Back to the blackberries. It's true! All those tall briars last year now have berries. This is going to be the year of the high berries. The new first year canes are all short, so far. I should probably try to get a handle on this high/low cycle. The leaves on the canes with berries (2nd year) are a slightly darker color and more round. The ones on the 1st year canes are lighter green and more pointy. But all stems have 3 leaves. Ran across just a couple with 5 leaves, both 1st year. New berries setting on
Screw that plan (4/25/2020) The replacement shutters arrived in the mail Wednesday with no damage. They are much nicer than the ones on the mobile home. They came with both metal screws and tap-in plastic fasteners. I studied how to do everything on YouTube. The plan was to install them yesterday. Took every tool I thought you might possibly need, and the ladder. It didn't go well. The screws in the original shutters have square holes in the heads. That's one thing I didn't think of I want to reuse at least some of the old holes (long story). Found a screwdriver that my father had obviously ground down to make a square head, and imagined him in the same predicament. It wasn't big enough. Finally got them removed from one shutter using a cheap flat head screwdriver that fit diagonally, but the edges of the screwdriver twisted and bent after only 4 screws. Didn't want to set up the ladder for just one shutter, so I mowed the lawn instead. This is Freddy the Tree Frog. We met on the rung of a chair. He is not much over an inch long. We are merely strangers who passed in the light. He brushed me off at 0:38. (best viewed on YouTube in full screen) Video was zoomed. I think the aspect ratio got changed on the camera while phone was in my pocket, so it's not full screen. Maybe Bixby did it. Too late to fix for this video.
Received a form letter from Georgia Dept of Revenue about my 2019 income tax return. They claim the taxes due were off by $1 in my favor. They provided a list of all 22 lines of what I had, and what they said it should be. The only difference was the calculated amount of tax. Everything else matched perfectly. I've read it 10 times. The amount of tax is calculated automatically from a form available online. You don't even have to fill that number in. It does it for you. It was correct even if you used the old fashioned tax tables. I have the right to appeal. lol The only possible thing I can think of is a penalty. But I can find nothing that warrants a penalty, and any penalty would surely be more than $1. Now I can finally come up with a conspiracy. They want me to file the taxes electronically so they are going to bug me. They are barking up the wrong tree, 'cause it keeps getting simpler every year. They will have to make it a law first. I may do it in ink pen next year (pencil or crayons are not allowed).
Apparently most people listen to many different songs in a day, one after another. I'm just the opposite. I pick one song I like and listen to it over and over, all day long, until I'm tired of it. Sometimes it takes two days. When I was young I used to dream that I would be able to write a song. Just one. But I know I couldn't come up with a melody that hasn't been written before. There have been too many songs. You would almost need a computer program to go through them all to make sure you didn't copy parts of one inadvertently. I bet they have software that does that now. I bring this up because I don't think melody matters nearly as much as the arrangement. I wonder how many songs got thrown into the waste basket because they didn't have the right arrangement. One example is an old song I posted in another thread called, If I Didn't Care, written by Jack Lawrence in 1939. I remember that song on the radio, first sung by The Ink Spots. I thought is was so corny, sounded like a song from the 1920's. And it had talking. I don't care for talking in a song. Couldn't stand listening to that song all the way through. A later version by The Platters wasn't much better. I ran across this by Brenda Lee by accident, and wonder what would have happened to that song if she had been the first to release it (1960). It was on the B side of a single called Build a Big Fence. Who remembers Build a Fence? I must have listened to this song by 30 different singers afterwards, including all amateurs, just for comparison. Most are too slow, or too fast, overly dramatic, or sound like they were written for a marching band...1,2,3,4. Of course this is just my opinion. Others will surely disagree. There's one phrase (~ 1:00) in this arrangement that stands out, doesn't fit with the rest of the song. It makes me thrill. (Never heard anyone say that in real life). "Would my every prayer, begin and end, with just your name" (and the saxophone interlude that follows) It's because there is an extra phrase, "begin and end," in the 2nd stanza, which allows a different rhythm. I wish someone would take that song, modify the words just a tiny bit, replace the vocal accompaniment typical back then, and add the same rhythm throughout. I'd love to see what you could do with it. So why bother to write a song if you don't have the facilities, or talent, to experiment with different arrangements. Crossed songwriting off my bucket list long ago.
I write too much about silly stuff sometimes. Back to business and back to square one. Got the new shutters put up. Two hours, 3 if you count getting stuff out and putting it away. It will be easier next time. Tried out the old ladder, with new levelers, on the stairs. It works well.
5/4/2020 They came at 9:30 this morning and pressure washed the house. It looks good. They are coming back tomorrow morning to paint. Same color. Yellow. Maybe it doesn't need painted after all. It's only been 38 years.
They showed up at 8:00 am and spent all morning just caulking around every crack and every window. While waiting for the caulk to dry they are removing two cedar trees. Meanwhile there is a girl painting with a roller on the back deck. They are not going to use paint sprayers, just old fashioned brushes and rollers. I've never had a house painted before. This is interesting. Update (12:50 am):. Some carpenters just showed up to work on the front porch posts.
(Last post should have been 12:50 pm, not am, obviously. Too late to edit.) Today made me think of Faye Fox. The men worked for literally hours removing one cedar tree. It wasn't that big. I know cedars are hard, but not that hard. I think their saw chain was completely dull. They would "saw" back and forth with it and smoke came pouring off the blade. Even small limbs took forever to cut off. They trimmed all the limbs off yesterday, arrived at 9:00 am and finally got the trunk down at 11:30. They are now trying to cut it up to haul off. It's still out there, with one cut about half way through. They kept painting yesterday until after 7 pm. This morning they did the dormers. I think they are almost finished. It looks really good. Makes me more tired to wait for them to finish, than to work. This always happens.
5/7/2020 The beginning and end of yesterday were both good. In between... not good at all. Beginning: Man showed up in the morning to get the rest of the cedar tree. He had a sharp saw. It took him about 15 seconds to make a cut through the trunk. Hauled everything off in about 20 minutes. Two more projects finished. Stump left from the day before. General Contractor said he had a bobcat, thought he could remove the big tree on the fence out at the farm, and wanted to look at it. Tentatively set for Monday, but he is always busy on weekdays. I needed to make sure at least one route to get there was cleared, so headed out to the farm. End: Happened to see one little wild rose peaking out from the weeds as I was driving back from the dam. They used to cover the whole side of a big bank out there. It's been 16 years since I've seen one. At least some of them are still alive. The blossoms are only about an inch across. I want to sort through some pictures from the rest of the day, and put them here, just for the record. Later.
5/7/2020 (continued) The tree to be removed is on a hill right above the dam. There were only 3 medium sized trees down on the road I chose to get there. Not important now. Clear just enough to get by, get them on the way back instead, because there might be something worse around the next corner. ..Like... The new dam spillway, completely washed out. Almost surely happened at the same time the boat ended up in the water near the dock. Looked for signs that the lake overflowed, and couldn't tell. Probably that and run off from the side of the hill next to the spillway. I'd like to know, because the lake only overflowed once since I've had it, and the spillway was lower then. Google Earth aerial photo likely from January, 2020, shows the original layout of the spillway. I think it was too narrow especially at the top. If they had left the spillway alone, just like it was, I don't think this would have happened. There was plenty of ground cover on the old one. No one seems to understand erosion. .."Trust me, I'm an engineer." . ,
Thinking out loud ... The neighbor below the dam must not have noticed anything yet, or else he has mellowed in his senior years, otherwise I would have heard from someone out there before now. I suppose this needs to be fixed next and soon. It will just keep slowly washing out now because there is no ground cover. {sigh} There are 20 bales of hay/straw in the garage I need to get rid of. I could carry them down there to stop the immediate erosion, as long as there is not another gully washer. The truck will hold 12 bales easily if I can drive it there. One culvert on the road started to wash out. Will check it next time. If those stones weren't so large I could throw them over into the ditch right where the spillway meets the creek. But this would be a waste of time if I get this repaired correctly soon. But how soon could it get done? One wood fence post washed out completely and the fence broke open at a splice. A lot of other fence repair is needed elsewhere. So do I meet General Contractor out there Monday, if he is free, and see what he suggests? He would be able to find someone to do fence repair. I doubt he could fix the spillway, but who knows. He claims he can arrange anything. It looks like it needs more loads of riprap (large stones) dumped in the gullys, minimum. Or should I call Fence Man? It's his job, but I don't blame him, he followed the engineer's plans. And he wouldn't do it for free. He doesn't like to deal with little jobs, like fence repair. I've asked him before and he ignores me unless he has an ulterior motive (long story). Probably the best answer is to call Fence Man, but had hoped not to have to deal with him again. Guess I'll text him a couple of pictures and see what he says, if I can figure out how to do it. The rock bed below the two drain pipes worked fine, but there is only so much water that can come through those two pipes. This video has a calming effect. LOL .
5/11/2020 Monday Just below the dam outlet pipes, the stream of water now narrows so that it moves rapidly. Took all the loose rocks in the area that were not serving any purpose and started tossing them in there. Not sure why I did this. It just seemed like a good thing to do. There is no before picture because I didn't plan on doing this. Tossing heavy rocks in a stream of water, and making them land exactly where you want them, soon becomes a game, and I couldn't quit until I ran out of rocks. lol Did not lock the gate when I left, texted 2 photos to Fence Man in the evening, and he replied he'd take a look at it. I'll wait. About the only thing I can think of to do is haul more truckloads of rocks out there and fill in the pits and gullies. There is no dirt available, and I don't want any more digging to cause even more erosion. The dirt around the ends of one road culvert has washed out. A pickup could cross easily, but I don't know about a big gravel truck. Aren't they extra wide? Can't forget to mention the tree to FM when I hear from him. GC should be able to line up a crew to do fence repair, all the way around. That will be a big enough job to make it worthwhile for him and it needs done. That's the plan anyway. If I had put off repairing that dam for 13 more months, none of this would have happened. That will teach me to not get in too big a hurry to finish things. Edited to add: ..Fence Man just called (2 pm). He couldn't believe it. Intends to only put in more rocks, no more digging. (Yes!) Will be about a week before he can get to it, and will do the tree also. . . .
Pouting, sulking, and tantrums My father absolutely couldn't tolerate anyone pouting. By pouting I mean what you do when you don't get your way. Sulking. Closely related to feeling sorry for yourself. According to him, pouting must have been right up there, along with lying and murder, as one of the worst things you could do. At a young age it would probably have meant a spanking, but I never found out for sure. There were early warning signs, like a look, combined with a shout, that told you you really don't want to go there. He would imagine pouting even when it wasn't there, so you had to be careful not to even look like you might be thinking about pouting. Even as an adult. I wonder what events made him like that. Annoying and ungrateful younger brothers and sisters? Whatever it was, I'm thankful. Pouting is definitely not attractive. I'm pretty sure I never pouted after the age of 3. Don't remember before that age. Definitely not as an adult. There is an old photograph around age 3 that looks a little like pouting. I watched some YouTube videos of kids throwing tantrums when they didn't get their way. It is wasted if there is no one to witness it. I'd like to think if I had kids they would never get that way. Otherwise I'd have to put them up for adoption. Maybe it's why I have trouble with people expressing sympathy. Did they think I was pouting? Someone else always has it worse. It worries me that someone may think I'm pouting just by this post. Not true. Just a memory that popped into my head. Nothing more. . .
Nancy--I just read your post about Rusty. So sorry to hear it. I will miss the Adventures of Rusty that you shared.