Sunday Stillness

Stillness as opposed to shaking like we had to deal with last weekend & Monday.  Stillness is good.

It's also a still day in the sense that it's quiet and calm, not too breezy and just still.  Yesterday, the wind would probably have blown small children away because it was so strong.  But today is quiet.

Otter and I went to a couple of thrifts and another store today, we are in search of a hoodie type jacket for her but apparently nobody has them!  Her college bookstore has a few, but she doesn't really like them that much.  She prefers plain ones, the ones at the school are not over the top with decorations, but she wants a solid one.  Which is hard to find, but since we have hardly seen any at all I really don't think it's because she doesn't want a fancy one.  But she did find a skirt and a belt, so it wasn't a totally wasted trip.  Also, the regular store we went to had free popcorn today so she got a snack that she enjoyed.  (Froggy, the regular store was the one where you got the bird suet and it had all the neat planters).

When we had the sales tax free weekend, Otter got 3 belts but they were too big.  They needed a couple more holes punched in them, but she kept forgetting to ask Bill to help her.  She finally remembered today, and they are now in the living room happily hammering.  Bill was teasing her about it being such hard work, but he's a typical boy - he couldn't get the hammer & nail fast enough!

Froggy, do you remember the magnet you gave me with Texas stuff?  Specifically, the line about the family pet having a ring in it's nose and long horns?  We drove by a house on the way to the last thrift store, which was right next door to the high school Otter graduated from, and guess what was in their front yard?!  3 of them, and they were beauties.  Especially the big bull, the horns on him were perfect.  The 2 girlies were georgeous as well.  We want some!

I'm not a happy camper as far as my car is concerned.  It's been making a noise that we thought was the right front bearing going out, based on what the mechanic told me.  The bearing might be starting to act up, that might be true based on observation.  But, what we are hearing (and also feeling) is probably the alignment.  As in the tire is not straight.  The alignment I just spent about $700.00 on and the tires that were about $550.00.  It's definitely related to the tire and where it's at, and it's getting worse.  Guess where I'm going tomorrow?  I'm going to be on their doorstep, bright and early.  And they will know why I'm less than happy.  If we don't get the response we think we should, I'm going straight to the Chevy place and have their mechanic look at it.

We have been using this shop for a few years and have not had many problems.  Until about a year ago, when the manager bought it from the franchise.  I can almost tell you the exact day, because things changed and not for the better.  I really don't want to go RHTW* on them, but Bill thinks I should just start out that way tomorrow.  We'll see, if I think I need to then I will.

The tulip bed is now ready for planting!  I hit it again with the rake and got any little straggling weeds out, then I turned the dirt with the shovel.  The next step was to actually treat it, which involves about 1/2 a bottle of mineral oil (baby oil actually, same thing but has scent added), a few squirts of liquid dish soap and water.  That gets poured over the dirt and then in a few days we'll decide if it needs another treatment.  If not, we'll even out the dirt a bit and then plant the tulips.  If it does need another treatment, it can still be planted then or we might wait a day or so.  The mineral oil & soap is to keep certain 4-legged critters away, and I don't mean the above ground kind.  After I got through treating the tulip bed, there was still a residue of soap & oil, so I went back to the rain barrel and put a little water in the bucket and rinsed it around a bit.  Then I poured it over the newest gopher bump that appeared in the back yard yesterday.  The gophers don't like it anymore than the moles do.  I don't feel a bit sorry for them, either.

*RHTW:  RedHeadTexanWoman.  Also known as "run for the hills, she's loose!"  And She takes no prisoners.