to act old…..and NO SURGERY for THIS old girl….unless it’s a life threatening situation…..So I’m going to need some running boards to climb up in that rascal…..It’s going to be black…and a Ford Ranger LTD I THINK Billy said with a double cab….We always get program trucks and cars and we just tell them at Harper Ford in Vienna….what we want and they find it for us…..
Now Billy’s old truck still runs like a new one..because he REALLY takes care of everything he has……but we’re giving the old one to a grandson that needs good transportation…and it’s just time for Billy to have a new truck anyway….
Back about 2004 or 2005…they found my squad car in just 3 weeks….exactly as I had asked for it…..WE LOVE THOSE PEOPLE at Harper Ford…  🙂   But goodness…we even keep cars and trucks forever…..But I LOVE my squad car…so many people comment to me when I’m out and about…how nice  my squad car looks and gads…it’s just a black Fusion..nothing fancy…..Someone at church said to me one day….”Your car looks like you wash it every day.”  NOT HARDLY….But I DO hose it off about twice a week…..I LOVE clean cars and clean windows in cars…..inside and out….

AND…SPEAKING OF CLEAN….hahahahaha  Not counting the hate mail I got on Hanna’s story…I guess the mail I’ve received the most on of all time…GOOD MAIL….has been emails on the blogs I’ve done lately on getting our homes organized and neat and tidy….I’ve had women email and tell me they are motivated to clean and organize for the first time in their lives….and I’ve laughed and emailed them back and said…”I’ve even motivated myself and our ‘daughter'”…hahahahaha   But I’m wanting to get all my closets and cabinets and drawers cleaned really good and clean our carpets…just tons to do….So I’m going to take 5 days and try to hibernate as much as possible and just do it…and read a lot and study and do some things I never have time to do…beCAUSE I’m so unorganized…..

I was reading in a Readers Digest at Dr Lange’s the other day and it was an article by Nate from the Oprah Show…and he says our homes should tell the story of the people that live there EVEN when no one is home….WOW….And I can honestly say….OURS does that!  We have a sign that I made myself 10 years ago…just as you step up on the front porch…and it says…”This Place Is The Storybook Of Our Lives”  I may have that sign in my photos on my profile page…not sure…but our home definitetly DOES tell the story of US the minute you walk inside………It’s a cross between a Rustic Hunters Cabin/Shabby Chic….with trophy buck mounts and ruffles and vintage doilies and kerosene lanterns made into lamps…and dusty colored cabbage roses in pillows and in vases…and my little lites  🙂 I LOVE the little night lights burning all the time…..just gives a warm and fuzzy feel…to a home “I” think….Our home says….”This man is a REAL outdoorsman with a deep love of hunting and this woman is obsessed with love and warm and fuzzy….hahahahaha
Kims home tell the story of her the minute you walk in too…Her home is very eclectic…and a cross between Hippie and vintage…with vintage music posters on the wall…and vintage family photos and a good splash of hippie/peace/love/big painted flowers and peace signs here and there…..AND she’s getting it SO organized…it’s just gonna be absolutely beautiful when she’s done….

Our homes tell a lot about us….EVEN to our visitors that stop by….A lady stopped by just about 3 weeks ago…and she had her grown son with her….She said as they turned in…he said, “I’ve always wanted to drive down this lane…it’s kind of like there might be magic down here”  🙂  She said to him….”Yes just driving down the lane and see how it’s kept up…you can just sense the love of this place by the owners”….WOW WOW WOW….I almost HUGGED her when she told me that…hahaha AND I didn’t even KNOW her….hahahahaha   Soon as she left….I ran like a 5th grader to Billy at the workshop…to tell him what they had both said….   🙂

Well I’ve gone too long…but a couple of quick updates….A reader from the northern most part of the United States that borders Canada…has been in contact with me and with Solomon Wickey…and she is taking her husband to him NEXT TUESDAY….PLEASE pray for save travels for this couple…as they have a long LONG way to go…and the trip is going to be hard for her husband…But I’m SO SO excited…and please join me in praying for a miracle healing for her husband…

Billy ran with me back to Vienna to get extra copies of the Vienna Times….and while in Vienna we went over to Jumbo’s and had a delicious spaghetti dinner….and with that dinner…they brought SKILLET TOAST  🙂  Have you ever made ‘skillet toast’?  The kids used to love it and we had it all the time when they were young…but I hadn’t made it in YEARS….You just take good bread…butter both sides really heavy and fry it in the skillet until it’s slightly brown and crispy…..Now it doesn’t sound like it would taste much different than regular toast…but if you haven’t tried it…DO….You’ll LOVE it…

Well I had a pretty bad post from Melbourne Australia….The reader was just livid because I had said nice things about Hanna….But hey LISTEN….If I could have only said BAD things…I would NOT have done the STORY…..That just isn’t ME…..Hanna has HORRIFIC problems…but she is TRYING to turn over a new leaf…..so who are WE to not give her the benefit of the doubt……I have tried to make friends with the daughter that is in Washington State…but so far have not heard back from her…I’ve had 2 or 3 really hateful emails from HER (the daughter in Washington State)…and I HAVE made friends with Hanna’s daughter that lives in Metropolis and she’s also mentally challenged and in real need of help in many directions….and I’ve taken HER food and had a long talk with her…She’s bitter towards her mom…but hoping this is a real turn around for her mom, also….and in spite of her own dire needs….SHE thanked me for trying to help her mom AND for bringing her food…..I’ve privately emailed the lady in Melbourne and hope she can drop her bitterness side as well…Bitterness and spitfire emails/talks with other people…are JUST as bad…as anything else….SIN is SIN….and I don’t know of a rate chart FOR it….
I got a tx from Richard and Hanna and this is exactly what it said:  “We really loved the story and thanks for the cookies!  We think a lot of you and Kim and you’re both good friends and very warming to be around… Richard and Hanna”

So you folks that are so filled with hate and won’t listen to the other side of any story….good luck to ya…because this WHOLE world…is full of discord….And it’s only going to get better…if some of us put one foot in front of the other…and try to make it better…..BE THE CHANGE you want to see in this old world……

Peace and love from the canyon and thanks so SO much for stopping by…I love you all gobs…

This has been a birdseyeview of the world of the katydid…until next time…you are loved…

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