Spring in the South

It's the loons from the Windy City again. We're still here and still on our excellent adventure. I'm still trying to catch up with Deborah on the southern accent thing, "y'all". But aside from a lack of southern accent, I am the grits-making champ in the house.

You may find this hard to believe, but I think I am working less and enjoying it more. Although we still have a long way to go, we are getting pretty comfortable here at the Vergere estate. The yard is shaping up gradually after $160 of weed and feed. I can now cut the grass in about 3 1/2 hours instead of 2 days. The weeds are disappearing as the centipede is getting stronger. I still need a pump house, but the water is fine. The weather is starting to warm up and as we will learn, we should enjoy the cooler weather while we have it. The electric bill is much lower than LP gas. Deborah boldly exclaims that she loves it here. That gives me a real sigh of relief. I'm growing to like it too...a lot. The spring here is amazing. It is warmer earlier and flowers just grow everywhere. Considering that we live in the country, no matter where we go it is just a drive in the country, no traffic, no long lights, no congestion. Even the interstate is just trees on both sides and the middle with only about 3 exits between where we get on the interstate and where Deborah goes to work. We are meeting people and seeing family. We are almost like normal people, but let's not get carried away and remember, I'm married to Deborah.

It has been a while since my last writing, so I'll try to bring this project up to date.

Spring and My Yard

Let me start out by saying that my yard is something that I take pride in and it has always been something of a hobby. I am accustomed to being able to spend Saturday making my yard look just the way I want it to look, in one day, exactly the way I want it. That was of course in my last house. Living here is like overdosing on my yard. I will not have this yard the way I want it for at least another year, but I will kill myself trying to do it sooner. There is just too much to do. It takes a full day (weekly) just to cut and clean the yard, and that does not include the garden or anything extra. I spend a huge amount of time fighting roots and vines, filling holes, burning yard trash, trimming trees, weed & feed, Sevin Dust, Miracle Grow, an hour a day just watering and in the midst of all of this I am planting more things to take care of.

We have planted 5 Hydrangea bushes, 4 Double-mock Orange bushes, 12 Shasta Daisies, 3 Rose-of-Sharon, 2 Pear tress, 2 Apple tress, 2 blueberry bushes, impatiens, petunias, begonias, and the garden. I just hope they all live, but it is difficult in this heat. I have also witnessed my trees bloom in the expected chronological order for my viewing pleasure.

First came the Bradford Pear trees (we have 6):


Then came the Cherry trees (2):




Then the Dogwood trees (10):


Then the Azaleas:


Then there were the Crepe Myrtles:




And we were happy to put some annuals out to decorate the patio:


The driveway needed a scrubbing and I managed to power wash it with the help of my turbo nozzle:


And I swore I would have a garden this year. It hasn't worked out exactly as planned however. It was started too late. The tomatoes are too small, the cucumbers look like watermelons, the squash and zucchini are on strike, the bugs ate the beans, and they have now started on the okra. At least the bell peppers are doing good. I will do better on my fall crop. I need some manure and more Sevin Dust. I am proud of how I tilled the garden. I used my grandpa's tiller. It is 67 years old, and it still works. I remember him using that same tiller when I was a boy. Although using it is something like a wrestling match. But I enjoyed using it because I am a sentimental guy. I had told my friend George that I was growing a garden, but only just for fun this year. George has 2 gardens, very large gardens, like 75' by 150', and all of the rows are straight, clear, and bulging with beautiful veggies. And George grows everything, any veggie you ever heard of. He stopped by the house to bring me some of the beautiful harvest and I pointed to my garden and said, "See George! I told you I had a garden". and George said, "Where?" I had to laugh at that one, especially since he wasn't trying to be funny.


So the yard is shaping up. It will be better next year, We sure did enjoy this spring.

Grits Festival

On April 17 we decided to go to the annual World Grits Festival...just for fun. You need to look at their website and read the history of the festival and how it started...only in the south. Bless their hearts!

World Grits Festival

One of the main attractions, aside from the 5K Run was a pool of grits that people could swim in. I never got close enough to learn the rules, but I thought I would rather eat them than swim in them. So we bought breakfast at the festival, grits and all.





Love them grits! And these people in the south can think of any reason to have a festival. Bless their hearts!

Church

You remember the church:


Father John retired! That is the news of the century! The priest we met when we first moved here, and instantly knew this guy was special, has moved on to a new bunch of sheep leaving us temporarily without a shepherd. This guy inspires us just walking into the room, and he doesn't even try. We were heartbroken when we heard that he was leaving so soon after we moved here. But in the words of my friend Chester, "There are only two good priests...the one that just left, and the one you're going to get." Since Chester said it, I believe it. We wish Father John the best and pray that the next guy is his clone, but the poor guy won't be. So we will pray for patience.

Don't go too far Father John!



Church has become our social life as well as a great place to worship. I may have mentioned Cursillo, and the Brotherhood of St. Andrews, but the list continues. Thanks to Chester (you will hear that name a lot), I find myself a member of the Fishers of men. It is a group that is interdenominational and interracial. When I joined I got a button that said "Combat Racism". Personally I would rather never bring up the word "racism". I think more is accomplished by working hand-in-hand with your brothers regardless what color they are and let that example speak for itself. Fortunately, except for the button, that is exactly what they do. The group supports the United Ministries Crisis Center (food bank, etc.) and they help needy people wherever they can. They seem to get a lot of business for handicapped ramps. They usually provide materials and the talent. For me it is a great way to meet some of my fine neighbors in the community. Plus they serve dinner at the meetings and the food is great!

I cut grass at the church now. There are four of us and we each take about 1/4 of the grounds and we cut the grass. I take my marching orders from Chester. They have appropriately named the group the "Lawn Rangers". So I have appropriatley named Chester Kemosabe. I of course am Tonto. Chester gives me direction. I affectionately tell him that I want to be like him when I grow up. He won't admit it, but I'm sure he thinks I'm nuts. Chester is retired from the Air Force. You just gotta love those military guys. To say he does a lot at church would be an understatement. I think he has a bed somewhere at church. He leads the service quite often when Father John is gone and even includes a sermon. He polishes all of the brass for the altar (something we both have military experience in...not the altar, the brass), takes care of the building and grounds, and really he does just about all of the jobs at church at one time or another. He even tried to power wash the church steeple, by himself, and he lost his grip and fell to the ground and landed on his back. It scared him when he couldn't move or feel his legs for about an hour, but he is OK now. By the way, let's just say that Chester is over 70.

Chester told me one day during some lawn ranger work that Father John wanted to see me. I thought, "Uh OH!" When I saw Father John, he said that he needed two board members for the United Ministries Crisis Center, a project Father John started with some other churches in the Eutawville area 17 years ago. They provide food and financial aid to the needy and considering our county has a 19.5% unemployment rate, this becomes an important ministry. Chester would be the other board member from our church. I told Father John that I would be honored. After the first meeting I found myself the new Chairman of the Board of the UMCC. Since Father John and Chester were both in that meeting you have to know that I suspected a conspiracy. Something like all I had to do was itch my nose or raise my hand to go to the boys room and they would start thanking me for volunteering. And I wouldn't dare have the heart to turn them down. I think the UMCC will keep me busy, busier than I thought, and with help and direction from Chester, I may survive. By the way, his beautiful wife Cindy is the church secretary and she is going to be helpful as well.

Let me give you an idea of the kind of guy Chester is. He was at my house and I was whining about having trouble with my leg and not being able to get on the roof to put the new chimney cap on the chimney. Several days later I was sitting at this computer when I heard something outside, and I looked out the window to see a ladder up against the house. Sure enough, it was Chester. He had made some kind of wooden ladder to facilitate working on the roof. He worked on the chimney cap and painted all of the rusty vents on my roof. So I told him I would buy him lunch. We went to lunch and they wouldn't take a credit card and I had no money. He's getting way ahead of me. Chester and Cindy are regular good people, our favorite kind. They may actually be better than regular people, and more like extraordinary. We are so grateful to know them.

Chester on my roof:


Actually all of the people at our church are regular good people, or better. The church held a charity golf outing in the beginning of June and I kept trying to help, but I was told everything was under control. I didn't see it. It looked like a disaster getting ready to happen, to me anyway. I had tried to solicit some support from local businesses and that didn't go so good. I thought that maybe others had that problem as well. I just didn't see enough activity to pull off a golf tournament with over 80 people. I had invited my Dad to come play. The day of the golf outing came. I was worthless on the course because of trouble with my leg, that and the fact that I'm no good, but my Dad showed his stuff. Nobody could believe he was over 80. But the golf outing was a huge success. People from church were all over the place, cooking, helping with awards, cleaning, and I was so impressed. That was one of the best golf outings I had ever been to. All the good people just do things...not a lot of talk or fanfare, they just get things done. We have a very active church.

Church is a great place to meet great people. Epiphany is a perfect example.

Dad

As I said above, my Dad came down for the Charity Golf Outing, but he also came down to help me put brakes on the car. He has become something of an expert at brakes and he worked his magic and saved me a bundle. He drives straight through from St. Louis both ways and I just don't know how he does what he does. He is 81! I just hope I have inherited a lot of what he has. I always appreciate the help, but I also appreciate getting to spend time with him.



My First Born

My dear, dear daughter Barbara came to visit for Father's Day. That was a treat. The visit was short, and she had an incredible amount of trouble with flights and actually got here a day late. We didn't do anything special, just hung out and enjoyed being together, but we had a great visit and we are so glad she could make it. And by the way, those ARE the remains of boiled peanuts on the table for the inquisitive minds.



Surgery

I have been using a cane (mostly for sympathy) and a knee brace (more for sympathy), and despite those crutches I am falling down a lot due to the knee giving out. I should have gotten a new knee 10 years ago, but there is nothing I can do about that now except to get it done now. July 6 is the day. I will be so happy to get this done. I had the other one done in '98 and when I got x-rays for this trip they x-rayed the other one too and said that that the first new knee is in perfect shape and should last a long time. I only hope that this knee turns out as good as the first. Deborah says she needs one too. I told her to get in line. In order to get the knee I had to get a new doctor. Let's hope the new doc works out. I have had to go through this before.



Surgery is at 2:30 and I will get a spinal. I hope he uses the little needle first.



Everything Else

Wifey and little old me are trying to whittle down the todo list. The living room and hall are painted and the holes in the walls have been repaired. We have a garden (although it is a huge failure) and we have planted a lot of bushes and flowers and trees. The yard has been attracting the lion's share of attention this spring. We had to return and replace the refrigerator in the mud room. The lawn tractor broke and would only turn left, not right. So we got a new lawn tractor and you should have seen how Deborah and I got it off the truck we rented to get it home. I can't tell if I'm itching because of the poison ivy or fleas, or both. The bug man Carl came out for the fleas, but I'm not positive he got them all. The electric bill with the A/C has been a pleasant surprise. The kitchen floor is still torn up waiting to be replaced. After a record breaking winter we are having the worst hot spell since the early 50's. It is either raining or it's 102, in the shade. I can't even walk outside. It is so hot that I can't even stand to sit outside and smoke a cigar. Dixie goes out and runs back in like it's raining. I've learned to make French bread and my honey wheat bread rocks. Haven't made too many cookies lately, but I learned an excellent gumbo recipe. Our excellent next door neighbors are moving. We will hate to see them go, but they are only moving 4 miles down the road. There will be a party at Charles and Annette's farm on the 4th of July and we are looking forward to that and seeing our family.

You might think that after 8 months this place would still seem a little new, especially after 20 years in Aurora. We miss our old house and all of our wonderful friends, neighbors, and family. Friends and family are forever, but we live here now. It is true that we still learn new things almost constantly, but it seems to fit now. We are comfortable and used to the differences. We don't like to hear the I-95 traffic, but we can. Deborah wishes that our bedroom was in the back of the house instead of the front. She hates working but we are glad she has a job. Church is something to look forward to. Family is easily accessible and Deborah sees her mother fairly often. Gradually we are starting to take pride in our place on Old State Road. It is not a matter of getting the projects done on time or stressing out about what we "need" to do or a schedule. It is really more about just making some progress everyday. That's how we did the last house and it took us 20 years to get right, but it was right. This small town living is kind of cool...little or no traffic, slower pace, everybody looks out for everybody, learning new things all the time. We will be married 34 years in August. When I stand in my spacious yard and look at my trees with Dixie at my heal, and think of all the people in my life, my wife, and children, and all of the blessings I have been given, it is really hard to be crabby. It is especially hard not to believe that there is a divine hand on my shoulder pushing me where I need to be. Add an Arturo Fuente 8-5-8 maduro, a short trip to look over our estate, maybe a Bass Ale,and you have a spiritual moment. I see a house blessing in the not too distant future, hopefully conducted by the infamous Father John. That sure sounds better than the exorcism we thought we were going to need.

Until my next post______Thank God I'm A Country Boy!

The End of Winter

It has been a while since my last report on the crazy couple from the Windy City area and their excellent adventure, but things are getting sort of boring. Both toilets actually flush and refill, and they don’t wobble, rock, or leak. The faucets now work and deliver clean water at a respectable pressure. We can wash our clothes in the washer and dryer and no leaks, no breakers blowing, and the clothes come out clean and dry…small miracles. I had failed to mention before that the dishwasher did not work, but it has been replaced and works fine. The lights work and they don’t hum or turn on and off on their own (excepth the kitchen light did what it wanted to for about 3 days and then started to work right on it's own). All four burners on the stove now work, thanks to my dear old dad. There have been no well diggers, gas guys, and we haven’t seen Rusty the furnace guy for a while. Dixie has sworn off of eating door knobs. Haven’t seen a critter since before Christmas, except for one lizard. A cat got into Dixie’s dog bones, but didn’t like them and left them on the carport. They haven’t kicked us out of church yet. No vehicles have broken down (except the lawn tractor). I’m starting to like Dollar stores. You can buy graham crackers and sardines for a dollar. I wish I could report something exciting like the LP tank exploded, or the roof caved in, or we were robbed…but NOT!!! I’m just running out of catastrophes. But I wanted to let my friends and family know what’s up. So here goes.

Weather

Remember I said that we were being blamed for bringing the cold weather with us from the arctic north. Well our picture is now on the wall of all local Post Offices. We are wanted...with a significant reward... for inciting cold weather in the grand state of South Carolina.



I remember the snow of 1973. I was actually in it. I believe the snowfall was 24” in areas of South Carolina. I remember being directed off I-95 by the highway patrol because the road was closed. Eight people froze to death on the interstate because they were stuck and had no way to move. My buddy and I were told to get off the interstate at a motel called South of the Border near Florence, SC. We had to spend a couple of nights at South of the Border sleeping on the lobby floor. That was the record for the state that still stands.



Check out the '73 Blizzard

But we recently had a bit of snow that this state had not seen in a very long time. The average snowfall for South Carolina is listed as less than an inch, which translates to none or a brief flurry. Not this year…because we recently got about 6-8 years worth.












So, not only was this the coldest winter in over 25 years, but this was a year for historic snowfall.

However, I believe we might get leniency or a commuted sentence because the weather has been beautiful lately and it appears that spring is sprung.

Also, it is worth noting that my better half has figured out how to control the cost of LP gas…turn the furnace off. She is a genius. See, it works!



I’m a genius

It should be noted that my Daddy said I’m a genius because I’m outstanding in my field.



Captain Vergere Stopped by the new Vergere Estate

It looks like JJ may be a genius too!



Our baby could not make it home for Christmas. You know…business is business, war and peace, and I think he drew the short straw. So this was kind of his Christmas visit. He flew into Charleston on Feb. 27th and spent a full week with us. It was a great visit. He jumped all over helping with the yard and tree project. He spent some time shopping with his mother (I just watched from a distance). I made him an excellent home made pizza. We wish we could have done more for him, but the posse was looking for the Vergere Gang and we had to lay low. He finished the week by going to church with us…you know, humoring the old folks. But then he had to boogie to the airport. Many people later wanted to know why we couldn’t make him stay after the service to meet everybody. But he was on his way to visit his sister in Chicago. We love our kids and it is always great to spend time with them. I was also pleased that JJ seemed to really like our new estate.

Our First Party in the New Estate

The Saturday before JJ left, we invited a few family members to join us for some burgers, dogs, and the potluck food that everyone brought. It was a blast. There were kids, big kids, farts, and old farts. The Queen Bee was there.



There was a respectable showing of bubbas.




There were nieces, nephews, and family all over.











There were 45 people and 12 cars parked in the Vergere Estate. They played the bean bag game, drank beer, started a fire, drank beer, ate food, and drank beer, and talked over each other like any good family. It warmed my heart to walk into the house to see every chair filled. I think JJ enjoyed it as much as me. Thanks to everybody for coming.

The Yard

The most significant news in the yard was the tree topping. The 4 Bradford Pear trees in the back were getting so heavy they were starting to weigh down the branches and break the trees. The big oak in the back had some dead limbs and it was crowding the electric supply to the house. The pecan tree was covered with vines and had more than it’s share of dead limbs. I struck a deal with the neighborhood tree wizard, Will Galliard, and he did a great job. However, to limit the expense, I had to clean up the mess. Will dropped all of the branches and made sure they missed the fence, but I had to dispose of the mess. This ended up taking me four weeks, and it would have taken longer if JJ, my Eagle Scout pyromaniac, hadn’t helped me almost everyday he was here. Poppy (my dad) came after JJ and provided the additional needed help. Thanks guys!

Before Cutting



After Cutting and Before Cleanup



After Cleanup








A Few Mishaps

I can't leave you without listing a few problems. I mean we haven't reached the "We're all set" stage just yet. When the well was finally finished and when we were sure it would work, we needed to get serious about some plumbing problems. One of the worst was the master bath. The toilet was about to fall over and the sink faucet would barely dribble water. It turned out that the toilet flange was broken and the cutoff valve to the toilet was broken. I replaced the cutoff valve, but on discovering that the toilet flange was broken, I also found that the soil pipe stuck up above the floor 3/4", hence it would wobble no matter what. I had to grind the cast iron soil pipe down most of the 3/4" and replace the flange. I also had to replace the rusty air vent and a few wall tiles that fell off the wall. All I can say is that I hate plumbing, and what a mess. When I finally got the aerator off the sink faucet, the water ran black for 5 minutes. I managed to get a picture before it ran clear. All is well in the bathroom now. All toilets do not wobble and all faucets deliver clean water at a good pressure.

The Master Bathroom



The Sink Ran Black for a While



We also had to replace the dishwasher. The old one was filling with water from yet another faulty cutoff valve. The door had been broken and it would not shut or work at all. The old dishwasher when opened was the most disgusting thing I ever saw or smelled in my long life. I have a strong stomach, but this was a test. There was one other problem. The ceramic tile floor was installed after the dishwasher. So I would have to remove the floor or the countertop and all of the plumbing including the garbage disposal to get the new dishwasher in. After a long meditation, I chose to replace the floor. There is no grout and after 5 hard swings with a sledge hammer I finally put a small chip in one of the ceramic tiles. This will not be fun. I do have the dishwasher in however, and it is so nice to be able to put the dirty dishes away.

The Disgusting Old Dishwasher - Slime, Mold, Stink and All


The New Dishwasher All Installed



Removing the Old Floor



The big news latey is Spring. I am anxious to get a blog out for the glorious spring. In the meantime I am way behind getting this blog out, I am suffering from some bad poison ivy (never used to be alergic), my lawn tractor is broke and will only turn left and not right, and we badly need rain. But when I look out at all of the blooming trees and azaleas that grow like weeds, and the weather is perfect and we're using no LP gas to speak of and the electric bill was $100, I just can't help but...Thank God I'm a Country Boy!!

The Coldest Weather In 25 Years

It seems a little strange that we would be complaining about weather in the 50’s or 60’s, or having to endure those dreadful night temps down in the 30’s even 20’s, but maybe it’s a sign that we’re getting acclimated. I know those of you living further north must be a tad bit jealous, and you should be. But the cold down here has reportedly been the coldest weather in 25 years and it has caused some problems. But first let’s get to an update on the nutty old people that left that pleasant house in the greatest neighborhood for their home improvement adventure that includes climate change, LP gas, blue laws, state liquor stores, and country living.

The Well:

I’m sure you are wondering, but on January 11 Randy and Dave finally finished the well. It took three tries, but we have clean, clear water, 100 gpm, good pressure, and Deborah is so happy. Now I have to get the sand out of the system. One toilet was replaced yesterday, and I need to reset the other one and replace the guts. I will also replace a couple of faucets, but eventually it should be good. We may have to get a water softener to treat for calcium, but we are going to wait to see how that develops.

Lizards and Roaches and Mice…Oh my!:

A few lizards have come out when the afternoon temps were over 60, but Carl the bug man was here a few days ago and whatever he did created a pile of dead lizards in the carport. The mice have met their match with Carl and he defies a roach to even come into our neighborhood. Deborah loves Carl.



Barber Shops:

Remember Billie’s Barber Shop that was closed for the holidays? Well the story gets stranger. Billie was apparently closed for the holidays and I thought that seemed a little strange. I mean why close a barber shop when people are going to most want to get a haircut? I was needing a haircut worse than before and so I went back the Saturday after the 1st. My mistake…Billie’s is only open on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. And they are closed on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Now I am beginning to imagine that this is a slow moving, semi-retired gentlemen, Billy, an old boy, and he takes life as easy as he can. So I decided it was OK for Billy to be off 3 days a week and for the holidays. A week later I tried Billy again, and when I drove up to the shop the sign said "CLOSED" and there was a post-it on the door that said "closed for illness." Wow! I hope Billy has a lot of money, because this barber business can’t possibly be that lucrative. Well, I hope Billy recovers. I went back yet again the following week, on a Tuesday after I went to the dump and on the way to get gas for the truck. My fault…It was 2 pm and I should have realized that Billie’s is closed from 1 to 2:30 (for lunch I suppose). After all, 8 hr. days are a bit overrated. I finally went back on Friday at 3 pm and walked into to see 2 women cutting 2 young boys hair while 2 men that looked like their grandpas watched. I went to sit down and one of the women asked if she could help me. I said that I needed a haircut. She said that they were kind of busy and I should come back next week sometime. That was it. What ever happened to barber shops? What happened to Floyd in Mayberry? I miss my barber in Aurora…Dave, a real barber, a friend, a great guy with a great sense of humor… a guy I could swap cigars with and discuss the world and what’s going on. Dave was the only human being I ever trusted to trim my moustache. Now barber shops are style shops, or salons, with women, or cheap cuts…What NEXT!!! So I searched the net and my huge yellow pages (both pages), and I can’t find a real barber. I will have to drive to Summerville to get a cheap cut. I miss Dave. The world is losing it’s character.

All I want is a regular barber shop.



You know...like Floyd.



Dave is the only barber I have known for the last 20 years. Dave is the guy with the beard. The other guy is a dear friend, Nate, in the barber shop.



Dollar Stores:

Aside from stores like Piggly Wiggly, Hardee’s, or Waffle House, there is one more apparent staple of the south…dollar stores.



There are Dollar Stores where you can buy some things for a dollar and other things too.



There is Family Dollar where you can buy things for your family for a dollar or more.



There is Dollar General where things generally cost a dollar.




Then there is Dollar Plus where you can buy thing for a dollar plus a little more sometimes.

You may even want to shop in Dollar USA where you can buy things that probably weren’t made in the USA.




Dollar stores are the small town Wally World. These country folk are truly innovative.

The Farmer’s Posse:

You have to read this article from the Orangeburg T & D. This gives a great deal of insight into my new neighborhood. There are two things you might want to catch as you read. They mention Danny and Bart Hutto. Danny grew up in the house I am now living in, and Bart is his cousin, the son of Charles and Harriet who live four houses up the road. Also, note the comment on the article by sic&tyrd. For those that don’t know, CWP is “concealed weapon permit.” We live in Providence Community and we are protected by the Providence Fire Dept. This is funny but kind of cool.

Look out for the boys from Providence




Careful What You Say:

There aren’t many secrets down here. We recently went to rent a storage unit. We met with Theresa who owned the storage units. Theresa asked where we lived. We told her and she said, “Oh! Miss Carolyn’s old place,” and then went on to tell us how the place had gone down and she was glad to hear that it would get some needed care. A lady at church asked where we lived and Deborah told her. She then told us all about how Miss Carolyn used to feed the farm hands and what a great lady she was. I was talking to a man in church and he asked where we moved to and I told him and he said “Do you mean the Hill place?” I said “No, Bobby and Betty live across the street. He then said “Carolyn’s old place.” He went on to tell me that his daughter used to go with one of Charles and Harriet Hutto’s (Carolyn's in-laws) boys up the road. You start to think that everybody knows everybody or they are related. Deborah was working at Home Depot and while talking to a customer and telling him where we lived, he said, “Yeah! You’re having a well put in.” She asked how he knew and he said he saw the well rig. You may not want to express some derogatory opinion or comment about someone (not that we would anyway) because the person you assume doesn’t know who you are talking about probably does, or they are related. Gladys Kravitz lives.




Church:

Deborah will unfortunately miss church about half of the time due to work. However we did go to an Ultreya this past Sunday and we hope and plan to be involved in Cursillo. For those who are not familiar with Ultreya or Cursillo, it is a secret organization that meets and sings strange songs, and they do things like pray, and then there is a fair amount of laughter, and of course food (I’m kind of partial to the food). The people are nice, but they wear strange pins and nametags and greet you with Spanish words like De Colores! I could tell you more, but then I would have to…no we don’t do that. For more information, ask me in person where we can speak quietly. I may let you in on some of the secrets.








I have started tutoring kids in the hood through a youth ministry at church. It is kind of fun to be solving inequalities, working with polynomials, absolute values, and even fractions. Also, I have joined yet another radical organization called the Brotherhood of St. Andrew. It’s a great bunch of guys and our next project will be a pancake breakfast on Shrove Tuesday. We are also collecting toiletries for the prison. All of the folks at Epiphany are the best.

We have been invited to join the VFW, but we have to check Deborah’s schedule.

The Cold Weather:
When we moved here, Bubba Herbert was kind enough to lend us a truck that I have talked about before in this blog. It is an excellent old Ford Pickup that has become like a friend. Back in August or September I had questioned Herbert as to whether or not I needed to use coolant in the truck, because it had a slow leak, and he said "No!" in his typical gruff way. I suppose in a negligent sort of way I just accepted that. Until recently, when one night the temperature got down to –18. Deborah asked me if the truck needed anti-freeze and I told her that Herbert said not to worry about it. Then she said that it got down to –18 and I was struck with fear. I went out and started the truck and it ran OK for a while with no leaks. So I headed for the dump with the truck. About three miles from the house the truck started to steam. I looked under the hood and discovered the thermostat housing had cracked in half. I called Deborah, and she took me home to get the Jeep. I went into town and bought the parts. After my roadside repair, I started the truck only to be disappointed to see water blowing out of the side of the block. Then I called Herbert because he had said that if anything ever happened to the truck, I should take all identifying information off the truck and run. I wanted to know if he still wanted me to follow that plan. Herbert came out and we put an expandable freeze pug in the block and crossed our fingers. There’s no such luck. Now water was blowing out of a different freeze plug. Back to town and the auto parts store. We put in another expandable plug and tried it again. This was my lucky day. Between luck and Herbert I was redeemed. No more leaks!! My friend the truck would live to continue to serve me. Who would have ever thought I would be worrying about freeze plugs in South Carolina?

We have spent a fortune on LP gas. We had no idea how expensive it was. When we realized how fast we were going through gas we tried to lower the thermostat and cut off rooms we weren’t using. We tried running two small space heaters, but we were still using gas way too fast. Finally Deborah figured out what to do. We turned off the furnace. Then we used hardly any gas. So with a new, excellent heater, it may not get worn out too fast. I may just go in and dust and polish it once in a while and never actually use it.

We have even started to wear jackets and sweaters. Bring on the global warming.



Mud Room:

The mud room is done and we now have a new, working washer and dryer. Deborah thought it was Christmas. After days of fooling with floor leveler and numerous coats of paint to cover the paneling and natural wood, buying a small refrigerator, putting in the wire shelf, we have a decent and useful space.







Update:

What we have done so far---

New roof
New carpet in master bedroom, guest bedroom, family room and dining room
Painted the rooms that got carpet including the walk-in closet and the common bathroom and mud room
Repaired missing ceiling in the family room and guest bedroom
Repaired buckled floor in guest bedroom
Replaced galvanized plumbing in the missing bathroom with copper
Put a temporary floor in the missing bathroom
New furnace and A/C
New hot water heater
New LP tank and gas line to the house (the old one was leaking)
New well
New ceiling fan and light in the family room
New light fixture in dining room
New light fixture in walk-in closet
2 new light fixtures in the kitchen
New heater vents in rooms that were painted
3 new light fixtures in the common bath
New light fixture in the carport and by the back door
New faucet and sink drain and toilet in the common bath
New floor in the mud room
We’re wired for cable and internet (and they work)
Rented a storage unit and cleared out the carport.
Cleaned gutters and mildew on out side of the house and cleaned the windows in rooms we are using
Trimmed bushes and trees (you just can’t imagine)
Burned and removed the trash pile (about a dozen trees and trash) including the 10’ satellite dish
Plus we cleaned and cleaned and cleaned

To be done or in progress---

Build a new pump house
Resetting the toilet in the master bath plus a new faucet
Replacing the missing doors to the master bath and master walk-in closet
New bathroom to replace the missing bathroom
New closet to replace the missing closet in the pink room
Everything new in the pink room
Repair front entrance threshold and paint front porch
New light fixtures for the front porch
Refinish hardwood floors in the living room, hall, and two other guest bedrooms
Paint the living room, hall, and two other guest bedrooms plus all new light fixtures
Repair guest bath tub drain
Repair broken stove top burner
Replace mud room faucet
Installing the Advantium in the kitchen
Refinishing the windows in the family room
Glazing all windows
Make screens for all windows
Power wash fence, driveway, and some shudders and front porch
Topping Bradford Pear trees and others
Plant a large garden
Plant flowers
Finish tree trimming
Build a 24' x 24' garage with electric on concrete slab
Do whatever Deborah tells me to do, but slow.
And then I'm building horseshoe pits.

It’s an adventure, but we’re making progress and usually enjoying it.

To friends and family, we continue to do better, and everyday things improve. There are some things that take some getting used to. But then when you have to drive down a lovely country road to get somewhere, and the climate is very moderate, and your church is charming, and all of the people are so friendly, and your family is accessible, and you have plenty of room, it makes pause and know that you are blessed. It kind of makes you want to just go sit out on the patio and smoke a good Dominican cigar.

It just makes me want to say…

Thank God I’m a country boy!