That darn Chelsea woke me up at 5:30AM again. Dick was sleeping again so I got up and took her out. Actually with the temps at about 46 and nobody else out it made a really pleasant walk. We saw lots of bunnies this morning and heard a lot of birds singing. At that temperature there are not so many mosquitoes to dodge when we cut through the woods and over the railroad track to get home. I started watering right away. We are supposed to stay dry until maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. Just in time for the 4th of July

That won't bother us much actually. We are planning on frying out with Jim and Michelle and eating salads and ice cream cones, but I am sure we can manage.

The rest of day was really quiet and nice. I just caught up on a lot of phone calls, paper work and miscellaneous chores around here.

I did quite a bit of writing this morning too.

Tomorrow I am going to West Bend to celebrate Fr. Mike Moran's 25th year as a priest. I prepared a basket for him for a present. It is a lovely basket and I put in it: a bottle of our wine, the Gewertziminer, a loaf of fresh banana bread and a copy of my book. I did find a very appropriate card for him too. Dick and Mom were supposed to go to but Dick is not feeling read for that with his leg and all and Mother decided that it would be just too much. I can see that. She was just exhausted after the three hours we spent at the Bachmann picnic and this would be considerably longer with a long drive home afterwards. Gloria and Dottie Ziesel are going to ride with me though so I won't be alone and I know several people from St. Mary's are going.

Tonight I am watching A Prairie Home Companion (the movie). It is nice. Very Garrison and that makes it good for me. It even has an Angel of Death in it.

Angels are wonderful creatures. Over the centuries, they have brought messages from God, saved people from harm and generally just been there for our children. I often thanked God for my children's angels. How else could they have grown up.

Summer
Hovers so gently
Tender balm for our souls
Take the time to love each other
Softly.


Love

Mary

It was almost cold when Chelsea and I went for our walk this morning. Of course, the little bitch, woke me up at 5:30AM. It was 46 when we walked.

Dick was sleeping. Actually, Dick had the best night of sleep that he has had in probably a year or more. I got up as soon as the girl started bugging me so as not to wake him and figured that Dick would be awake when we got back. But he wasn't.

I let him sleep until almost 7:30PM when I HAD to get him up because we had to be in Sheboygan for his blood test. The thinness one. His count was perfect 260 it is supposed to be between 200 and 300. We have to go back next week anyway because of the antibiotics that he is taking. We have to see the meds throw it off.

While we were in town, we picked up two more pair of the thigh length stockings for him.

When we got home I had a couple of hours before I picked Mom up for her eye test. We stopped at my cousin Brian's house on the way there to get my ring and the chains that I had him repair. I always have trouble finding their house. But we finally did and Mom got to visit a bit with Brian. Then we went to Dr. Larson's for her yearly eye test. She passed with flying colors and unless there is some change that she notices doesn't have to go back for another year. Boy was she glad. We found out that actually her sight has improved somewhat since she had the cataract surgery. I mean in addition to the immediate improvement.

When I got home, I spent the afternoon watering plants and gardens and getting Dick's legs massaged and treated.

Mom and I talked about the books that I got her in Galena (one on Victorian Entertaining and one on Victorian Etiquette.) They had such strict rules for these times, especially the upper classes. Then Mom and I started remembering that we too had lots of rules of dress and etiquette when I was growing up and SURELY when she was. When I was young, a woman would never leave the house socially or for business (including shopping) without a clean dress AND a hat. When I was young and even past high school, we always wore dresses to church AND we wore a hat AND we wore gloves that matched the outfit. When I moved out to California I still had several pairs of gloves and hats. They were already becoming much more liberal.

Then Mom remembered a time when Grandpa sent Uncle Noel to the feed barn for a bag of feed. He tied it onto the running board (remember them) and it fell as they went around a corner, split and spread all over the road. They picked it up the best they could and went home. Later, someone who saw it told Grandpa that "Noel was going pretty fast." Grandpa did not take kindly to criticism of his kids and told the man "Maybe he was in a hurry.'

Have a Nice weekend. Pray for rain.

Maybe Oklahoma and Texas could send us some. I am sure they would LOVE to.

Mary

Started the morning off with a very nice walk with Chelsea. She took a bit of a short cut again. I don't think she thinks of them as short cuts - just a little different way to travel. She is quite the little adventuress you know. It was rather quiet. We only saw one other walker, an older lady with a cane that we see quite often. Nothing like yesterday when it was like rush hour. Lots of singing birds and we saw several rabbits. The rabbits are getting bolder as we come by. I think they realize that we present no danger so they wait until we are just about on top of them before they move into the woods.

When I checked Dick's foot this morning, we found that that troublesome callous was bleeding so I had him call Dr. Sharon and he was able to fit us in just before noon. He changed the antibiotic and made an appointment for Dick to see Dr. Ghandi who is a wound specialist and may be able to help. I was reassured when he said that bleeding is not necessarily a bad thing because at least it means that blood is getting TO the area. Dick seems to feel a bit better tonight already. Maybe it is the new medicine or maybe just because we have a "plan". Relief can be a useful healing tool.

This afternoon, I picked Mother up at about 2:30 and we went to Pete and Verena Bachmann's home for the annual party that they throw for the seniors of Blessed Trinity and other senior groups in Sheboygan Falls. This is the second year that I have gone. I probably wouldn't have gone this year but I ran into Pete and Verena at an Irish Program at the Plymouth Art Center and Verena said that she was expecting me to come. So I told her that I would bring Mother. We had an excellent time. Good company, card games and wonderful food. Pete was giving away basil plants. I have one on the deck but took one to put in the garden in the back at the "bottom" of my yard. The lavender, oregano, lemon balm and thyme are doing well so I have hope for the basil.

Now I am home and listening to the democratic candidates debating. Maybe I can learn something. They are covering a LOT of questions and have a lot of answers. Some are doing the Lil Abner shuffle and some have some pretty good ideas. As far as education, they should listen to the ideas that I have had for years and if we had proper education it would solve MUCH of the AIDs issue.

Obama said that people are not looking for charity. I agree with this on the whole. Most core Americans just want to be part of the solution and have their piece of the pie. As in every society there are the grasshoppers who feel that the world OWES them a piece of the pie without a trade of of time, or talent or effort. But most people just want to receive their due and want their due to be enough to keep them fed and clothed and housed and to be able to raise and educate their children and retire with some comfort and freedom when they have accomplished these things.

Have a great Friday and slide easily into the weekend.

Love

Mary

This was a strange day. Dick has not felt too well. He is extremely tired and keeps sleeping for two hour stretches off and on. We wonder if it is a reaction to the antibiotics. The recurrent pains in his leg seem to be worse. At least they are much worse than they were a couple of weeks ago. We don't know why. Perhaps it is in direct relationship to better circulation. The callous is not looking good. We must give the antibiotics a couple of days to work before we panic. Tonight when I did the leg massage the ankle seemed a bit smaller. I hope that is not just my hoping that it will be. Tomorrow, morning when we do the WHOLE process, including shower and wash, perhaps we will be able to tell.

I ended up doing the grocery shopping alone. Something that hasn't happened in a long time. And I miss our getting out for breakfast together. Usually we just go to Mc Donalds or the Shoppes on Mill street, but it is kind of a date, and I missed that.

I watered EVERYTHING today. The rain we were promised never came and it got much hotter than the weather people said it would. My plants and the yard are looking quite well so I am doing something right.

This afternoon I had to pop over to the post office so I stopped to the Sewing Basket to pick up thread for the assembly of the other quilt top that I have ready to put together. I brought a picture of my Kitty/Puppy quilt (I left the quilt at Mother's the other day, you know.) and they liked it a lot. One of the gals said that I should be sure to put it in the quilt show for the Guild. Now, Do I rejoin the Guild? I am not sure that I want to be a member of ANYTHING right now.

I remember an incident that occurred on a jeep run many years ago. My friend Mary Ellen Kirby brought a parasail that she borrowed from a friend of hers. We hooked it up to the back of a jeep on a long long dirt road. I got talked in to being the guinea pig and actually was the only one that DID get up because we ran out of time.

So we hooked me up in the harness and spread the chute behind me and the whole mess to the back of the jeep. Then Mary Ellen took off down the road and some friends held up the chute to catch the wind AND I RAN. It worked. The chute caught the wind and pulled me right up into the sky. I cannot describe the peace and beauty when one is flying above the earth. The desert was gorgeous. It went on, as they say, forever. And it was SO quiet. I literally started laughing just from the pure joy of it. Such a disappointment to have to settle back to earth.

This was the REAL unknown. We didn't know anything about how the landing would be but I just floated to the ground. The chute made the descent quite easy. I did a bit of a tumble when i actually touched down. Told Mary Ellen to stop a bit quicker the next time.


I would go again in a heartbeat. I don't think I have ever been so free.

Love

Mary

Here is the turtle. I realized that I told you about him in the post just before this. Quite back to front. This was the point where he was getting a bit offended that I was snapping his picture. I felt much like the paparazzi.

Mary

What a day. It was HOT. I went to Hunters Glen early, at about 8AM to do my trimming before the heat really settled in. I got the junipers and the Korean Lilac trimmed and swept the deck and trimmed the honeysuckle. The honeysuckle is beautiful but was really taking over the deck and looking shabby. I also swept out the garage which was getting pretty scuzzy. It still could be spruced up a bit but looks much neater.

Bobbie and Bill planted beautiful purple petunias and chartreuse potato vine in the planter in front of the house. It looks so beautiful. I am so grateful. I wanted to do something but have not been able to commit the time to keep it watered and trimmed. Thank you Bobbie again.

I was at Walgreens TWICE today. I am beginning to feel that I live either there or at the Clinic. This morning, on the way home, I picked up a prescription that had been delayed yesterday because they had to get Sue to approve it. Then when I got home I called Dr. Hodous about Dick's callous. He decided to prescribe antibiotics so I had to go back this afternoon for them. While I was there, I picked up a card for Fr. Mike Moran for his 25th Anniversary as a priest on Sunday and Mom's Centrum Silver. I also swung by the bank and did a bit of business.

After I got home, Chelsea pulled her usual pesty stuff of wanting to go out four times before she really got down to business. However, she lucked out this time. I saw something on the street and was about to go pick it up (thinking it was trash as today WAS trash day) when it started scooting across the road. It was a turtle. So I ran in and got my camera an took some pictures. I will send you one. I do love seeing nature things and then I am not so irritated with Chelsea. She does wear me out though. As Dick says, when I finish doing chores and sit down to rest, she figures that I am not doing anything so I might as well do something for her.

Anyway. I got some pictures of the turtle. He was not too thrilled with me being there and tried to retreat into his shell at one point. But I snapped a few and then let him go on his way - towards water, I assume.

Now the day is almost done. I need to doctor and wrap Dicks feet and then help him get his thigh highs on and will be finished for the day.

We had meatballs with mashed potatoes and gravy for supper with a lime jello salad that has cucumbers, green onions, cream cheese and mayonese in it. I loved it. Dick was not so thrilled. It will be refreshing for the next hot days.

Try to keep cool and be safe. Think of Leslie, making her very first airplane flight. Alone too. She must love Bill very much.

Love

Mary

I forgot to post last night, decided to let you know this morning. I will not write much but will let you know that we are OK. Just church and stuff around here yesterday. Dick's leg is still swollen. The therapist thinks we should continue as we are until tomorrow and see if there is any improvement.

I am going out to the house today to trim bushes. Hope I don't get eaten up alive by mosquitoes like in those horror movies. I guess these aren't resistant to insect repellent though.

Mary

I went out twice today ( not counting Chelsea and my walk). First I went to Mass at 8AM. This morning I was a Eucharistic Minister, which is always satisfying. I still find it amazing that I can be the one giving the bread or wine that are the body and blood of Jesus to my fellow parishioners. I never get over how wonderful that is.

Fr. Van Beeck was really "on" this morning as today was the Feast of St. John the Baptist, our patron saint. He pointed out something in the gospel that I had not noticed before. When St. John the Baptist was born, the NEIGHBORS came over on the 8Th day to do the circumcision and to name him. They assumed his name would be Zacharia after his father and were SHOCKED when Elizabeth said that his name would be John. What the heck is that? The neighbors had that responsibility. Wonder what we would do now, if the neighbors came over after we had a baby to name it and baptize or circumcise it. HMMM?

The rest of the day was spent finishing the quilt. You saw the picture on the blog. (If you did not, look below as I posted it earlier.) I am so pleased. Pleased that it does look nice and pleased that it is done. I feel like the A Team. "I love it when a plan comes together."

Tomorrow, is bible study unless I end up having to take Dick in to the doctor. His leg is no better and is causing him some discomfort. Such a discouraging turn of events. We were so hopeful last week.

Last night was difficult as Dick kept getting up and down and was breathing hard. I told him, that when we get these legs squared away, he has to go back to a sleep clinic to see what else his problem s are besides sleep apnea (which we do have under control. with the sleep machine.) I really need more sleep too.

A Haiku

I wish I could fly
It's quiet above the trees
Once I WAS up there.

Love

Mary

Yippee. I finished the Kitty quilt. I don't know why I call it a kitty quilt. It has two doggies on it too.
And a little mouse but you have to seach for him.
Mary

We, Dick and I, got to stay home all day today. Quite a relief after two very busy weeks.

I spent a good part of the morning cleaning the garage windows, watering the gardens (it did not rain, as was promised) planting some herbs and repairing the wire crane. At least to the best of my ability. If it was not so rusted, I would take it somewhere to be welded. As it is, I just wrapped it in lots and lots of twine that I think is made of plastic and hopefully will not rot, at least until fall when I take the bird in for the winter.

Dick and I did the next steps on the White Zinfindal wine, that we are working on. Now it just has to be stirred three times a day for three days and then rest for about 30 days before bottling. The White Zin from the kit is really the best that we have tasted.

Dick's right leg is swelling up again. We are going back to the half stocking and wrapping for a day or two to see if it will bring it down. Otherwise, we will have the doctor look at it again. The left leg looks great. We are worried. A little prayer would be appreciated a LOT!!!

Love

Mary

5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts...

Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a

hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who

was suffering from a rare and serious disease. Her only

chance of recovery appeared to be a blood

transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had

miraculously survived the same disease and had

developed the antibodies needed to combat the

illness. The doctor explained the situation to her

little brother, and asked the little boy if he would

be willing to give his blood to his sister.

I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a

deep breath and saying, "Yes I'll do it, if it will

save her." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in

bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did,

seeing the color returning to her cheeks. Then his

face grew pale and his smile faded.

He looked up at the doctor and asked with a

trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away?"

Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the

doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his

sister all of his blood in order to save her.

We went to Hunters Glen today to run the water and check things out. I cut the spent blooms off of the peony so it does not look so scraggly and dug up some oregano to plant here at Tallgrass. The ground was SO dry that I didn't get much root. I hope it is enough. Might be because oregano is really tough.

Tomorrow If it doesn't rain, I will water the garden areas here. They still look pretty good but by tomorrow will be parched.

I cleaned the kitchen this morning. Office Max delivered Dick's new chair. It needed to be assembled so we spent the second half of the morning doing that. He likes it. It has good back support but he liked the seat and the arms on the old one better. We will work on that.

Tonight I worked on the quilt. I am finishing up the binding, then it will be done. Unless something unexpected happens I will be done and can post a picture on Sunday. Then I need to decide what I will be doing next. I have one more quilt top done and have a Cathedral Window started. Well, we will see.

I heard on the news today that a study in Norway has concluded that the oldest sibling generally has the highest IQ. I find that quite believable.

Love

Mary

It was a beautiful day today. Chelsea and I started it with a walk at 6AM. She was a happy girl and got to bark at a couple of people too. I saw a heron flying overhead and there were lots of happy birds out there. After the rain we had last night. Not much but enough to freshen things up and give everything a drink.

After that I cleaned the carpet in the office and cleaned the upstairs bathrooms. At about 10, Dick and I drove to Sheboygan. We picked up his new support thigh high stockings first. Then we went to Office Max to look at chairs to replace the one that broke. We found one designed for big and tall people that fest good to him. When we got tot he checkout we found out that it was 65 dollars less than the tag said. So we were VERY happy campers. Lastly, we went over to Bed Bath and Beyond and picked up a Paraspa to do heat therapy on my hands with melted paraffin. It too was much less than we were led to believe so I got that today to.

Then home. I tried to nap but was unable to sleep so I read for a while, made some phone calls and just puttered around the house until dinner.

I mentioned last night that we had watched the AFI's selection of the best 100 movies of the past 100 years. Jaws was one of them and I enjoyed a quote from Steven Spielberg, regarding the movie. he said. "I had not intended Jaws to be a movie where you waited an hour to see the shark. Only because the shark didn't WORK did you have to wait an hour to see the darn thing."

This reminded me of a time that Bret, Bart and I went to Universal Studios for their tour. The tour consisted of a tram ride through the studio with several kind of "real movie" experiences. At one point the tram went on a track over a body or water and as we were going over the water, to our right and coming over our shoulder came JAWS. It was sudden and scary. Poor Bart, who was about six, crumpled and tried to crawl over me and out of the tram on the other side. He was just moaning. It really scared him. Then he realized that it couldn't be real and kept stammering "It's Just a Model.. It's Just a Model" I assured him that it was of course. Boy was that kid scared.

That's all folks

Mary

I just came in from sitting out on the deck for a while. Dick took a little walk tonight too. Chelsea liked that. She enjoys going out with both of us.

We had a lot of errands to do today. We started about 10AM because we had to be at the Plymouth Aurora sometime between 11 and Noon and it seemed most efficient to make a circle.

We went to the bank, then down on Mill Street to pay for the Review/Falls News (it had expired and I had not received the notice. At the end of last week, I realized that I had not received any papers that week, so I called and found out that I was no longer subscribing. Since I get local ads and obituaries and news from those two little papers, then share it with Mother it is worth the $44.00 per year.

We went from there to the Pig to do our grocery shopping and then to Aurora for the blood test and home. Took just about two hours, we were home in time for a lunch and then Dick took a nap.

I had some sewing and ironing and vacuuming to do. Now we are winding down and watching the 100 best movies of something or other. It is always fun to watch those kind of shows because we always have our own opinions as to what we would have chosen. It is surprising the memories that these shows bring back. They always show the BEST scenes.

Tomorrow will be a cleaning day. We are going to shampoo the carpet in the office which is really ucky from Chelsea drooling all over it before we go to Office Max and Bed Bath and Beyond in Sheboygan. We need to look at office chairs for Dick and Sandy from the Lymphodema Clinic said she thinks that Bed Bath and Beyond carries the paraffin dip equipment that really makes my hands feel good. I can also look for presents for Holly and John. They are getting married in August and there is a shower coming up too. She is registered at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Yesterday Mother told me that Dolores had called. Kurt and Jody are expecting their third son in August. Jody went into labor a couple of days ago. They have stabilized her but Jody has to do NOTHING for the next few weeks to be able to be sure that the baby is safe. As school is out, the timing is good because Kurt will be able to take up the slack. But pray for them and that little life.

Love

Mary

4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path.

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a

roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if

anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the

king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by

and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the

King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did

anything about getting the stone out of the way.

Then a peasant came along carrying a load of

vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the

peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the

stone to the side of the road. After much pushing

and straining, he finally succeeded. After the

peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed

a purse lying in the road where the boulder had

been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note

from the King indicating that the gold was for the

person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The

peasant learned what many of us never understand!

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve

our condition.

We did get a little bit of rain last night. Enough that I only had to water a few of the planters on the deck today. And I had to add some water to the birdbath too.

Chelsea and I had a very nice walk this morning. There was a pleasant breeze that kept the mosquitoes away until we were in the woods. We ran through there so I only got bitten once. Chelsea is such a strange little dog. We walked right past a rabbit today. I saw the round brown bump out in the park with the shiny bright eyes. I could see that it was hoping that we didn't see him. Didn't have to worry about me disturbing him and Chelsea didn't see him OR the little one that was on our left nearer the woods. Pretty soon all the rabbits will just keep on grazing. They will realize that she is no harm and I certainly am not.

Dick had an appointment with Dr. Hodous to have his callouses looked at.We can't quite figure out why they are not healing. Two of them are so deep and we have done all we can with insoles and stuff. We are going to try another medication to see if that will help.

We racked the dandelion wine today. It sure is a nice color. And, seems to be getting a pleasant taste.

I also did some vacuuming and sewing this afternoon. So it was a busy day.

The rest of the week is rather quiet. I need a chance to re energise

Love

Mary

3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those

who serve.

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less,

a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and

sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in

front of him.

"How much is an ice cream sundae?" he asked.

"Fifty cents," replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and

studied the coins in it.

"Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he inquired.

By now more people were waiting for a table and the

waitress was growing impatient.

"Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied

The little boy again counted his coins.

"I'll have the plain ice cream," he said.

The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on

the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice

cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress

came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the

table. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish,

were two nickels and five pennies..

You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had

to have enough left to leave her a tip.

It was hot AGAIN today. We got a sprinkling of rain but not enough to be really useful for the gardens. This cold front they speak of seems to be a figment of somebody's imagination.

This morning I went to bible study. We had a pre-discussion of the worms that Shirley and her family had found in one of the holy water fonts last summer. That was very lively from, what one does with wormy holy water to the expressions on grandchildren's faces when Fr. Gene told them that SOMEBODY had to DRINK it.

Sunday is the feast of St. John the Baptist. The readings were interesting. I was surprised to find it stated very specifically in the Old Testament that the "servant of God" was to "restore the survivors of Israel" AND be "a light to the nations that my salvation my reach to the ends of the earth." So he promised heaven to everybody, not just his chosen people.

Then I went to see Mother and brought her some soup and cookies. We had a nice visit. She is very well now. I stayed until a bit after 11AM when Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Bob picked her up to take her to Uncle Pat and Aunt Joan's house in Van Dyne, just north of Fond du Lac on the west side of Lake Winnebago. Some of you may not know that Uncle Pat is Mother's youngest brother. He is only a few years older than I am.

This afternoon was the Cream City Writer's club. I enjoy these meetings but once in a while a couple of our members get onto religious or political tangents that should not be part of the meeting. Today, it turned into a heated argument between Sy Regan and Don Cooper. This was a disagreement on the prison system that turned into BOTH as religious and political debate between the two. Three of us ladies just raised our hands and told them to take it outside as this is a writer's club not a political group. That ended it right away and we continued around the table and ended quite amicably. We ended as we usually do with each member present putting in a word. Then during the next month we try to use as many of the words as we can in a poem or paragraph. It is a good exercise and as the words usually have no connection we have to stretch our minds.

Maybe you would like to try. The words this month are 1. plover 2. glorious 3. tranquil
4. concert 5. flag 6. fireworks and 7. lavender.

Kate and I had coffee after the meeting. I drove her home. She hurt her back on Friday and had been unable to drive safely. We are going to go to Hobby Lobby one of these days to frame some prints that she has AND the print that George and Betsy gave me of Courtney's Silver Taps. I think I can get it done quite nicely there as I have had other prints done there. Kate is an interior decorator and has never tried them but was impressed with the framing that I had done there last year.

I did some quilting tonight. I just have the binding to do on the kitty quilt. Then I will take a picture and post it here. It is such fun when a project is finished and one sees the results. Then I get anxious to get on to the next one.

Have a nice Tuesday. We have to be in Sheboygan to see Dr. Hodous at 9:15PM

Mary

The promised rain has not shown up - again. I have watered everything outside, so will not worry about it.

Chelsea tried to wake me up at 4:45AM this morning. I was not amused. I took her into the kitchen, made sure she had water, gave her a little lettuce and went back to bed, shutting her out of the bedroom. I managed to get back to sleep and stayed so until 6AM.

We had a nice walk and I went to the 8AM Mass. Fr. Van Beeck gave a nice talk about fathers.

Bobbie and I worked at Rhine today from noon to 4PM. We left a little before 4 as it was SO quiet that we amused ourselves by visiting with each other and the guys. It was altogether a pleasant afternoon.

As we had leftovers for supper my evening has been very relaxed and easy. Dick had cards on the computer this morning from Dick and Brenda and Bobbie and Bill. Then both Bart and Dick called tonight so he has been a very popular guy. He is always so pleased in his heart when he is remembered.

I am all prepared for tomorrow. I have Bible Study and Writer's Club. I am still writing my haikus each day. I did miss two days but made it up the next day. I hope that counts. I try to do it in the morning so that I do not forget but occasionally the day starts goofy and things slip by. Some are kind of interesting when I go back and read them and some are icky. But there you are. At least something is done each day. I feel that way about this blog too. It has become a journal.

Bobbie and I had such a nice afternoon. She brought me some of her soap too. I was about out of it and am so glad she still has some.

Here is today's haiku:

Suddenly I knew
That bunnies and birds can
Bring peace to my heart.

Love

Mary

2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain

One night, at 11:30 p.m., an older African American

woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway

trying to endure a lashing rainstorm. Her car had

broken down and she desperately needed a ride.

Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car.

A young white man stopped to help her, generally

unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960s. The man

took her to safety, helped her get assistance and

put her into a taxicab.

She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his

address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a

knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a

giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A

special note was attached..

It read:

"Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway

the other night. The rain drenched not only my

clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along.

Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying

husband's bedside just before he passed away... God

bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving

others."

Sincerely,

Mrs. Nat King Cole.

Just for fun. We got this picture of a peacock in
full spread on a trip up north a few year ago.

Mary

It was HOT today. When Chelsea and I walked it was still pleasant but warmed up quickly thereafter.

At about 9 I went over to the Hunters Glen property and spent three hours on the bushes. They needed to be trimmed so badly so that the house looks its best. I shaped the privot type hedge at the corner of the house, the "tree" that was planted as a bush and grows under the locust tree and cut the dead lilacs off of the Korean Lilac that grows under the garage window. I told Dick that if I had known that cutting it back like he did last year would produce that much flowering we would have done it every year.

I had three bags of cuttings plus the bag I had here to take to the city lot. I was exhausted but feel good that it is done for a bit. I will have to go out again in the next week to tidy up the junipers.

When I got home, we had lunch, I showered and then I lay down for a nap. I got to sleep but then heard noises so I got up and found that Dick's desk chair had broken. He had been sleeping in it an apparently twisted wrong or it was just weakened and snapped. So we have a captain's chair in until we figure out what we can do to replace it.

Father's Day has started early for Dick. While I was out with Chelsea, a floral delivery arrived. It is an absolutely beautiful yellow arrangement of lilies and roses in a really pretty pitcher that will be placed up on the cupboard above the pantry along with two other pretty pitchers that need a friend.

Then - Jim and Michelle took us to Antoinette's for a Father's Day dinner. Altogether pleasant. A good meal AND good company. It was a good "catch up" as we see each other so seldom with them working in the Milwaukee area and us running all over the county for appointments.

Now a quiet evening.

I think I told you that Barbara, the kid's mother, is doing better and is much more alert and responsive.

However, please pray for our son in law, Bill Smith. His mother died today in California. I am sure Bill and Leslie will appreciate your prayers and comforting thoughts.

Tomorrow will be Mass at 8AM and I work at Rhine from 12 to 4. I will be working with Bobbie so that will make it fun.

Love.

Mary

Here is the first part of an email I received. I may have started it before but I know that I didn't finish it.

1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady.

During my second month of college, our professor

gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student

and had breezed through the questions until I read

the last one:

"What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"

Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the

cleaning woman several times. She was tall,

dark-haired and in her 50s, but how would I know her name?

I handed in my paper, leaving the last question

blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if

the last question would count toward our quiz grade.

"Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers,

you will meet many people. All are significant. They

deserve your attention and care, even if all you do

is smile and say "hello."

I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her

name was Dorothy.

It was HOT today. When Chelsea and I went for out walk, however, it was quite beautiful. Then I took my shower and Dick and I went out for breakfast.

I left two things out of yesterday's saga.

When I was cleaning up the kitchen after supper, I was moving a pan from the left to the right side of the sink - with the water running - the pan hit the faucet handle and it broke off with the water running like crazy. I tried to reattach it but found that it had actually cracked. So the only way to turn off the water was the valves under the sink.

SO this morning, we went to Sonntag Plumbing for help with the faucet and with the toilet in the guest bathroom upstairs. We have been struggling with that for months now. It may have been able to be fixed but Dick had decided that it would be better to replace it with a higher one with the longer seat which is better for him now. We got there at about 9:00AM and they came and did both jobs before 1:30PM. I am impressed and amazed.

We stopped at Hunters Glen while we were out and ran the water again. As I went out the garage side door to check the gardens, the guts of the lock box - with our key attached - fell onto the ground. Whoever had showed the house last did not put it back together properly. So I had to call ReMax for instructions as to how to put it back together. We were not happy.

I had lunch at Dairy Queen as usual, then went over to my friend Kate Herman's house to dig up some lavender that she said I could have. It is beautiful. I put a bunch in the front next to the sidewalk, two small bunches on the deck in pots and a large hunk down at the bottom of the garden. We had a good visit. I took her and her husband Ron two pasties for their supper and some lavender cookies. With all her lavender, she needs some way to use it aside from the scent use which is actually reason enough.

We brought home the sprinkler heads from Hunters Glen so I am now able to soak the gardens using them rather than standing out there spraying and getting eaten by mosquitoes.

Tomorrow I am going back to Hunters Glen to trim the bushes. Kate said to call her before I left. If nothing changes, she will come and help me. It is good to have good friends.

There was a second thing that I forgot to tell you about yesterday. When Dr. Schelcht lasered Dick's eyes, he told him that there might be floaters which will absorb. It is the debris that he "washed" off the lenses. As we were heading to lunch after the treatment, he suddenly looked at me and said that it looked like hundreds of ants were crawling all over me. We had a lot of fun with that. Fortunately it did not last too long. Today he is doing very well. The slight soreness that he was experiencing yesterday is mostly gone. He will be on eye drops for about a month.

And that is what is happening in Plymouth with the Kunerts today. A much nicer day than yesterday. Instead of things breaking, they were getting fixed and planted. I am feeling very fuzzy content this evening.

We also heard that Barbara, the kids' mother, is doing much better. Not well by any means but much better. So prayers and good medical care are working. We must keep up our end by continuing to pray.

Happy weekend.

Mary

This morning Chelsea and I had company on our walk. Suzi loves to walk and got up so she could go with us on our morning trek around the condo complex and the park. It was beautiful. We only got a few mosquito bites. We had to run through the wooded area to stay ahead of them. We only to a couple of bites each.

I make the omelets that you boil in a bag for breakfast. That is an easy meal for a crowd. We all loved it. We had toast, muffins and scones with them and a lovely visit with Suzi and Hazel. They left at about 9AM for Medford and Theresa and Gary.

Dick and I left at about 11:00 for the Sheboygan Clinic. This is where the day got really goofy. We saw DR. Schlecht, who said that Dick's implants were indeed clouded as Dr. Zeigler had thought. He was able to do the laser treatment necessary to clean them and correct another small problem while we waited. Then things got goofy. Because we had an appointment with Dr. Sharon for a leg inspection at Aurora in Plymouth, he set up an appointment in Plymouth for an hour after the laser procedure to determine if the pressure was OK.

We got there and the technician checked the pressure, but noted that Dick's eye seemed red and irritated and asked Dr. Zweben, who was working in Plymouth that day to check it, after they found him. He seemed resentful stating that he did not have an appointment and didn't know what was going on and frankly did not seem willing to listen to the circumstances. He finally looked at Dick's eye and calmed down some. He agreed that it was irritated and gave us some antibiotics and confirmed the drops that Dr. Schlecht had prescribed.

Then we went up and saw Dr. Sharon. He is very pleased with the improvement in Dick's legs. We are going to proceed with the thigh high stockings, the massage, and the bicycle shorts. We are scheduled for a yearly physical for Dick in mid July. At that time a couple of other small things will be addressed.

After we left the clinic, we picked up Chelsea's heartworm medicine. I had noticed on TV that it is time for the meds to be administered. Apparently Kettle Moraine does not notify its patients like Dr. Zechlinski did. It is a good thing that I happened to see the ad. They prescribe a yearly, once a month, program. It cost $49. That means Chelsea Has to live for another year to use it up. I think that is wonderful. I hope we have her forever, but it also means that I cannot have my kitties. I miss them so. Perhaps someday, someone will say. Here is a present for you and I will have them back in my house. The longer it gets the less likely I will ever have them again.

For our last stop we went to Walgreens to get the prescribed eye drops. There I found that they do not stock the drops prescribed. Walgreens called all the Plymouth Pharmacies and found that NONE of them do. So we called Dr. Zweben and he switched the meds and asked Walgreens to bring the med in as they are going to be using it.

It was after 4 when we got home. We were both very tired. Chelsea was glad we were here and ready to pay some attention to her. Dick took a nap and I caught up on some computer work.

Now it is 8:30PM and I am exhausted. I did get my outdoor plants watered today. A man came and cleaned out all the thistles next to the garage today. We are sure glad that is done as it was an awful mess. I can only do so much. The back and that bed right in front along with the pots on the patio AND I HAVE to get to Hunters Glen are really more than I want to handle. There is so much time being spent on personal health issues that I need about 8 more hours in the day. If I had them, I could sleep then and work the 8 that I sleep now.

Be good to yourself on Friday and throughout the weekend.

Love

Mary