Getting ready for winter

While I was visiting family in Pennsylvania, John & Josh worked on the greenhouse.  It's now ready for the plants.  I spent about half an hour yesterday getting them all inside.  I will be doing some more work on the interior... putting some rocks around the perimeter too keep out little rodents, putting in some 5 gallon buckets full of water to help raise the humidity & act as a heat mass, starting any seeds we want to grow over the winter (tomato & bell pepper come to mind).

The greenhouse.  The door is on the left, out of the picture.

The roof is really interesting.  This plastic is very strong.

I also got the chicken enclosure covered in plastic.  It's getting down to around freezing at night now, and the highs will only be in the mid 50's.  I've been covering the chickens for a few winters now, and I haven't had damage on their combs or feet.  This is a great improvement.

What the cages looked like after an ice storm last winter.

Frozen chicken is great in the freezer, not in the chicken house.

We've stayed close to home the past few days.  The stores are always crazy the week of Thanksgiving.  First, all those folks are in the grocery store buying all the items they need for the annual feast.  Then, BLACK FRIDAY...  I've never been shopping on Black Friday.  I don't understand waiting in line, in the cold, pushing & shoving & fighting.  Just plain crazy , in my humble opinion.

I did some baking in the past few days. Two pumpkin pies & a peach "dump cake".  The guys have been eating well!  We had ham & potatoes au gratin for our Thanksgiving meal.  Very tasty.

Thanksgiving thoughts - helping friends in need...

Today, Tuesday November 22nd, has me thinking of Thanksgiving.

When I was in PA last week, the folks in my Mom's apartment building had their annual Thanksgiving turkey dinner.  There were about 40 people present.  This was a catered event.  The food was great.  Our table companions were interesting. The elderly married couple seated with us have been married almost 70 years!  Wow! And the lady seated to my left was their flower girl!  Holy cow!

My mother's friend, Pat, was seated to my right - between Mom and I.  Pat had purchased her first house from this lovely couple back in the 1970's.  Again, WOW!

That was on Wednesday, the 16th.

Pat is wheelchair bound.  She's lived in the apartment building for 18 years.  She & my mother have been friends for 15 years.  The watch the NASCAR races every Sunday.  They cook meals together.  Good friends, for sure.

On Thursday, Mom and I went driving to Benton, PA to check out some antique stores.  We had a great time.  When we got back, Mom got a call from Pat's medical emergency monitor that she had fallen.  We hurried over to Pat's apartment.  Pat was lying on the floor in her bathroom.  She seems to be rather unfazed by this fact.  Mom and I got her back into her wheelchair.  She insisted she was fine, but did admit she'd fallen 5 times that day.  This really distressed my mother.

She felt bad that Pat had such a bad day, while we were out enjoying the sunshine.  She didn't really say anything about it.  But I knew she had wished she'd been around to help Pat when she was needed.

I left for the airport very early Friday morning.  My husband and son picked me up in Little Rock, and we drove home in the rain.

When we got home, I called Mom to see how Pat was feeling.  Pat's daughter Becky had called 9-1-1 early that morning.  And just a few moments before I called, Becky had called and informed Mom that Pat had passed away.

I'm glad I had an opportunity to get to know Pat over the past week.  I'm glad I had an opportunity to help her when she needed help, even if it was only to help her when she fell.  I'm glad I got to eat Thanksgiving dinner with her.  What could be more appropriate?  Thanksgiving is about taking the time to be thankful for the people we have in our lives.  For the fact that we have family, a roof over our heads and food in our bellies. It's not about parades, football games or super shopping opportunities.  It's expressing the love we have in our hearts to the people we care about.

So in closing, I want to say "I love you" to my family and friends.  To the people who I see in my daily life.  Thanks for sharing this big old crazy ball flying through space with me.  I'm glad we're here together.