Sunday, November 14
Today was a little out of the ordinary for us. Barbara stayed at home with Mother while I went to Sunday school and church. It has been a week since we spent time with Mother and Barbara felt it was time to give some personal attention to her.
This was the weekend for Disciple Now for our church youth, and the enthusiasm of the youth group spread throughout the congregation. I counted 31 youth group members wearing the Disciple Now t-shirt and several others who were present with them…what an exciting time of growth and ministry for our church!
When I left, I drove to Sulphur Springs to get the lumber I needed to complete the window frame project for Big V’s cover. Luckily, Lowe’s in Sulphur Springs had everything I needed plus a saw and someone to run it so my boards could be cut to the right length.
We had lunch when I got back and then took a much-needed nap. We were still wrung out from the driving yesterday and just didn’t have the umph to tackle any important chores.
Just after we woke up from our nap we got a phone call from a family friend, Nancy Wilcox White, who was in Tyler and would be passing through Mineola late this afternoon. Nancy is one of five children of Mother’s best friend when we boys were growing up in Artesia and she makes the trip to Tyler a couple of times each year, each time stopping to visit Mother for a while.
Nancy and her friend Diane had been here in May, but I was out fishing with Ryan and his family that day and didn’t get to see them. Today was a bit of a reunion, although neither of us remembered the last time we had seen each other, but it had to be a l-o-n-g time ago.
Choir practice at church was cancelled tonight because our fearless leaders were both ill, and since our visitors were here until nearly 6:00, Barbara and I voted that we would beg off of the drive to Yantis for the church service tonight. Instead, we made a quick trip to Holiday Villages to check out the progress of the work that is going on next door to us.
Our neighbors, Wes and Linda, have put a cover over their motor home slab and now are having a double-wide mobile home set on the back part of one of their lots. After a delay of nearly a year, Wes and Linda will be joining our community fulltime very soon, and we agree that the work they are having done really spruces up our “neighborhood.”
Monday, November 15
I drove Mother to Quitman this morning to meet with her attorney, Mr. Roberts, about changes to her will. We never know how long that sort of thing will take, but Mr. Roberts and his folks had everything under control when we got there and we were out of the office and headed back home by 11:00.
While Mother and I were gone, Barbara decided that the kitchen needed to be cleaned and reorganized so things could be stored in more logical and convenient areas. Nearly all the work had been done when we got back, so Barbara was able to show me the new hiding places for packaged and canned goods and kitchen implements.
This afternoon we spent our time working on journals (we had a lot to catch up on), downloading and organizing a couple of weeks worth of photographs, paying bills, and catching up on other matters that are the stuff of everyday life.
Tonight I turned the garage back into a woodshop as I completed the final three window frames for Big V’s cover. While I had a pretty good system going, it still took more time than I thought, but by 8:30 I had finished the last frame, had all three loaded in the back of the Vibe, and was well underway with the cleanup. Finally, the garage looks like a garage again!
Tuesday, November 16
Happy Birthday to Son-in-law Ryan McQuitty in Liberal, Kansas!!!
Happy Birthday to sister-in-law Billee Little in Harrison, Arkansas!!!
This morning I drove out to Yantis for the weekly prayer meeting at the church and then went to Our Little Lot to install the new window frames. I wasn’t sure if I had used the correct measurements when I cut the 2 X 4s, but each frame fit the way it was supposed to. I still haven’t decided how I’m going to secure the frames to the steel supports, but for now they fit closely enough that a good bead of caulk is hold them firmly in place.
After setting the frames, I got out the lawn mower and cut the grass on the front and back sides of Big V. The growing season has probably ended and I wanted to get the tall grass knocked down before it dies.
After cleaning up my mess, I packed away my tools, shut down Big V, and returned to Mineola to find that Barbara was continuing her redecorating and reorganization of Mother’s kitchen and dining room. She’s been very busy with that project and I have to admit that things are now a lot easier to find than they were before.
We had Sophie come over to stay with Mother for a couple of hours this evening as Barbara took me to Big V to work while she went on to the church for the Bridge group. As a reminder, the Bridge group isn’t about ladies playing cards…it’s an opportunity for ladies of all ages in the church to meet together and “bridge” the gaps in their ages as they help each other grow spiritually.
Wednesday, November 17
Happy Birthday to granddaughter Randi Colwell in San Antonio, Texas, who turns sweet 16 this day!!!
Happy Birthday to niece Brandi Boley in Cleburne, Texas!!!
Today was Barbara’s Bible study group at Yantis FBC. The ladies are doing an in-depth study of Psalm 23 and, after burning the CDs of each session, I’ve come to find that there is a lot more there than one would ever imagine.
While Barbara was at church, I tackled some long-neglected house cleaning chores. Something we rarely think about when cleaning the rooms is the ceiling fan in each area. We take them for granted, but when we take closer looks, we find that they are highly efficient dust and grime collectors. This morning, after I dusted all the woodwork and furniture in the kitchen and dining room, I noticed that the white blades on the fan were more of a grey-black shade, so I pulled out the trusty step-stool and tackled that little job…it seems like there is always something to be done.
This evening Barbara worked on sorting out photos and making collages for the journal entries that we are trying to catch up on. With all the photos we have taken lately, it is a time-consuming and mind-boggling job!
Our thoughts and prayers go out today to our friends Bob and Mary Royar and their son, John. John’s wife passed away after a bout with cancer.
Thursday, November 18
Today was a mixed bag of activities for both of us, with a lot going on, but nothing of much significance.
We have been cleaning out our closets both at Mother’s house and at Big V and setting aside clothes that we either can’t or won’t wear anymore. Today we got all those clothes together, cataloged them for tax purposes, and, while Barbara was waiting at the beauty shop to get a haircut, I delivered them to the Kindness Kottage, a local non-profit business that resells or donates items to those who need them.
When I returned to the beauty shop, I found that Barbara was still waiting for Leslie to return from an errand. Since there wouldn’t be time for a haircut before Leslie’s next appointment, Barbara and I decided we’d go across the street to Brookshire’s to do some shopping for specialty foods…those that Walmart doesn’t carry or meats that we think are better quality than Walmart’s.
After purchasing a few things we returned to the house and I started putting things away while Barbara returned to the beauty shop and go her ears lowered and her hair restyled with a very fashionable cut.
This evening we spent more time working on the journal/blog. We’re still behind, but are slowly creeping up after getting so far behind the last few weeks. Who knows, maybe one of these days we’ll publish a journal/blog right on schedule…it doesn’t hurt to dream.
Friday, November 19
While Barbara stayed home to cook and clean this morning, I made a trip out to Our Little Lot to secure the new window frames to the steel posts that are the skeleton. Yesterday afternoon I found the fasteners I wanted at a local hardware store, so armed with my trusty straight-edge and power drill, I set to work marking spots, drilling, and power-driving lag bolts through the 2 X 4s and into the steel posts.
Most of the work went fairly smoothly and in about an hour and a half all seven window frames were securely set in the frames. Now the south side of the cover looks as if we really did know what we were doing, instead of appearing that we ran out of money and couldn’t afford to finish the siding!
When I got back to the house, I found that Barbara had dragged out the leaf blower and extension cord and had cleared all the leaves out of the garage. Unlike most of our neighbors, we keep the garage door open nearly all the time, and the recent winds and falling leaves have caused a lot of seasonal clutter.
I baked a loaf of bread to go along with a bowl of roast salad that Barbara had made this morning and this afternoon we drove to Alba to deliver them to John Royar. We found that Bob and Mary had arrived just ahead of us and they introduced us to John and one of his daughters. We paid our condolences on their loss and visited for a few minutes, then drove across Lake Fork to Holiday Villages to check on Big V and see the progress on Wes and Linda’s lot next door to us. The men who are building the porch and ramps for the front of the house are doing such a great job that we are considering having them come build the deck we want when we are ready for that expansion.
Jim: On the way back to Mineola we stopped at Sonic in Quitman to treat ourselves to a late afternoon drink. While we were waiting, I walked across the street to pick up mail from Gene and Michelle’s box at the post office. Since they are back in Kansas for a while, we check their mail for them and then forward the good stuff.
Tonight was just a quiet time around the house. There weren’t any ballgames of consequence on TV and the Artesia Bulldogs have a Saturday game scheduled for this week, so we just focused on a little writing for the journal/blog and some computer game time. Barbara has really enjoyed playing Wheel of Fortune with her Facebook friends. I don’t understand all of it, but she is having a good time, and that’s a good thing. (If he doesn’t understand it, then why is he able to bail me out so many times when I’m stuck. That’s my question!)
Saturday, November 20
Earlier in the week Barbara had an inspiration for rearranging part of Mother’s room since she feels it’s not conducive to healthy living. We discussed it and I thought that maybe if she took a couple of Tylenol and a nap, the inspiration might pass. But, today the thought was still there, so we set to work early to transform the “office/entertainment corner of the master bedroom.
When Ernie, Billee, Barbara, and I moved Mother into the house in July, 2008, we didn’t have much time to envision what might be the best setup for all pieces of furniture, and we certainly didn’t have time to experiment. Our readers need to understand that Mother has not only her 87-year accumulation of treasures, but also family heirlooms that go back a couple of generations beyond hers.
Our goal at the time was to get everything where it fit, but not necessarily where it fit the best for how Mother was going to use the room. The regular bedroom furniture was no problem, her things fit beautifully in that area. However, there was an extension of the room that was obviously meant to serve as a little office/study.
With six bookcases, and easy chair, and a desk, it didn’t take much time to fill the space; and, we didn’t use much imagination in doing it…just had to make sure that there was a good line of sight from the bed and the easy chair to the television, which was set on top of one of the bookcases.
Constant readers also need to understand that among Mother’s treasures are enough books to furnish a small-town library. In fact, she has so many books that we had to make some decisions about which would be displayed and which would be boxed up again and stored in the garage and attic.
The arrangement has worked for the last two years, but while it was practical (in an unimaginative way), it was much less aesthetic, no matter which angle one might use to look at it.
With that said, we tore into the job, knowing that it was an all or nothing event…whatever we started would have to be finished today so Mother could have her room back. For her part, Mother stayed in her bed and watched the TV while we moved things around.
Our first chore was to empty all but one of the bookcases…leaving stacks of books piled all over the place. We did box up a 20-year collection of Reader’s Digest Condensed Books that had occupied the bookcase under the television so we would have some space to be a little more imaginative.
As we pulled furniture away from the walls, we did some heavy duty dusting and vacuuming to remove a couple years of cobwebs and collected dirt. For the first time since Mother moved in, we were able to open the blinds on the west wall and wash the windows, bringing new light to the room.
After cleaning along the floorboards, we moved the bookcases and desk to new locations, making sure everything would fit the way we thought it should. A couple of our calculations were a little off, but we were able to make some minute adjustments that made the whole arrangement work.
With everything in its new place, we began rearranging all the books so they made some kind of sense (at least to us), and Barbara redecorated the tops of the bookcases with some of the treasures that we found along the way.
We had everything almost done (we thought) when I noticed that the ceiling fans and light fixtures were covered with dust and grime, so I got out the step stool, grabbed a couple of dust rags and a can of Pledge, and remedied that situation. The light globes hadn’t been cleaned since before Mother moved in, so I took them out and gave them a good washing.
After picking up all the big pieces of trash and vacuuming the carpet a couple of times, we called the job finished…what we intended as a rearrangement of the room actually turned into a major transformation. Mother now has an area in which she can comfortably sit and watch her television and also look around at her books and many of her other treasures. All that was left for us to do was to put away the cleaning supplies and take a couple of Aleve tablets to stave off the aches and pains that were sure to come from all the lifting and moving of the day (and it WAS a full day).
I realized when we finally finished that we had missed the internet telecast of the Artesia Bulldogs football playoff game with the Farmington Scorpions, but did find out later from Jean that our ‘Dogs won by a decisive margin and will host Roswell Goddard, the district nemesis, next week in a state semi-final game.
It turned out to be a good weekend for Orange and White as not only did the Bulldogs win their game, but our Mineola Yellowjackets (who, for some reason have orange and white as their school colors) won their first district title in 44 years, and even my beloved Texas Longhorns, who exist primarily to break my heart, won their game against Florida Atlantic University – okay, so it wasn’t a major game, but this season any win is a good one for the guys from Austin.
“We take the laughter and the tears however they come, and let our God of reality make sense of it all.” – Susan Lenzkes, author of Life Is Like Licking Honey of a Thorn
Enjoying the fall season in Mineola,
Jim/Dad/Gramps & Barbara/Mom/Grams
