A Welcome Distraction

   Earlier this afternoon, Son and I headed down the hill to secure the boat a bit more before Hurricane Zeta pays a visit.  While walking down the path behind him, I had to laugh as he stepped right on a snake!  Granted it was only a rough green snake but it was still a snake.  The poor little thing froze!  It was not moving in case the next huge monster (me) decided to step on it, too.  Well, I saw it so, instead of stepping on it, I picked it up to admire its beauty.  The little rascal was nervous at first and actually musked me but that is normal.  I had no problems with it.  After a bit, the snake settled down and was soon enjoying the attention.  Son snapped a few photographs of his old mom playing with the tiny snake.  

  The little green snake was a welcome distraction from the day's work and from what is to come tonight.  As I write this, the winds are picking up tremendously and we are having torrential rains.  (This will have to be posted early since we are about to lose power.)  It is going to be a rough night on the Bayou.  Please say a prayer for all those in the path of this powerful hurricane.  It is not one to take lightly.  Hang tight, folks!  Hunker down and be safe!  We shall see what tomorrow brings.

I thought about it

  Today was Mother's Day where all mothers are to be honored and celebrated.  It should be their day off from the worries of the world but, I have got news for you...that just does not happen....especially with the uncertain times that are slapping us in the face.  Mothers worry.  Mothers fret for the safety of their children (even when they are grown).  Mothers are mothers.  We will always look out for the best interest of our kids.  Obviously, there is no "day off".  The work is just conveniently shoved to another day.  After all, who is going to pick up the slack while everyone insists she sits.  The answer...no one.  No one!  The laundry, cooking, cleaning, caring for children, tending the needs of all family members, caring for the ill, soothing bruised egos are all mom chores.  No one will pick up the slack.  Don't even think that some one else will scrub that toilet cause it ain't happenin', folks.  It ain't happenin'.

  Perhaps it was just because of this social distancing or chalk it up to a bad mood day, but this was not a favorite day of mine.  Oh, it had its bright moments since I did get to "see" (but not hug) my beautiful daughter and handsome son-in-law.  We had to keep our "6 feet distancing" since she is in the medical field and is adamant about not spreading the virus.  (I fully agree with that.)  Having them here (in the yard) for a few moments was glorious!  Another delightful moment was when Son pitched in to help home can the green beans that Mark brought home for the farmer's market.  His quirky jokes made the time go faster.   Still, I missed my oldest son, sweet daughter-in-law and grandlittles.  That huge hole in my day hurt.

  Speaking of "holes", I was tempted to crawl into one I found early this morning and just stay there.  I could ride out the day in perfect bliss hiding in the sky!  There was one break in the clouds that gave the illusion that it was an escape hatch from the worries of the world!  If only I had a ladder long enough to reach the clouds, things would have been ok.  Sometimes you just need to escape....I thought about it. It might have been a fun adventure!

 

It came, but no one noticed.

  Spring has slipped in almost unnoticed.  Folks have other things on their minds.  Some are worried as their pantries are running low, some are fretting that the sore throat could be the start of something much worse than a cold, others are concerned about their neighbors, their loved ones, themselves in this time of uncertainty.  And rightly so.  Still, Lady Spring came and no one noticed.  She spread her beauty out before us and waited but no one came to the party.

  As I was out and about today, I took in the beauty around me.  Every plant was bursting forth with new growth and blooms.  Birds were singing and bees were busy gathering pollen.  A fine breeze blew in off the water making the day a delight...so much so that I had to smile and literally give a big "thank you" to the lovely Lady Spring.  Her ability to adorn the world in loveliness after the drab winter is one to be admired.  Her ability to lift the spirits of those in despair is to be appreciated.

  One of my favorite things is to see the fruit trees in full bloom.  Hopefully, this means that in a few months, those same trees will be heavy laden with fruit.  The sight of the snow white pear blossoms and the rich pink peach blossoms gives hope that the world will survive this chaotic time.  Given time, things will heal.  We will heal.  Patience and time...patience and time.

How Do You Deal With A Pouty Dog?

  The old dog had surgery to remove a tumor from his leg almost two weeks ago.  The thing had been there for several years without troubling him but in the past month or so, it started to grow at a tremendous rate.  This made walking difficult and finding a comfortable position to sleep nigh on impossible.  Enough was enough!  I took him to the pet emergency room and they did a great job fixing up the old dog.  Mr. PJ is healing fine and will soon be back to his old self...hopefully.

  There is just one problem.  Even though the incision site is almost healed and the staples are to be removed by the end of the week, Mr. PJ wants to gnaw on the wound.   He has that huge "cone of shame" on but still can reach his back leg.  For being an old dog with terrible bouts of arthritis, he sure can twist and turn when he wants.  This dog is truly a contortionist.  I have never seen the likes of this!

  Today, I stepped out the door to put a box in the greenhouse and was gone a total of five minutes. I came back to catch him in action.  Nope!  Not going that route, Dog!  So...a bandage was put back in place and now he sulks.  How do you deal with a pouty dog??  Ugh!

Rollie Pollies Are Smart!

  I was pondering something today.  With all of the stress that has been suddenly added to my life (ailing family member and aging dog being the most prevalent), I figure I should seek some sort of refuge where I can escape now and again.  It does not necessarily have to be some exotic place or even some faraway place.  It just needs to be a "me" place where I can close myself off from the worries of the world for a few hours.  This would allow me to regroup and face dilemmas with a renewed energy.  I need the proverbial "she shed".  I really, really need this!  A place like that would be ideal as I could literally run and hide. The shed could come equipped with a sign that says something to the manner of "No One Allowed!"  It then occurred to me that some critters have built in "she sheds" where they escape from the reality facing them.

  Armadillos were the first critter that I thought of when I was thinking "portable she shed".  These critters can roll up in a little ball and escape whatever is not to their liking.  Of course, my mind wanders a lot so I started thinking how pill bugs are so like armadillos.  The ones around here even have reference to that in their big, ole fancy name Armadillidium Vulgare!  I have always (like most folks) just called them Rollie Pollies!  It is a much easier name to remember and, well, I need easy things to remember at my age.

  Rollie Pollies are actually crustaceans that have made the trek to land and decided that it suited them fine.  So..there they stayed.  They feast upon rotting vegetation and roam about the place unnoticed...at least until something wants to eat them.  Then, they roll up in a tiny ball hoping the predator will either lose interest and go away or have trouble eating them.  When things start to get a bit rough, I am going to roll up and hide! Sounds good.  Real good. 

Calming the Mind

  Sometimes, even the most messed up shambles can become a safe haven for those in troubled times.  There is no rule, that I am aware of, that states that peace can only be found in pristine places.  I, for one, prefer a bit of "clutter" (yes, that all despised word) around me as I work.  I draw creative inspiration from things within my view rather than a cold, barren place.  I have no problem with those who desire that as it is their choice, just like it is mine to fill my life with whatever I deem unique and/or useful.  It is my habit to let folks live their lives the way they want just as I do mine.  It is among my weird and wonderful things that I find solace...and protection from the evils of the world...or, at least, those playing in my brain.  

  Things have been a bit stressful, as of late.  Things have been trying my "peace" making life quite miserable.  Things were out of my control.  The feeling that I was losing it began to pull at me from all angles.  I needed respite so I started wandering about the Little Bayou House.  There, I started drawing strength from the things (yes, things) around me.  Instead of a memory, I was able to hold the necklace that Mom loved.  I had tea from my grandmother's favorite teacup.  I felt the strength merely by holding embroidered handkerchief that my great grandmother always carried.  Yep, some may deem this as clutter but I deem them as treasures that hold the power to calm the nerves.  It is all in how you look at things.

 

The Workout!

  Life has a way of throwing a whole bunch of trouble at you all at the same time.  It never seems to fail that if one thing is going to be troublesome, everything is going to start trying to get in on the action.  Frustration can often build until a person is nigh on a breaking point.  That is the way it has been here on the Bayou as of late.  It seems as if the stress is bound and determined to get to me.  It had gotten to the point that this morning, I had enough and something had to give.  It was me.  

  Along about 7am, I figured that if I was going to have all of this pent up aggravation, I may as well put the energy to good use.  There was certainly no way I was going to wallow in the mire of a bad mood any longer.  Time to get things in gear.  So I did.  My trusty lawnmower got the workout of its days today.  For almost a total of seven hours, I pushed and pulled that thing.  At first, I was getting the best workout of my life!  I went at it with such gusto that doing the lawn was not enough.  My lawnmower was pushed to the woods where I trimmed out things that no mower should be expected to cut.  With the mood I was in, the mower probably had second thoughts about balking being afraid that I might just hum it to the back of the Bayou and leave it.  Along about an hour later, I felt freer.  The frustration was beginning to lift and I started actually feeling good about what I was doing.  So...I pushed some more.  Four times, the gas tank had to be refilled just to keep me going.  Mark and Son kept asking if I was sure I wanted to keep cutting.  Yep.  You two get on back to work on those termites and leave the grass to me.

  Seven hours later, close to 4 acres had been cut.  Parts of the woods now became parts of the yard.  The overgrowth by the marsh has been trimmed back to help prevent snakes from encroaching on the path.  Leaves have been mulched to prevent that dreaded chore of raking.  And I saved a bundle of money.  There was no need to buy a gym membership when I can get this kind of exercise and there was no need to pay a therapist to sort my problems.  The mower and seven hours did it for me.  Putting all of that stress into a productive task did the trick.  Tonight, I am sore...I am exhausted...I feel better...oh, so much better.

The Trying Day

  So...it has been a trying day, to say the least.  In fact, I might go as far as saying it has been a lousy day and that is something coming from someone who tries to find at least some good in everything.  Still, today has been one of those that I hope does not rear its ugly head too often.  I can do without the stress.

  First off, more termites.  LOTS more termites or, at least, evidence of where they have been.  This is in the small craft room.  Everything had to be moved.   Have you ever moved a craft room on short notice?  Not fun but I had no choice.  If I wanted anything to not come crashing down around me, it had to be moved.  Son's childhood friend just happened to stop by so I had help.  He understands my predicament and my distaste for termites. Thankfully, the buggers have vacated this small area of the house but have probably moved on to munch a different spot.  The battle is never ending.   Then, the discovery was made that the entryway (which I just redid) has to be partially "deconstructed" which means all my work was for naught.  All of the decorative touches and furniture had to be moved.  This, I did by myself.  Again...not fun.

  This being April, the grasshoppers are hatching.  Not your normal, cute green grasshoppers but the ugly, plant devouring Eastern Lubber Grasshoppers.  Those vile things that hatch out in hordes and devour everything in sight.  My battle with them occurs twice daily and I still make no progress in eradicating them.  These things are toxic so I receive no help from my Bayou critter friends in this war.  This year seems to be an especially "good" year for the grasshoppers because there are more than ever.  I am about to give up and resign myself to never see another green plant for the entire spring.  Not fun...

  Aside from the ongoing termite and grasshopper saga, there is something amiss in the backyard.  There is a "dead".  I am not sure what has died but there is definitely something dead back there.  For a solid hour, I searched.  The smell is highly concentrated next to the outdoor storage room but I found nothing.  I am beginning to think that a few blue crabs from Mark's last crab boil met their demise under the storeroom.  That is not fun either.

  Later, amid all of the trouble of the day, Mr, PJ, the old dog, seemed to have some sort of "spell".  His breathing changed and he seemed greatly lethargic.  This scared the bejeebies out of me.  Knowing there is nothing the vets can do for him at this stage, I did nothing but flop down by him to console him.  As I sat holding him like a baby, he kept licking my hand as if to show me he appreciated the comforting.  This breaks my heart and is definitely NOT FUN!

  Lastly, Ms. Nycto, the Bayou Princess Cat, was attacked by a rogue tomcat and made an escape up to the top of a tall but spindly tree.  She can climb up but can never climb back down.  I sure can NOT climb up.  Twice I have chased the marauding tom away but each time he came back.  Tonight, Ms. Nycto is still in the tree and THAT breaks my heart.  I am hoping and praying that the big old owl does not attack her.  Not fun...not fun...today was not fun.  Today was stressful...

Stress Relief at its Best!

   Meandering around the hillside and back in the woods behind the Little Bayou House, one can find any number of interesting plants.  One of my favorites is the albizia or silk tree.  The blooms have the sweetest scent and can be white to deep pink.  Most folks around here call the trees mimosas but that is not quite accurate.  There is a family of plants of the genus mimosa that are not the same thing at all!   But, mention the mimosa and everyone knows which tree.  They are favorites here in the Deep South and have earned their place alongside the magnolias. wisteria and confederate jasmine.  There is nothing better than sitting in the old rocking chair late in the evening and catching the scent of these blooms wafting on the cool night air. 

  But albizia is supposedly pretty amazing plant besides being so sweetly scented and so prettily adorned.  Just about all parts of it have purported medicinal uses when used properly.  One of the most touted uses is to help with relieving stress.  Sounds wonderful but, at the same time, sounds a bit scary because so little is known about the side effects.  Trust me on this, don't just run out there and grab a handful of leaves, flowers or bark and start munching it unless you want to pretend to be a rabbit.  Misusing any herb can cause more problems than it helps.  Get a bit of expert advice first.

  That said, I figure the best way to use albizia to treat stress is to find a front porch, pull up a rocking chair, watch the lightning on the horizon and breathe.  Breathe in that heavenly aroma from the mimosa tree that hangs over the rooftop.  Yep!  After about a half hour of that, I find things seem to be a whole lot better.  Or get out of bed at daybreak while the dew is still heavy laden and take a hike back under the mimosa trees.  My goodness!  I have nary a care in the world when I am there!  Maybe that albizia does work after all!

"Hit It With A Hammer!"

  I have always said that I have far more critter friends than I do people friends.  This is by choice as I find the critters far more amiable than most folks.  Even wild critters seem to appreciate all you do for them and are willing to just be friends without asking for a thing in return.  With the recent holiday season behind us, I find that, more than ever, folks are irritating, to say the least.  No matter how much you do for some folks, they always want more.  They take until you are just bone dry and then come back to rattle those bones.  It is times like this that I feel that I could fully do without ever seeing anyone.  That is one of the main reasons that I rarely leave the Bayou.  This is my peace.  Whenever I get a bit unnerved, I seek the solace that only the water can bring.

  There is a young man that has been visiting the Bayou since he was just a wee lad.  He spent many a days (and nights) here as a youngster and has sort of come to be an "adopted" son.   Chris is a good natured sort who is always ready to give a helping hand when needed..which is not something I can say about a lot of folks that come here.  I thought about Chris, today, and one of his bits of "advice".  Whenever something is rattling those old bones of mine, he simply advises "Hit it with a hammer!"  I have never tried it before but I have to admit that it sounded pretty enticing today.  I truly considered that smacking a few folks with that hammer might knock a bit of sense in their heads.  So, short of doing something that was totally out of character and that might just cause me to wind up in jail, I hunted for another means of "beating the tar" out of something.  

  I picked up the axe and started whacking at the pile of wood that needed splitting.  While I used to be quite adept at splitting a load of firewood without taking a breather, age is catching up with me.  As good as it felt to release a bit of stress by smacking that axe down on the logs, I did not really make that much progress.  The pile did not get a lot smaller although the stress level sure did.  After about forty minutes of swinging that axe, I only had enough firewood for the day. Only nine logs were split and I was exhausted!  The axe went back to the shed, the firewood was toted inside to the fire bin and I collapsed in the old rocking chair.  

  Yep, hitting it with a hammer is good advice.  Smacking it with an axe wears you out but it did have a good final effect.  Instead of sitting and brooding about the situation at hand, I worked it out of my system and got enough firewood to warm myself for a bit.  Thanks, Chris.  You are pretty wise for such a young man.  Tomorrow, however, will find me sore from this new exercise, I am sure!

Remember them???

Another find in the sewing room that falls into the category of "Why in the world did I keep that?" These were actually Darling Daughter's. Years ago, she told me that someone recommended that she get a LavaLamp to reduce stress...hmmm..if I remember rightly she was about twelve years old at the time..stress, huh? I fell for it. Several times. She had a variety of LavaLamps. Why are these still in the sewing room? Probably the same reason all the rest of this stuff is in there..there was a lock on the door! Not a lock to protect the priceless items that are stashed in there..a lock to keep everyone from seeing all the stuff stashed in there!

LavaLamps.. those marvels of the '60s! Those mesmerizing lights that were not used to illuminate anything. Those things that gained a revamped popularity in the 90s. Those things that most likely will come back in style eventually. The lamps were long tubes of glass filled with colored water and the blobs of wax. A small light bulb in the base of the lamp would heat the water causing the wax to rise to the top of the tube. Once there, the wax would start to cool and sink slowly to the bottom only to be reheated. These pulsating blobs of wax on their never-ending cycle of rise and fall were supposed to calm the mind. Or in other words, entrance you to the point that as a kid you were not doing homework! Actually, I never had that problem..she always did her homework. Good Daughter! But still, I fell for the ruse that the lamps would be healthy and reduce her stress-load..again and again...hmmm.

The wax type LavaLamps were pleasing to her until some entrepreneur had the sparkling (pun intended!) idea to meld glitter with the wax blobs. Now these "GlitterLamps"..no longer "LavaLamps" were the thing to have! They were so much better at relieving a twelve year old's stress, that I rushed out to purchase one. With this one, there were three lamps burning at all times in her room. How in the world was this stress-relieving? Then there came the fiberoptic lamp with its poofy strands that dotted different colors around on the wall as it spun in circles. This one made a funny clicking noise as it turned..again..sleep deprivation tactics! Not to mention..four lamps all aglow. The room was rivaling the sun for the "Brightness of the Year" award!

I am not sure if any of these helped her in any way. After the newness wore off, they were stowed away in the sewing room with tons of other treasures. Now, I have found them. What do I do with three LavaLamps..I stand to be corrected here..two LavaLamps and one GlitterLamp?? I really can't imagine Darling Daughter wanting to put them in her apartment, although the rigors of Grad School might be causing more stress than grade school. Perhaps she needs them! Perhaps she should take them home with her! Perhaps if she would take them home, they would be stress-relieving..to me! They would be out of the sewing room!