(see previous post on Bonin Walker#3)
Today Carrie and I again headed to Walmart. Our goal? To buy a bicycle for the Bonin Walker #3.
The young lady walks to work in the unbearable heat of a southern summer. Trying to find a bicycle yesterday was a bust. The bikes at the Walmart closest to my house were not acceptable. The team hired by Walmart to do their bike assembly had not put them together correctly and the brakes on them were locked to the tires. This caused us to continue our hunt for a bike today.
Success. Within a few minutes of entering the store in Broussard, we found a bike that would fit our requirements; a 26 inch gray beauty. Our choices were limited as to color for the size and the price range we were seeking. This one would be sufficient.
We rolled that bike to the front of the store, paid for it and proved to the
guard at the exit door with the receipt, the bike was not being shoplifted. Carrie helped load it into the car. She was so excited that the young walker would be getting a surprise. I explained to Carrie the young woman was trying to support herself and needed a little help. We all need a little help somewhere along the way.
The bike was delivered. The young woman shyly thanked us and we drove away. Our next stop was at the auto parts store and then to Carrie's friend's house where she would be spending the afternoon.
As we drove through my subdivision, a biker was seen heading down the same street toward us, hair flying in the breeze. Closing the gap between us, we identified the rider! It was the young Bonin Walker flying along on her new bike. She gave us a big smile, waved and kept rolling past us. Carrie and I were both smiling. I don't know if she was just enjoying the newly acquired freedom with this ride or if she was on her way to see a friend in this neighborhood but Carrie and I were both thrilled that she had that option. The sun beat down on this hot afternoon but it didn't keep that young woman from enjoying her new 'ride'.
It makes me smile to know she is enjoying her 'day off'. Tomorrow that bike will be the vehicle to get her to her job!
Monday, July 31, 2017
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Bonin Walker #3
She walked beside the narrow paved road that is named Bonin. Her uniform of blue slacks and blue shirt edged in an orange stripe announced her profession. She works at the Sonic Drive In and can be seen trudging to work in 90 plus temperatures and the dreaded humidity we endure in the dog days of summer.
A petite, thin young woman, she must be at least 18 yrs old to own a full time job at her place of employment. Her sweat soaked light brown hair clung to her skull. Her blue eyes appeared huge in her thin face. She looked too weary for her young age.
I eased my car to the side of the road about 10 ft. in front of her and hit the window button on the passenger side to drop the window. As she walked up, I asked "Do you need a ride?"
Too tired to smile, she nodded her head and got into the car. Little conversation ensued other then the information on where she worked. We rode in silence. In a few minutes we arrived at Sonic; she gave her thanks, smiled and walked into her job.
A few days pass and again I'm on Bonin. Again, I see the same young lady but this time
she was walking away from her job. Again, I pulled to the side of the road but this time I didn't question her need of a ride. She spoke in a soft voice that was difficult to hear. I assumed she lived in the trailer park and she confirmed that as she directed me to her street.
The trailer was in a less desirable part of the park. Parts of this park, the lots are owned by the people living on them and they have been there for years while parts of the park are rental property. Some of the rentals are obvious. Junk cars and rubbish litter the yards, where the grass is scarce. Very young children play in the dirt yards; teens bounce a basketball with friends while parents relax in the shade available. Sprinkled among the rentals are the lot owners. Yards are fenced and manicured. Not all the lot owners are this neat but the majority of them are.
The trailer sat back from the road on a dirt lot beneath a huge oak tree. Litter sprinkled the lot like confetti on a cupcake. A tired bike sat among the debris that was the front yard. It had a flat tire and that's why the young lady was walking to work.
I asked her to get the bike for me while I got my air compressor out of the trunk. Airing up the tires was fruitless. The back tire was dry rotted and would not hold air. I asked when she worked again and she stated she had "tomorrow" off. Loading the worn out bike into the trunk of my car, I told her I would try to replace that tire.
My next stop was to pick up Carrie to spend the night with me. As she rounded the car she noted the bicycle protruding from the trunk. I explained the reason and off we went to Walmart. My good deed for today would be to find a new bicycle for this young lady that was trying so desperately to support herself. Carrie is a generous soul and was so excited that this young lady would be getting a surprise. Carrie shared with me that her mother also picks up this young lady when she sees her walking. I suppose this gesture of empathy runs strong in my family.
We left Walmart without a bike. None of the bikes in our price range worked correctly. The brakes on them were installed too tight and they 'dragged' making it difficult to move the bike forward. We left that store without accomplishing our goal.
Today Carrie and I will go to another Walmart that is a little farther away. We need a bike before tomorrow to get our Bonin Walker #3 some independence. An update will follow!
A petite, thin young woman, she must be at least 18 yrs old to own a full time job at her place of employment. Her sweat soaked light brown hair clung to her skull. Her blue eyes appeared huge in her thin face. She looked too weary for her young age.
I eased my car to the side of the road about 10 ft. in front of her and hit the window button on the passenger side to drop the window. As she walked up, I asked "Do you need a ride?"
Too tired to smile, she nodded her head and got into the car. Little conversation ensued other then the information on where she worked. We rode in silence. In a few minutes we arrived at Sonic; she gave her thanks, smiled and walked into her job.
A few days pass and again I'm on Bonin. Again, I see the same young lady but this time
she was walking away from her job. Again, I pulled to the side of the road but this time I didn't question her need of a ride. She spoke in a soft voice that was difficult to hear. I assumed she lived in the trailer park and she confirmed that as she directed me to her street.
The trailer was in a less desirable part of the park. Parts of this park, the lots are owned by the people living on them and they have been there for years while parts of the park are rental property. Some of the rentals are obvious. Junk cars and rubbish litter the yards, where the grass is scarce. Very young children play in the dirt yards; teens bounce a basketball with friends while parents relax in the shade available. Sprinkled among the rentals are the lot owners. Yards are fenced and manicured. Not all the lot owners are this neat but the majority of them are.
The trailer sat back from the road on a dirt lot beneath a huge oak tree. Litter sprinkled the lot like confetti on a cupcake. A tired bike sat among the debris that was the front yard. It had a flat tire and that's why the young lady was walking to work.
I asked her to get the bike for me while I got my air compressor out of the trunk. Airing up the tires was fruitless. The back tire was dry rotted and would not hold air. I asked when she worked again and she stated she had "tomorrow" off. Loading the worn out bike into the trunk of my car, I told her I would try to replace that tire.
My next stop was to pick up Carrie to spend the night with me. As she rounded the car she noted the bicycle protruding from the trunk. I explained the reason and off we went to Walmart. My good deed for today would be to find a new bicycle for this young lady that was trying so desperately to support herself. Carrie is a generous soul and was so excited that this young lady would be getting a surprise. Carrie shared with me that her mother also picks up this young lady when she sees her walking. I suppose this gesture of empathy runs strong in my family.
We left Walmart without a bike. None of the bikes in our price range worked correctly. The brakes on them were installed too tight and they 'dragged' making it difficult to move the bike forward. We left that store without accomplishing our goal.
Today Carrie and I will go to another Walmart that is a little farther away. We need a bike before tomorrow to get our Bonin Walker #3 some independence. An update will follow!
50 Years Later and a Class Reunion Trip
Where have those years gone? The "summer of love" or 1967 and it's graduation time. Clueless as to planning a future that encompassed more then 'tomorrow', I left that graduation and eventually the entire town of Ripley. Years and years of traveling followed. Around and around and across the states, I lived. Exposed to different cultures then the one offered from the small town I was exposed to, I observed, listened and learned.
Through the years, I traveled back to this small town to see my mother, friends and relatives. Mom passed in 1999 and that was the last year I visited.
Fast forward to June 28th, 2017, Lafayette, Louisiana. It's 0400 hrs. The car is packed except for the last small valise carrying toiletries. Grabbing that and my purse, I roused Carrie from her bedroom, escorted her to the car where a blanket and pillow awaited. I expected her to sleep. Surprisingly, she sat alert and wide eyed as we rolled out of the driveway.
On the road and I feel 'at home' once again. Long trips have been the mainstay of my life since leaving the place where I will return to on this trip.
Cruising down the highway at illegal speeds, I tried to hold my lawbreaking to less then 10 mph over the speed limit.
Carrie fell victim to the sandman less then an hour after departure. For the next 5 hrs. she slept. 740 miles later, found us in Dandridge, Tennessee checking in to the Holiday Inn Express. A pool was one of the requirements to lodging accepted. That pool was located beyond our window. That pool was never visited by Carrie. After dinner, we returned to the room and shortly thereafter, sleep.
Being only 35 miles from Pigeon Forge, we awoke to a side trip to visit Dollywood. I won't go into any detail on Dollywood but suffice it to say, amusement parks are just not our thing. After two hours of slogging up and down the mountain that was Dollywood; doing a roller coaster ride, Carrie enjoyed her "dip n dots' as we headed for the exit door of Dollywood. We rode the tram back to the parking lot and dived into the hot car and headed out. Our first stop was dinner after which we gassed up the car and hit the road once again. Leaving at 1500 hrs. to finish this trip would put us at our destination after 2300 hrs. (11PM).
We are staying with my sister's home. She lives at Fairplain which is about 3 miles out of Ripley. She hasn't lived here long so her home hasn't been fully set up. I promised to help. Arising the next morning at 0500 hrs. I began. The first order of business was getting the guest bathroom ready for use. This required clearing out the stored items in the tub, putting up shower curtain and liner and finding space for toiletries. Later I would be hanging pictures on her walls but that would require a trip to Walmart to get supplies. I had free reign on where and what to hang but before getting to that part of this trip, Carrie and I escaped to discover some old haunts.
As we drove around the little town, I pointed out the places I had lived; the place where her mother lived for the first 3 years of her life. Eventually memory lane led us to Sycamore Creek and Little Creek. These two places I lived with my family before moving into town.
Carrie has no experience on traveling roads other then the flat straight roads of her 11 yr. old life in Louisiana. This was an experience for her. The roads were narrow, paved or graveled and even onto red clay dirt roads but ALWAYS narrow! The adventure was on.
The rollercoaster roads we traveled today left Carrie's stomach lurching as we mounted the highs and lows of the roads we traveled. Meeting an oncoming vehicle required one of said vehicles find a place in the road to pull over and allow one to pass. We meandered onto narrow roads and onto smaller veins that took us deeper and deeper into the hills. As we passed the few homes tucked into these hollows, I explained to the granddaughter, the curious looks we were getting was because these people knew every vehicle that was related to the inhabitants and they knew we were strangers. A few times someone would pull out behind us and follow at a distance, stopping when we stopped and moving again but keeping a distance of 1/4 mile behind us.
The deeper we invaded, the closer the canopy of trees encroached. The sun was blocked out, leaving us to travel in the cooler temperatures. The hills rose steep on either side of the car as we moved on.
At one point, deep in the mountains, we happened upon a road crew. The road was red clay, dry and passable which would not have been possible had it been wet and greasy. I've driven red clay in wet conditions which requires a bit of skill.
Seeing the construction crew of six men, and noting the huge road grader across this narrow road, I knew moving forward was an impossibility. Turning the big Mercury around was another impossibility. I stopped and backed up to where one of the workers stood. He asked if I needed to get
through to which I answered "uh, no! I would prefer turning around and leaving." Then the adventure began.
The worker stood on the drop off side of this mountain road to watch the tires of my car as I inched backward to the steep drop side. He waved when I was to stop while yelling the same. I then cut the wheel to the right and inched forward to the mountain side of this road. Inching backward, then forward, cutting the wheel and turning the car foot by foot and inch by inch, I tried not to think about the trunk of my car hanging off the mountainside while my tires rested on fresh graded earth. Imagining the dirt moving and falling away down the mountainside taking me, Carrie and the car, I was relieved when maneuvering the Mercury and facing the direction from which we arrived. I waved and yelled a goodbye as we headed back down the mountain. Carrie was unaware of any danger. I would have had to explain my meaning of "adventure" had she expressed any anxiety.
Every day we would select a road and follow it as far as we dared. We knew to get out before dark or we would spend the night wandering the veins of road that threads those mountains.
(to be continued...vacation 2017...Carrie and Nana)
Through the years, I traveled back to this small town to see my mother, friends and relatives. Mom passed in 1999 and that was the last year I visited.
Fast forward to June 28th, 2017, Lafayette, Louisiana. It's 0400 hrs. The car is packed except for the last small valise carrying toiletries. Grabbing that and my purse, I roused Carrie from her bedroom, escorted her to the car where a blanket and pillow awaited. I expected her to sleep. Surprisingly, she sat alert and wide eyed as we rolled out of the driveway.
On the road and I feel 'at home' once again. Long trips have been the mainstay of my life since leaving the place where I will return to on this trip.
Cruising down the highway at illegal speeds, I tried to hold my lawbreaking to less then 10 mph over the speed limit.
Carrie fell victim to the sandman less then an hour after departure. For the next 5 hrs. she slept. 740 miles later, found us in Dandridge, Tennessee checking in to the Holiday Inn Express. A pool was one of the requirements to lodging accepted. That pool was located beyond our window. That pool was never visited by Carrie. After dinner, we returned to the room and shortly thereafter, sleep.
Being only 35 miles from Pigeon Forge, we awoke to a side trip to visit Dollywood. I won't go into any detail on Dollywood but suffice it to say, amusement parks are just not our thing. After two hours of slogging up and down the mountain that was Dollywood; doing a roller coaster ride, Carrie enjoyed her "dip n dots' as we headed for the exit door of Dollywood. We rode the tram back to the parking lot and dived into the hot car and headed out. Our first stop was dinner after which we gassed up the car and hit the road once again. Leaving at 1500 hrs. to finish this trip would put us at our destination after 2300 hrs. (11PM).
We are staying with my sister's home. She lives at Fairplain which is about 3 miles out of Ripley. She hasn't lived here long so her home hasn't been fully set up. I promised to help. Arising the next morning at 0500 hrs. I began. The first order of business was getting the guest bathroom ready for use. This required clearing out the stored items in the tub, putting up shower curtain and liner and finding space for toiletries. Later I would be hanging pictures on her walls but that would require a trip to Walmart to get supplies. I had free reign on where and what to hang but before getting to that part of this trip, Carrie and I escaped to discover some old haunts.
As we drove around the little town, I pointed out the places I had lived; the place where her mother lived for the first 3 years of her life. Eventually memory lane led us to Sycamore Creek and Little Creek. These two places I lived with my family before moving into town.
Carrie has no experience on traveling roads other then the flat straight roads of her 11 yr. old life in Louisiana. This was an experience for her. The roads were narrow, paved or graveled and even onto red clay dirt roads but ALWAYS narrow! The adventure was on.
The rollercoaster roads we traveled today left Carrie's stomach lurching as we mounted the highs and lows of the roads we traveled. Meeting an oncoming vehicle required one of said vehicles find a place in the road to pull over and allow one to pass. We meandered onto narrow roads and onto smaller veins that took us deeper and deeper into the hills. As we passed the few homes tucked into these hollows, I explained to the granddaughter, the curious looks we were getting was because these people knew every vehicle that was related to the inhabitants and they knew we were strangers. A few times someone would pull out behind us and follow at a distance, stopping when we stopped and moving again but keeping a distance of 1/4 mile behind us.
The deeper we invaded, the closer the canopy of trees encroached. The sun was blocked out, leaving us to travel in the cooler temperatures. The hills rose steep on either side of the car as we moved on.
At one point, deep in the mountains, we happened upon a road crew. The road was red clay, dry and passable which would not have been possible had it been wet and greasy. I've driven red clay in wet conditions which requires a bit of skill.
Seeing the construction crew of six men, and noting the huge road grader across this narrow road, I knew moving forward was an impossibility. Turning the big Mercury around was another impossibility. I stopped and backed up to where one of the workers stood. He asked if I needed to get
through to which I answered "uh, no! I would prefer turning around and leaving." Then the adventure began.
The worker stood on the drop off side of this mountain road to watch the tires of my car as I inched backward to the steep drop side. He waved when I was to stop while yelling the same. I then cut the wheel to the right and inched forward to the mountain side of this road. Inching backward, then forward, cutting the wheel and turning the car foot by foot and inch by inch, I tried not to think about the trunk of my car hanging off the mountainside while my tires rested on fresh graded earth. Imagining the dirt moving and falling away down the mountainside taking me, Carrie and the car, I was relieved when maneuvering the Mercury and facing the direction from which we arrived. I waved and yelled a goodbye as we headed back down the mountain. Carrie was unaware of any danger. I would have had to explain my meaning of "adventure" had she expressed any anxiety.
Every day we would select a road and follow it as far as we dared. We knew to get out before dark or we would spend the night wandering the veins of road that threads those mountains.
(to be continued...vacation 2017...Carrie and Nana)
Thursday, June 8, 2017
The Bonin Walkers
Bonin, a road that divides as much as the Rio Grande divides. One divides a clean, middle class neighborhood from a trailer park that, among respectable folks, also houses drug addicts, thieves and ner do wells. Unfortunately the undesirable are the ones remembered from across that Bonin divide. That divide is a paved road that delinates one section from the other; the upper middle class neighborhood and the area of poverty as much as the Rio Grande divides that third world country, Mexico from the land of the USA.
There is always someone walking The Bonin Ride. One can see them dressed in their fast food uniforms. They walk the mile to their jobs in the heat, the rain and the cold. I always offer these people a ride. Occasionally a bike will be seen on that road which is a dangerous ride on a bike. There is no shoulder on the road. The automobile driver must be alert. Most times the 'walkers' will be out at night dressed in black making it difficult to see then until you are upon them. I've had my heart drop many times from almost hitting one of the walkers on this road.
Seeing the walkers, who sometimes are carrying bags of groceries, I slow down, roll down my window and ask if they need a ride. I think back to the days when I worried about having a vechilce to drive. My big fear living away from family was being without an automobile. How would I get to work? How would I shop for the things we needed. As I watch the 'walkers', I'm empathetic to their plight.
I've blogged on Mary#1, one of The Bonin Walkers. Mary, the mother of two sons was seen, barely though, walking toward her home off Bonin Road. She walked slumped forward, head down, hair long and straggly in disheveled clothes carrying a bag of groceries in each hand. Her son, the younger of the two she had, walked along carrying his own burden of supplies. I slowed down and turned around and drove back to ask if they needed a ride. Gratefully they accepted. A mile or two down the road, we swung down the street into the trailer park. Mary shared with me she did have a car but it was in the shop for repairs. Apparently the older son had caused some damage to it and it was towed to a holding yard. She needed to get a ride the following day to pay the charges and get it moved from that yard. Money was tight. She was a heroin addict that was off heroin but on Seboxon, a drug used to help people kick the "H" habit. I offered to pick her up the next day and take her to pay bills and to pay for storage on that auto. She gratefully accepted.
As time went along, Mary shared her story and how she ended up being a Bonin Walker. The story wasn't pretty nor did it put her in a good light. Drugs and lots of them had caused Mary to walk down a narrow road into desperate times.
Thanksgiving approaching, I made a trip to the market. All the Thanksgiving dinner supplies, I bought and delivered to Mary and her sons. This was the first Thanksgiving they had together as a family in years. Usually she would take her two sons to a food line for their meal. This year she had no vehicle. Christmas came and the same thing we arranged. There is much more to Mary's story and in a prior blog I have went into detail. I'm moving on from this Mary. http://ftell001.blogspot.com/2014/11/a-person.html
The next Mary was a woman standing on Bonin, a Bonin Walker. She hailed me down as I pulled up to a stop sign. She asked if I was going to Walmart. I said I was and offered her a ride although I was headed to Home Depot in the opposite direction. I'm not in a hurry; nothing pressing. I have time to do 'a good deed' today. Again a story of her car in the shop and she was waiting on getting it out. Mary looked to be in her late sixties. She worn a long brown skirt, a loose cotton blouse and a very long scarf that wound around her head, around her neck and draped down over the front of her ending very close to the hem of her skirt. TURKISH! As we rode along, she shared that she was from Turkey. In the short distance to Walmart, she shared tidbits from her life. She thanked me effusively as she stepped from my car to the parking lot of the bank. She really wasn't going to Walmart but to the bank that was next to Walmart.
I waited until she returned to my car so I could return her back to her home on Bonin. Mary was a political refugee who had left her country because of religious persecution. She told me there were no churches in Turkey and there hasn't been any since the 1800's. All of them were destroyed years and years ago and Christians had to be very careful in their worshiping.
Mary is going to be another Bonin Walker that will be interesting getting to know. We traded phone numbers and I told her I would call to see if she needed a ride to Walmart when I had a trip planned
My friends chide me for my reckless ways and the rides I offer. I say a good deed never goes unappreciated. I try to be selective in my offers. Mary#1 casually shared with me that she had killed her husband by stabbing him to death. As we rolled along during this admission, I slid my eyes sideways to look at her. It was self defense! No worries! The Bonin Walkers are interesting.
There is always someone walking The Bonin Ride. One can see them dressed in their fast food uniforms. They walk the mile to their jobs in the heat, the rain and the cold. I always offer these people a ride. Occasionally a bike will be seen on that road which is a dangerous ride on a bike. There is no shoulder on the road. The automobile driver must be alert. Most times the 'walkers' will be out at night dressed in black making it difficult to see then until you are upon them. I've had my heart drop many times from almost hitting one of the walkers on this road.
Seeing the walkers, who sometimes are carrying bags of groceries, I slow down, roll down my window and ask if they need a ride. I think back to the days when I worried about having a vechilce to drive. My big fear living away from family was being without an automobile. How would I get to work? How would I shop for the things we needed. As I watch the 'walkers', I'm empathetic to their plight.
I've blogged on Mary#1, one of The Bonin Walkers. Mary, the mother of two sons was seen, barely though, walking toward her home off Bonin Road. She walked slumped forward, head down, hair long and straggly in disheveled clothes carrying a bag of groceries in each hand. Her son, the younger of the two she had, walked along carrying his own burden of supplies. I slowed down and turned around and drove back to ask if they needed a ride. Gratefully they accepted. A mile or two down the road, we swung down the street into the trailer park. Mary shared with me she did have a car but it was in the shop for repairs. Apparently the older son had caused some damage to it and it was towed to a holding yard. She needed to get a ride the following day to pay the charges and get it moved from that yard. Money was tight. She was a heroin addict that was off heroin but on Seboxon, a drug used to help people kick the "H" habit. I offered to pick her up the next day and take her to pay bills and to pay for storage on that auto. She gratefully accepted.
As time went along, Mary shared her story and how she ended up being a Bonin Walker. The story wasn't pretty nor did it put her in a good light. Drugs and lots of them had caused Mary to walk down a narrow road into desperate times.
Thanksgiving approaching, I made a trip to the market. All the Thanksgiving dinner supplies, I bought and delivered to Mary and her sons. This was the first Thanksgiving they had together as a family in years. Usually she would take her two sons to a food line for their meal. This year she had no vehicle. Christmas came and the same thing we arranged. There is much more to Mary's story and in a prior blog I have went into detail. I'm moving on from this Mary. http://ftell001.blogspot.com/2014/11/a-person.html
The next Mary was a woman standing on Bonin, a Bonin Walker. She hailed me down as I pulled up to a stop sign. She asked if I was going to Walmart. I said I was and offered her a ride although I was headed to Home Depot in the opposite direction. I'm not in a hurry; nothing pressing. I have time to do 'a good deed' today. Again a story of her car in the shop and she was waiting on getting it out. Mary looked to be in her late sixties. She worn a long brown skirt, a loose cotton blouse and a very long scarf that wound around her head, around her neck and draped down over the front of her ending very close to the hem of her skirt. TURKISH! As we rode along, she shared that she was from Turkey. In the short distance to Walmart, she shared tidbits from her life. She thanked me effusively as she stepped from my car to the parking lot of the bank. She really wasn't going to Walmart but to the bank that was next to Walmart.
I waited until she returned to my car so I could return her back to her home on Bonin. Mary was a political refugee who had left her country because of religious persecution. She told me there were no churches in Turkey and there hasn't been any since the 1800's. All of them were destroyed years and years ago and Christians had to be very careful in their worshiping.
Mary is going to be another Bonin Walker that will be interesting getting to know. We traded phone numbers and I told her I would call to see if she needed a ride to Walmart when I had a trip planned
My friends chide me for my reckless ways and the rides I offer. I say a good deed never goes unappreciated. I try to be selective in my offers. Mary#1 casually shared with me that she had killed her husband by stabbing him to death. As we rolled along during this admission, I slid my eyes sideways to look at her. It was self defense! No worries! The Bonin Walkers are interesting.
Monday, June 5, 2017
Courtesy Chevrolet, Broussard, La. Hwy 90
So, it all started with a need for a vehicle. I detest shopping for a car. It means one has to deal with a car salesmen, usually noted as a "snake oil salesmen".
I drove to Baton Rouge for my first encounter. A note here to buyer: If you are looking for a used vehicle with low mileage, make sure you buy that vehicle from a dealer that DEALS in that brand. You will then get the remaining warranty on that vehicle. Should you select a vehicle from a dealer that does not SELL THAT VEHICLE among his new car lineup, you will forfeit remaining warranty on that vehicle and the snake oil salesmen will try to sell you an extended warranty for 2000.00!
The things I have learned on this car buying trip are priceless and that little ruse of the warranty was one of them.
Besides the tax, title and license, the dealership collects a fee of 220.00 for doing the paperwork!! Oh, you thought that was free? You didn't know that one of the charges in that total was for notary to sign that paperwork? I was told two different stories when I tried to pin down the dealership on this charge. One explanation was that the state of Louisiana demanded this payment for the paper work they would have to do when the car was taxed and licensed. (and I thought those state workers were paid a salary already!). The other explanation was that the people that worked at the dealership had to charge this for the paperwork they did. This explanation became a little fuzzy as the salesmen tried to put his spin on it.
After many trips to different car lots, I settled on a little white Hyundai Elantra SE 2016. Telling the salesmen that the grandson would have to drive this car for 8 hrs. back to Corpus Christi, didn't inspire this salesmen to alert me that the car did not come with a spare tire and jack? I had no idea that this was the norm now among vehicle manufacturers. Apparently keeping up with all the safety requirements demanded of them, putting a spare tire in the vehicles not only saves them money but apparently does not relate to a safety hazard should one have a flat tire in the desert in a scorching hot summer!
When I examined this vehicle, I especially noted the tires on it. I always do this when inspecting a vehicle I'm interested in. It's a cost that I can predict I might encounter along with the purchase price of the car.
The tires were in excellent condition. He wouldn't need to replace for many miles later.
Wrap it up. I'll take it. The salesmen left me sitting in her cubicle while she said the finance manager was going to see me as soon as he can. His spiel was to try to talk me into buying an extended warranty. I listened to his horror stories for 30 minutes. He stressed how cheap it was and when he gave me the total of 2000.00 dollars I smiled and declined.
Meanwhile, while waiting on him, I could see out the glass window to where the Hyundai was parked and noted the salesmen getting in the car and rushing it to the back of the dealership to the mechanics. When asked why it was going back to the mechanics, she said they would be checking it out. This is strange for a dealership. I'm sure all the cars on their lots that are SLIGHTLY used have been thoroughly checked out BEFORE being offered to the public.
A few days later we picked up the car. Another day passed and when I checked the tires on this car, I found they were NOT the tires that were on the car when I first test drove it and then I realized why this auto was hastly taken back to the mechanics shop. The tires were changed to worn tires that would need to be replaced by the buyer.
Courtesy Chevrolet is NOT a courtesy to anyone. Let the buyer beware!
I drove to Baton Rouge for my first encounter. A note here to buyer: If you are looking for a used vehicle with low mileage, make sure you buy that vehicle from a dealer that DEALS in that brand. You will then get the remaining warranty on that vehicle. Should you select a vehicle from a dealer that does not SELL THAT VEHICLE among his new car lineup, you will forfeit remaining warranty on that vehicle and the snake oil salesmen will try to sell you an extended warranty for 2000.00!
The things I have learned on this car buying trip are priceless and that little ruse of the warranty was one of them.
Besides the tax, title and license, the dealership collects a fee of 220.00 for doing the paperwork!! Oh, you thought that was free? You didn't know that one of the charges in that total was for notary to sign that paperwork? I was told two different stories when I tried to pin down the dealership on this charge. One explanation was that the state of Louisiana demanded this payment for the paper work they would have to do when the car was taxed and licensed. (and I thought those state workers were paid a salary already!). The other explanation was that the people that worked at the dealership had to charge this for the paperwork they did. This explanation became a little fuzzy as the salesmen tried to put his spin on it.
After many trips to different car lots, I settled on a little white Hyundai Elantra SE 2016. Telling the salesmen that the grandson would have to drive this car for 8 hrs. back to Corpus Christi, didn't inspire this salesmen to alert me that the car did not come with a spare tire and jack? I had no idea that this was the norm now among vehicle manufacturers. Apparently keeping up with all the safety requirements demanded of them, putting a spare tire in the vehicles not only saves them money but apparently does not relate to a safety hazard should one have a flat tire in the desert in a scorching hot summer!
When I examined this vehicle, I especially noted the tires on it. I always do this when inspecting a vehicle I'm interested in. It's a cost that I can predict I might encounter along with the purchase price of the car.
The tires were in excellent condition. He wouldn't need to replace for many miles later.
Wrap it up. I'll take it. The salesmen left me sitting in her cubicle while she said the finance manager was going to see me as soon as he can. His spiel was to try to talk me into buying an extended warranty. I listened to his horror stories for 30 minutes. He stressed how cheap it was and when he gave me the total of 2000.00 dollars I smiled and declined.
Meanwhile, while waiting on him, I could see out the glass window to where the Hyundai was parked and noted the salesmen getting in the car and rushing it to the back of the dealership to the mechanics. When asked why it was going back to the mechanics, she said they would be checking it out. This is strange for a dealership. I'm sure all the cars on their lots that are SLIGHTLY used have been thoroughly checked out BEFORE being offered to the public.
A few days later we picked up the car. Another day passed and when I checked the tires on this car, I found they were NOT the tires that were on the car when I first test drove it and then I realized why this auto was hastly taken back to the mechanics shop. The tires were changed to worn tires that would need to be replaced by the buyer.
Courtesy Chevrolet is NOT a courtesy to anyone. Let the buyer beware!
Saturday, April 15, 2017
It Was Just a "hunter/gather Kind of Day
A Sale! Don't we all love a sale? I have a huge freezer that will attest to my love of a sale. I'm not the typical female shopper that drools over a huge price cut for new underwear or a pair of pants.
I'm a 'hunter/gatherer'. You won't find me slaying animals and dragging the carcass home to perform magic with a knife and freezer wrap. You won't find me hunched down at the vegetable patch pulling weeds and salivating over the green bean and cucumber plants awaiting the produce they will produce. (I know, I know...produce used twice...It's my blog and I deny any English major to suggestion corrections).
Every Tuesday the grocery sale papers arrive promptly (usually ANY time of the day) but at least it's usually Tuesday anyway. We hike the 50 ft. to the mailbox to rescue the sales flyers and walk with a lighter quicker step back to our kitchen tables to 'hunt'. Products are circled, separated later into lists that appear on line paper and to each designated store. Preparation is key. Any coupon on hand corresponding to a sale item is catalogued into the list of supplies.
Next a route is formulated related to which store first and this is usually determined by what is on sale at that store. Imagine buying ice cream and then traveling from sale store to sale store. Imagine what the ice cream would be like by the time this hunter/gatherer trip made it's full circle back to the lair where the spoils of the trip would be hefted out of the collection vehicle (a car with a huge trunk in this case.) Ice Cream bought early on this trip will require a quick return to the cave to dump it into that huge freezer storage so Ice Cream gathering has to be last on the list of stores to visit.
All the preparations are done and it's time to contact Portia. Portia (pronounced the same as the car Porsche) is a friend that lives close by and is a better hunter/gatherer then I. She loves the hunt and her unskilled mathematical brain suddenly turns into a calculator that can divide at lightning speed which makes for a desirable talent when calculating the tricky pricing of some of these grocery stores and their marketing department. One learns quickly and watches and learns to divide total price by individual item.
Portia is a petite bundle of energy and usually needs no long notification to go anywhere. In 15 minutes I was at her house and we were, with our lists clutched in our hands, ready for assault we had carefully planned. (I've always thought women should run this country. We know all about preparation and planning and the necessity for such.)
After all this preparation, it comes down to the check out. Yes, this story isn't about hamburger, eggs, bread and milk. It was the checkout line that was most memorable.
Portia was standing in front of me with her loot on the grocery belt, I was standing behind Portia but in front of a women that I struck up a conversation with. A Canadian that was on a teaching contract. She was a short woman and as I am a tall woman I could easily peruse the surroundings with nothing blocking my view. Over the head of this petite educator, my eyes locked on the person behind the Canadian. I hesitated, my eyes locked on her and then quickly returned my attention to the Canadian that was still talking to me. I wanted to keep eye contact with her but my attention kept dragging back to the person standing behind her, a female that was most unusual in appearance. My mind whirled wondering if there was some school event going on and this person was dressed to attend. Maybe Halloween was being held in March? Some sort of unusual spring thing? Maybe she was hired to do a birthday party? I swung around and away from the Canadian to Portia standing in front of me and did one of those "jerk of the head around and eyebrows raised' which alerted her to look behind me. I watched the expression on Portia's face, her mouth got slack and her eyes widen as she scanned the row behind her, behind me and behind the Canadian.
I stole another look at this female behind be, gazing over the head of the petite Canadian into the red over arched eyebrows of a pair of eyes that had huge blackened circles around them. Tears tattooed one after another raced over her cheeks and down to the jaw line. A web was tattooed across the eyes and over the bridge of her nose. More tattoos decorated her neck. Her hair was an expression of freedom. I dragged my eyes away and back and away once again.
We are shopping in an upscale neighborhood. This is not New Orleans. In New Orleans she would not have rated a second glance unless it was tourists from some small town that isn't used to see these freedom folks.
Another quick glance allowed a look at her dress. An oversized light blue denim shirt hung much to large on her body and buttoned irregularly over a pair of leggings and her feet sported a pair of men's white plastic sandals with one huge strap that wrapped over her toes. She rolled her cart to a red two door sporty looking car and loaded her soda's and pastries. Yes, the detective in me casually observed her bought items as I tried to arrange in my brain some sort of acceptance to what we had witnessed. I wonder also if she is used to people studiously trying to avoid staring at her. She must know what her appearance does to the unsuspecting public.
My conversation with Portia on our mission to the next store was not about the sales list but about the 'teardrop lady' and who she might be and where she might live and what she might do for a living.
might be time for me to make a trip to New Orleans. New Orleans prepares one for odd sites and since I haven't been there for a couple of years now, my senses might have become dulled to the quirkiness that surrounds us.
I'm a 'hunter/gatherer'. You won't find me slaying animals and dragging the carcass home to perform magic with a knife and freezer wrap. You won't find me hunched down at the vegetable patch pulling weeds and salivating over the green bean and cucumber plants awaiting the produce they will produce. (I know, I know...produce used twice...It's my blog and I deny any English major to suggestion corrections).
Every Tuesday the grocery sale papers arrive promptly (usually ANY time of the day) but at least it's usually Tuesday anyway. We hike the 50 ft. to the mailbox to rescue the sales flyers and walk with a lighter quicker step back to our kitchen tables to 'hunt'. Products are circled, separated later into lists that appear on line paper and to each designated store. Preparation is key. Any coupon on hand corresponding to a sale item is catalogued into the list of supplies.
Next a route is formulated related to which store first and this is usually determined by what is on sale at that store. Imagine buying ice cream and then traveling from sale store to sale store. Imagine what the ice cream would be like by the time this hunter/gatherer trip made it's full circle back to the lair where the spoils of the trip would be hefted out of the collection vehicle (a car with a huge trunk in this case.) Ice Cream bought early on this trip will require a quick return to the cave to dump it into that huge freezer storage so Ice Cream gathering has to be last on the list of stores to visit.
All the preparations are done and it's time to contact Portia. Portia (pronounced the same as the car Porsche) is a friend that lives close by and is a better hunter/gatherer then I. She loves the hunt and her unskilled mathematical brain suddenly turns into a calculator that can divide at lightning speed which makes for a desirable talent when calculating the tricky pricing of some of these grocery stores and their marketing department. One learns quickly and watches and learns to divide total price by individual item.
Portia is a petite bundle of energy and usually needs no long notification to go anywhere. In 15 minutes I was at her house and we were, with our lists clutched in our hands, ready for assault we had carefully planned. (I've always thought women should run this country. We know all about preparation and planning and the necessity for such.)
After all this preparation, it comes down to the check out. Yes, this story isn't about hamburger, eggs, bread and milk. It was the checkout line that was most memorable.
Portia was standing in front of me with her loot on the grocery belt, I was standing behind Portia but in front of a women that I struck up a conversation with. A Canadian that was on a teaching contract. She was a short woman and as I am a tall woman I could easily peruse the surroundings with nothing blocking my view. Over the head of this petite educator, my eyes locked on the person behind the Canadian. I hesitated, my eyes locked on her and then quickly returned my attention to the Canadian that was still talking to me. I wanted to keep eye contact with her but my attention kept dragging back to the person standing behind her, a female that was most unusual in appearance. My mind whirled wondering if there was some school event going on and this person was dressed to attend. Maybe Halloween was being held in March? Some sort of unusual spring thing? Maybe she was hired to do a birthday party? I swung around and away from the Canadian to Portia standing in front of me and did one of those "jerk of the head around and eyebrows raised' which alerted her to look behind me. I watched the expression on Portia's face, her mouth got slack and her eyes widen as she scanned the row behind her, behind me and behind the Canadian.
I stole another look at this female behind be, gazing over the head of the petite Canadian into the red over arched eyebrows of a pair of eyes that had huge blackened circles around them. Tears tattooed one after another raced over her cheeks and down to the jaw line. A web was tattooed across the eyes and over the bridge of her nose. More tattoos decorated her neck. Her hair was an expression of freedom. I dragged my eyes away and back and away once again.
We are shopping in an upscale neighborhood. This is not New Orleans. In New Orleans she would not have rated a second glance unless it was tourists from some small town that isn't used to see these freedom folks.
Another quick glance allowed a look at her dress. An oversized light blue denim shirt hung much to large on her body and buttoned irregularly over a pair of leggings and her feet sported a pair of men's white plastic sandals with one huge strap that wrapped over her toes. She rolled her cart to a red two door sporty looking car and loaded her soda's and pastries. Yes, the detective in me casually observed her bought items as I tried to arrange in my brain some sort of acceptance to what we had witnessed. I wonder also if she is used to people studiously trying to avoid staring at her. She must know what her appearance does to the unsuspecting public.
My conversation with Portia on our mission to the next store was not about the sales list but about the 'teardrop lady' and who she might be and where she might live and what she might do for a living.
might be time for me to make a trip to New Orleans. New Orleans prepares one for odd sites and since I haven't been there for a couple of years now, my senses might have become dulled to the quirkiness that surrounds us.
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Back to School
We are back in school. The Christmas break has ended and Carrie has headed back to her educational journey.
This morning we woke to a definite chill in the air. We are going to enjoy a cool down for the next week. I'm not looking forward to summer any time soon. Heat is not my friend.
I'm listening to the morning news on CBS. I quickly jotted down the following changes:
Crispr gene Editing. A technology that changes the DNA gene to correct sickle cell inutero or to change the T Cell that causes AIDS. There will be new monitoring systems for diabetes. Drugs are predicted to change in treatment of different illness.
I will be doing some research on this information later today. Are we opening Pandora's box with interfering with DNA? Will parents request gene alteration to specifiy eye color, hair color or skin color?
The phone just rang and interrupted my train of thought on this. Pat called to let me know she had taken her medicines and she and son were heading to the church to collect food from their pantry.
This morning we woke to a definite chill in the air. We are going to enjoy a cool down for the next week. I'm not looking forward to summer any time soon. Heat is not my friend.
I'm listening to the morning news on CBS. I quickly jotted down the following changes:
Crispr gene Editing. A technology that changes the DNA gene to correct sickle cell inutero or to change the T Cell that causes AIDS. There will be new monitoring systems for diabetes. Drugs are predicted to change in treatment of different illness.
I will be doing some research on this information later today. Are we opening Pandora's box with interfering with DNA? Will parents request gene alteration to specifiy eye color, hair color or skin color?
The phone just rang and interrupted my train of thought on this. Pat called to let me know she had taken her medicines and she and son were heading to the church to collect food from their pantry.
Sunday, March 5, 2017
What "They" Don't Tell You Until the Next Time
- The mamo was done, The results come back and the phone rings. "Can you follow up on a diagnostic mammo? The date is set. The results come back and a biospy is done.
Your General Practioner calls you in and every thing is downhill from there. When he mentions the results and then you hear the words "oncologist" the ride starts here lady.
Tests were quickly scheduled for a CT and a PET scan. The appointments were within days of each other and a surgeon wall called into place a Mediport. Sitting in the surgeon's office for our first visit he looked over the PET scan and saw a "thickening" and wanted know if I had has the colonscopy done. Negative on that. He stepped out his office and called Dr. Noel.
That appointment was quickly scheduled. "Day after tomorrow..NPO tomorrow and off for the test the next morning and again back to LGMC.
The first visit with the oncologist I was in tears. Tears that couldn't be stopped. She looked at me and
said "We can fix this. We all cried and we believed her. The surgeon that gave us the news about the colon cancer said "we can fix this". Again we were are relieved.
I don't believe them. It's not that they are really lying to you. They give you as much as you can handle at the time.
I hate the words "Cancer survivor". It's like being called an American Hero because you died in me Middle East. That doesn't make you a hero....it just makes you dead and is supposed to make your family feel better. "A cancer survivor means you haven't died from it YET but you will.
My family doesn't understand and i surly can't tell them how I feel about this. They are so happy to believe that I can be fixed. I'm angry, I'm scared and I look at them and know what I know.
Let them at least laugh and play and watch their children grow. My husband continue to enjoy his job and whatever we can do together for as long as we can.
I wanted to write this but I can't publish it until a later date. I don't want them to see this. I want them to be happy and enjoy what time we have together.
I pushed the surgeon today. Pushed for information on the surgery in the colon. Finally he conceded
It didn't metz to the liver; the first place it would go..The PET showed it was clear however micros-pic could be there. Ah...you see, I didn't have to know this...it would be a while before it came back and my that time I might have lived a few more years. I feel the same way about the breast cancer. She said she could fix me and I would not die from this..BUT she also knows it might be some other body part that get is and is the cause.
This will be kept in draft form on this blog site. It won't be published although it was supposed to be a blog about how I felt through this whole thing. I can't publish this now.
4 Years Ago
Friday:
I have no idea why I decided to go from my dark brunette hair to having it heavily highlighted. I think it might have had something to do with the grey hair creeping in around my face. Figuring if I had it blond, it wouldn't be such a striking contrast when it came time to color my hair.
If I walked by a mirror and happened to notice my reflection, I would be uncomfortable. For the people that had never known me with dark hair, they thought I looked perfectly normal as a blond; for family and friends...most (especially family) hated it. A year passed and I finally got tired of thinking about it so I changed it back but not before I had my driver's license renewed. For the past 4 years I have carried a driver's license that sported a picture of that blond head. Since then I've put it back to its original color then finally got it cut short and let it all grow out to a silver mix. Again I was undecided on this color. I finally decided that if I had to question it, it must be time to break out the Lady Clairol and get back to what I was born with.
I have no idea why I decided to go from my dark brunette hair to having it heavily highlighted. I think it might have had something to do with the grey hair creeping in around my face. Figuring if I had it blond, it wouldn't be such a striking contrast when it came time to color my hair.
If I walked by a mirror and happened to notice my reflection, I would be uncomfortable. For the people that had never known me with dark hair, they thought I looked perfectly normal as a blond; for family and friends...most (especially family) hated it. A year passed and I finally got tired of thinking about it so I changed it back but not before I had my driver's license renewed. For the past 4 years I have carried a driver's license that sported a picture of that blond head. Since then I've put it back to its original color then finally got it cut short and let it all grow out to a silver mix. Again I was undecided on this color. I finally decided that if I had to question it, it must be time to break out the Lady Clairol and get back to what I was born with.
Today I renewed my driver's license. The lightening has changed at ye ole Dept. of Transportation. I have a license picture that doesn't look as though I should be wearing prison stripes and be holding a card with digits on it.
Today has been a fruitful day.
Fat Tuesday is just around the corner. Nanny Belinda (Carrie's aunt) throws a big party in Grand Mary (little village) where everyone goes to catch beads from the local parade then they gather at Belinda's to eat the huge pot of chili, drink some cold beers and eat some King Cake. The Cajun music will flow and soon the couples will be dancing into the night beneath the canopy. Eventually everyone ends up at the local pub where everyone knows each other and the party continues. It's some serious partying as the Tuesday gets closer and closer which means the partying here will have to be put on hold for a while. Lassiere Le Bon Temps Roule...(There could be a misspelled word in there somewhere) .. but translated "Let the Good Times Roll".
It's hard to believe that a blizzard is attacking the East Coast. My Aunt in R.I. is now in the middle of it and anticipating the loss of electricity. It has been named Nemo; when did storms start getting named anyway?
I spoke with her for a while; she is nervous and frightened as her son is out working in it and has been for over 20 hrs. He is not expected home tonight either. Keeping the snow at bay, his crew is working at a mall to keep the sidewalks cleared..not that anyone will be shopping there tomorrow but if they let those sidewalks collect two feet of snow, it will be more difficult to remove then if they do it as it falls.
Saturday:
I'm going to start a room by room clean up around here. House guests are on their way next month which will inspire me to do some pitching and tidying up the guest rooms.
I spoke with her for a while; she is nervous and frightened as her son is out working in it and has been for over 20 hrs. He is not expected home tonight either. Keeping the snow at bay, his crew is working at a mall to keep the sidewalks cleared..not that anyone will be shopping there tomorrow but if they let those sidewalks collect two feet of snow, it will be more difficult to remove then if they do it as it falls.
Saturday:
I'm going to start a room by room clean up around here. House guests are on their way next month which will inspire me to do some pitching and tidying up the guest rooms.
Yes We Have Winter
I've dug to the bottom of shoe hell in my closet to find some shoes with closed toes and heels. No spikey shoes fo this girl. I'm looking for something to keep these tootsies warm. I've clearned out the winter closet of all the clothes that didn't fit, didn't feel righ ton and stuff I had never worn and had no indention of wearing ever again.'I still have one more closet to hit and wean down the clothes and shoes.
The cold weather has kept me inside watching Netflix. Tomorrow I have to brave the cold and meet my hair stylist for an update on this hair.
It's cold once again.I'm waiting it out before I head outside to do some lawn work.
The cold weather has kept me inside watching Netflix. Tomorrow I have to brave the cold and meet my hair stylist for an update on this hair.
It's cold once again.I'm waiting it out before I head outside to do some lawn work.
All In A Name
I've newly discovered a place I want to live. It's not based on population, traffic or location.
Rainbow City. It really doesn't matter the state it's in; it's thename.
Rainbow City. It really doesn't matter the state it's in; it's thename.
Almost
Those warm days hit with some force. The temperatures rallied upward and for a whole two days, we here in the south, rejoiced. The trees shot out their flowers and the snap dragons looked right snappy.
Then the cold arrived once again and I scurried around to find those heavy sweaters and sweat pants I had hidden away when dragging out the pair of white shorts I wore for the spring fling of two days.
Have I mentioned the doctors lately? Well, the oncologist wants to see me in two weeks and the gastro doc said the same thing. I had the colonoscopy which was clear. Along with the colonoscopy, a hemmroid was banded. In two weeks, the second of three will be done and finally two weeks after that, the final one will be done. I had no idea this was the procedure. I assumed it was a one day deal. Now I'm nervous about just how they go about getting to the other two. Access. That worries me a bit but I'll try not to think about it until two weeks from now.
Trips: on the subject of trips, I'm about to make one. April is the month of spring breaks and as soon as Carrie gets that break, the daughter, Carrie and I are heading for North Carolina. I'll leave them with the daughter's father and I'll continue on to Durham to visit with my sister.
A more recent trip is the one my husband will be taking to Colorado. I want to go. It's now been years since I've been back to the Rockies and I'm homesick. I've been homesick for the past 5 years. I'm going to try to hitch a ride and go with him. I can rent a car when we get there and do some exploring. The job is on the Wyoming/Colorado border, close to Cheyenne. I'm ready to go. Will take me but 5 minutes to pack. I can move quickly when bumming a ride to the mountains.
The last bit of news I have is, "Pat is in the hospital".
She was in an auto accident last night and her knee is pretty banged up. Surgery will be done this coming Friday. I visited her this morning and stayed with her until her family could get there. I'll go back again tomorrow morning.
Then the cold arrived once again and I scurried around to find those heavy sweaters and sweat pants I had hidden away when dragging out the pair of white shorts I wore for the spring fling of two days.
Have I mentioned the doctors lately? Well, the oncologist wants to see me in two weeks and the gastro doc said the same thing. I had the colonoscopy which was clear. Along with the colonoscopy, a hemmroid was banded. In two weeks, the second of three will be done and finally two weeks after that, the final one will be done. I had no idea this was the procedure. I assumed it was a one day deal. Now I'm nervous about just how they go about getting to the other two. Access. That worries me a bit but I'll try not to think about it until two weeks from now.
Trips: on the subject of trips, I'm about to make one. April is the month of spring breaks and as soon as Carrie gets that break, the daughter, Carrie and I are heading for North Carolina. I'll leave them with the daughter's father and I'll continue on to Durham to visit with my sister.
A more recent trip is the one my husband will be taking to Colorado. I want to go. It's now been years since I've been back to the Rockies and I'm homesick. I've been homesick for the past 5 years. I'm going to try to hitch a ride and go with him. I can rent a car when we get there and do some exploring. The job is on the Wyoming/Colorado border, close to Cheyenne. I'm ready to go. Will take me but 5 minutes to pack. I can move quickly when bumming a ride to the mountains.
The last bit of news I have is, "Pat is in the hospital".
She was in an auto accident last night and her knee is pretty banged up. Surgery will be done this coming Friday. I visited her this morning and stayed with her until her family could get there. I'll go back again tomorrow morning.
I see Summer Rushing In
Rain and lots of it and continual. At 3AM, I lay awake on the sofa listening to the steady rythmn of the rain pelting the roof and tiled porch. We have had two weeks of rain. The grass has exploded, standing tall, the white clover gets beat down with the heavy downpours. Knockout roses engulf the mailbox while the flowers along the front of the house burst upward with their colorful blooms. It's a happy time for spring plants.
It has also been a busy spring here in southwest Louisiana. The husband has been in a 'non working status' since January 1. The oil field has taken more then a dip. It is in a full decline. Thousands and thousands of oilfield workers are being laid off. Rigs are stacked on the banks and boom towns are idle and withering away.
The husband couldn't get laid off as he works for himself but the calls offering him jobs has totally stopped which wasn't unexpected with the price of oil hovering around 50.00 a barrel.
All those phone calls that used to come in here and all those times the husband would say to me "I'm going to take these jobs. One never knows when it will be over."
I never minded. He was gone a lot. We saved a lot and now all those days he was gone and all the money we saved has let us accept this downturn without trepidation. We will ride this 'bust' out at home and enjoy the earned time off.
It's now time to do all those little things around the house we put off and to do a little traveling. To start the year off we headed for Arizona. Ten days spent in Casa Grande and then on to California and some sight seeing in San Diego.
Our break time back at home was spent remodeling. We tore out all the paneling and wood work in the office and hung sheetrock and new woodwork. Two weeks later, the office was finished and the cost was for materials only.
Sunday we will leave for North Carolina. We are going to visit my sister who is caring for her sick husband. He is terminal and she is alone there except for some very good friends that help her. I want to spend some time with her and offer to help her care for her husband.
On the return trip, I would like to cajole, beg, demand and plea to sidetrack and visit Washington, D.C. I have been wanting to go for the past two springs.
It has also been a busy spring here in southwest Louisiana. The husband has been in a 'non working status' since January 1. The oil field has taken more then a dip. It is in a full decline. Thousands and thousands of oilfield workers are being laid off. Rigs are stacked on the banks and boom towns are idle and withering away.
The husband couldn't get laid off as he works for himself but the calls offering him jobs has totally stopped which wasn't unexpected with the price of oil hovering around 50.00 a barrel.
All those phone calls that used to come in here and all those times the husband would say to me "I'm going to take these jobs. One never knows when it will be over."
I never minded. He was gone a lot. We saved a lot and now all those days he was gone and all the money we saved has let us accept this downturn without trepidation. We will ride this 'bust' out at home and enjoy the earned time off.
It's now time to do all those little things around the house we put off and to do a little traveling. To start the year off we headed for Arizona. Ten days spent in Casa Grande and then on to California and some sight seeing in San Diego.
Our break time back at home was spent remodeling. We tore out all the paneling and wood work in the office and hung sheetrock and new woodwork. Two weeks later, the office was finished and the cost was for materials only.
Sunday we will leave for North Carolina. We are going to visit my sister who is caring for her sick husband. He is terminal and she is alone there except for some very good friends that help her. I want to spend some time with her and offer to help her care for her husband.
On the return trip, I would like to cajole, beg, demand and plea to sidetrack and visit Washington, D.C. I have been wanting to go for the past two springs.
Anybody There?
Hello out there! Anybody home? It's my own fault. I admit it. I've become quite the slacker at blogging. I can't remember the last time I was here and I'm sure you haven't been around much either.
There is no way I can catch you up on the time lapsed since my last post so I will just try to hit the highlights.
Healthwise, I'm happy to report there has been no bad news..yet. I still wait for a test to come back with an unwanted report. I think that's normal for those of us that have been struck with the Big C. I just try to NOT think about it very often. Of course when the three months pass by and it's time for another doctor visit or a mediport flush or a CT scan, I begin to behave a little strangely. I recognize it and I should warn everyone around me but I never do it. I think they should recognize it without my having to tell them. That's unfair to them (family) as not having this diagnosis themselves, they have no way of knowing what I'm feeling.
The other biggie is the oilfield has hit a major slump. The husband hasn't been out of town for a year now. The neighbors haven't either. We are calling it "retirement" thought it's really too early for the husband to retire. Financially, we are fortunate to have been able to save for this. When you work in the oil industry, you plan for a bust eventually. Unfortunately the young men in the industry have never witnessed a slow down and didn't prepare. There are a lot of foreclosures on homes and rows of huge four wheel drive trucks sitting along the roadside with FOR SALE signs glued to their windows. It's going to be a rough ride for the next 4 or 5 yrs. for the young oilfield families.
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