June 30

Nice day in the making here. For one thing no rain in the forecast and another thing is most of the cuss-makers have abandoned their ships or so it seems up to now. Tho I have seen several of those water scooters scooting around this morning they don't have near the possible dock damage wreaking abilities as what the shittin ships do. And they very seldom conjure up a lot of nasty words to congregate in my normally awfully clean, nasty word free mind. Who was that laughing?

Sad to say but our 15 plus year old Briggs and Stratton engine, sitting on the once replaced body that sets on the twice replaced wheels finally bit the dust. She's been a good one but the last several mow jobs had been a struggle for her. Hard to start then at times oil being thrown out the exhaust during the attempt. After she did start the resulting smoke worked wonders as a mosquito repellant but it would burn off soon enough.

Yesterday the thing just quit running about half way through the mow job. I could start it but then it would buck up and promptly die again. During my mechanically inclined frugal attempts to determine the problem the starting rope broke. Have you ever replaced one of those? I have several times and it isn't something that you would want to do without knowing for sure that the engine would continue to run if and when you ever got it started again.

Sounds like a mower shopping trip is in the near future as I lost the argument for a young goat that we could tether out as a replacement. And I'd bet those little turd balls would have been good catfish bait! Might have been able to package and sell them to recoup some of our incurred losses at the gyp joint that they call a gambling boat but isn't. It isn't a boat at all and gambling insinuates a chance to win of which there doesn't seem to be.

"Trade is much superior to piracy. You can rob and kill a man but once, but you can cheat him again and again and again." -Louis L'Amour

June 28

Thought it was a goner but the fat came back! Yep, I can most usually find lost things that we have no need for and should stay lost. As of this morning I've found all but a few ounces of the five pounds I lost during the fasting for the colonoscopy.

I think help from the bbq pork steak, the fried and boiled shrimp and the huge desert selection at the buffet yesterday was a major assistant to the find. I'm not saying that did it, I'm saying I did it all on my own but mistakenly used them to help. Now if I could only find the money we lost there.....

Gas on the lake is $4.39 and we received 2.4 inches of rain Thursday through last night. I wonder who is living right? It seems the rain has moved on out for the weekend allowing those rich dock destroyers the opportunity to spend a lot of cash relieving their weeks accumulation of frustrations. Then they'll go back to work Monday to begin stocking it away again for the big forth of July weekend.

I suppose I'm a selfish person because as we sit here watching the fun seekers trying to find that evasive fun I can't feel happy for them at all. And no, it isn't an envy induced thing!

"To build may have to be the slow and laborious task of years. To destroy can be the thoughtless act of a single day." -Sir Winston Churchill

June 27

Things went as well as could be expected yesterday including the colon exploration by strangers. they now know more about me that I know myself.

I did rain on us on the way to Columbia and most of the way back. When it is as wet as it is around here, more rain isn't much of a happy making helper. Matter of fact, it tends to contribute in a large way toward making a dreaded day even more dreary.

Heck, 'all's well that ends well', and mine seems to have recovered from all the abuse just fine. They did take a couple very tiny snips while roaming around in there but that is one less than three years ago. Those same negative results of then are what we hope receive again in a couple weeks.

I hate to admit, but I must have been full of it! Just hanging around here in the house after a walk to the mailbox then on around the horn I lost five pounds. As near as I can figure it, a great bunch of the loss was fluid. Believe me! A huge loss of fluid and at the end she was running clear! No food relates to no fluid retaining salt and I think that helped to let it all go.

As I said I mostly lazed around all day Wednesday. During the latter part of the lazy day, as I was just shitting around, I played the little poker machine and hit four of a kind twice along with some other winners. That has pushed forward some, my normal lagging enthusiasm for a trip to the boat that is planned in honor of Ruthie's birthday today. That and the knowledge that I can eat again. No, the usual poor quality of the food at the boat buffet isn't a determent!

I'm sorry about this soliloquy of no interest but as most of you know there isn't much of anything that comes out of my head that is very interesting anytime. I'm working on it! I try to practice on it some most everyday......I am not a neurotic, just a slow learner. Or maybe I could blame it on the fact the interest is waning everywhere. With highs of only 3 or 4 percent ragging around out there, it makes my 0 percent seem less bad.

Hey, tender me a topic.

A mistake which is commonly made about neurotics is to suppose that they are interesting. It is not interesting to be always unhappy, engrossing with oneself, malignant and ungrateful, and never quite in touch with reality.-Cyril Connolly

June 25

Today is going to be one of those terrible 'day before' kind of day that comes along every so often! One where you go without food but spend only 2.5 hours drinking a gallon of Colyte in preparation for a hopefully successful but uncomfortable long poke up the behind. I guess the doctor prescribed, self induced watery diarrhea of today is to get me used to some strange thing going on back there. From past experiences I expect tomorrow will be a bugger yet not a gay time at all.

The 90% humidity and high temperature together causing an expected heat index of 98* or more is going to be rough. Despite that, I expect some hunger inspired antsy will force me to find a few things to do outside anyway. For one thing a walk to the mailbox might be in order. It is only about a quarter mile to the box but man what a hill!

I seem to have a bunch of butt hole thoughts creeping in interfering with my normal crappy....(see what I mean)....thoughts, so guess I'll quit.

To be stupid, and selfish, and to have good health are the three requirements for happiness; though if stupidity is lacking, the others are useless. -Gustave Flaubert

June 24

Dadgummit! I wanted to use a much stronger word but held'er back. I had a note all typed and ready to send but before I did Dory wanted me to walk with her up to the mailbox. I put the computer down thinking I would send it when we got back. In our absence the computer downloaded an update and then restarted the computer.......lost note! I have since turned that little automatic option off.

Anyway to keep you from wasting one of your blessing counts on a non-note not received I'm sending you another. It probably won't be any better than the one lost but there is a good chance it won't be any worse. Nothing much said in it nor this one either.

Dory has been talking to me some about my food intake. I've told her several times that I have a large body which of course requires more fuel. And while climbing the hill to the mailbox, in a gasping puffing answer to a snide comment from her, the bigger body also requires more oxygen.

I never gave the food problem much thought as I usually eat what ever she serves. But she got enough of my attention yesterday to make me believe she is serious. She and Ruthie went to Osage Beach for a few things and planned to have lunch there somewhere.

This left me to my own wiles for lunch and a trick it was. Only thing I could find was a can of sardines in mustard sauce and a bag of radishes. These two items aren't a, 'go together good', kind of thing. If I'd had any hunger pangs at all they disappeared after about four bites but I was still able to force the remaining five bites down and hold them too.

Old people shouldn't eat health foods. They need all the preservatives they can get. -Robert Orben

June 23

I guess if they want to take off the federal tax on gasoline for awhile we won't object tho it seems only to be talk. It probably wouldn't save us much but a penny saved here and there can sure count up.

We are unemployed but pay lots and lots of taxes. The sales tax on food, on gasoline, on phone bills, McDonald 99 cent hamburgers, car and boat license, personal property tax, real estate tax and a lot of other tax that I'm not going to work my head on. We should be filing all that and getting some kind of rebate! We are being discriminated against! What's a poor boy to do?

No wonder older people start hunkering over somewhat. They've had it stuck in them so often they've finally quit bothering to straighten up after every pop. That is one of the reasons older men should be married. Like in my case, I stand a lot more upright than I could without Dory. Bearing her cross on my back day after day tends to balance my hunker some. The worry of getting reared back too far is the main reason I built my stomach up like I have. It makes a perfect counterweight.

"The genius of our ruling class is that it has kept a majority of the people from ever questioning the inequity of a system where most people drudge along, paying heavy taxes for which they get nothing in return." -Gore Vidal

June 22

Not much going on around here. The most pleasurable and exciting thing that has happened so far today is watching the sun come up. Did you ever notice how quick that happens? First you see a tiny bit edge up over the trees across the way then wamo bamo it's all up staring at you like an evil eye. If you look away when it first starts it's move, you can miss the whole thing. It changes the whole world in the blink of an eye. To me, when the sun gets up, a new day has officially begun. When it's cloudy and the sun is obscured, it's a free day. One of the days where you read or such stuff. They are so nice you don't even care about an official start.

In case you're thinking, because I find so much pleasure and excitement in the raising sun, that maybe I ought to get a life.........shame on you! I have one! That is the main reason I find so much excitement and pleasure in seeing the sun rise another time.

When older age takes things from you it does it in a very stealthy manner. During yesterdays walk to the mailbox I finally took notice that I had not been getting my second wind on for some time now. I noticed it again as I was mowing the lawn and carrying the ladder around cleaning out the gutters. It causes a need to slow down and wait for the original one to catch up. Wonder when that left me? I can't believe it took this long to notice it's absence.

There was times in my younger years when I would never have finished a thing or two had it not been for my second wind. Lucky I don't quite do things now like I did back then. I'd rather think it is because of a lack of desire than lost abilities.

I'm not sure if it is the older age or something else but for some reason my desire to type this has quietly slipped away. Feel a little sorry for all of us that the desire didn't evaporate right after the first two words, 'not much'. I think they aptly describe the contents. I think I'll slip away too. I'll slip down to the dock, pick up a fishing rod and see if I can catch it back.

Old age is like climbing a mountain. You climb from ledge to ledge. The higher you get, the more tired and breathless you become, but your views become more extensive. -Ingmar Bergman

June 19

Well heck, we choose to live here so I'm not complaining but a 98% humidity is some very thick shit! Add to it an 80 plus degree temperature and going outside will flat negate any and all the hygienic values of a shower in about two minutes. Sauna bitch!

Looks like a female planned conspiracy is afoot against me today. A few ladies got together and devised a plan to travel to Boonville for a spot of sport, if you want to call it that. They hit Glenda in her weak place and invited her to ride along. Of course they took the chance that I wasn't completely daft and invited me too. Nope! In my primary center for the regulation and control of my bodily activities, I still have floating around, enough stuff, neutrons or whatever, to keep me from being completely stupid. Me with a car load of women, NO WAY JOSE`. Actually it is, 'no way Joseph' in English but that doesn't ryme.

For myself I'm thinking about cleaning out the garage with maybe a break or two thrown in to go to the dock and cast a little fishing lure around some. But then I do have two unfinished books I could read and I still want to explore further, the cool photo program I received from my daughter. The word cool used in the description isn't meant as the youngsters use it, rather the staying in and messing with that, would be a cool thing to do considering the reigning humidity and heat that prevails.

Soendsanotheruselessnote!

All we see of someone at any moment is a snapshot of their life, there in riches or poverty, in joy or despair. Snapshots don't show the million decisions that led to that moment.-Richard Bach

June 18

It's beginning to look again, like if we want to drink in some shine we're either going to haft to buy it or make some. Don't know where to buy it nor how to make it either and doing without works out just fine.

I remember the time I was introduced to some. That came to pass quite a few years ago in the middle of the afternoon. I was visiting at a Caterpillar owning friends shop near Ashland when the boys brought out a jug.

I remember the time of the incident but a lot of the other details are a bit spotty still to this day. I do remember we drove to one of his other farm after dark to feed his cattle then sat around in the unlived in farm house, drank a few beers, ate some handy snacks and attempted to visit.

I got home way late or early a.m. and almost overslept when get up time rolled around. Must not have been too bad because I still felt pretty happy after arising and each of the three times I brushed my teeth, tho my eyes were very bloodshot my teeth were lurking behind a fairly huge smile that must have hung around all night.

The problem was that all the happy all drained by mid-morning leaving a really tired and sad sack in it's wake. No Mas! No Mas!

Glenda left to take mom to her three doctor appointments in Columbia while I'm staying home to supervise the placing of rip-rap on the lakeside of our seawall that is supposed to happen today.

A hangover is just another one of those "fleas of life" things--you know, colds, bills, sprained ankles and little nuisances of one sort or another.~ William Styron

June 17

Slipped out of bed this morning around 5:15 then glided into the kitchen returning with our days first dose of starting fluid. I've found that actualities can always be soothed over and improved with a few choice words! The written improved version can sometimes even make you feel better about the overall happening.

The fact is, around 5:15, as usual, I struggled mightily to get out of bed, taxing my limits of pain endurance, then with a limping type slow waddle I painfully made it back from the kitchen with a cup of coffee for each of us.

It seems, as I sleep my joints and things take a set as if being glued and every morning it takes awhile to pull all those babies loose again. Works out fine for me. The worry as to the possibility of too long in bed might allow the glue to set too hard to be pulled apart is one of the reasons I get up in the morning.

Even laying there this morning, with bad memories and other ugly thoughts beating the hell out of my enthusiasm for the day, due to a scheduled trip to Jeff City to have a tooth filled, the worry got me up.

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly." -Buddha

June 16

The thing we do when we go outside isn't to step into the outside but to dive into it. With the humidity so high any forward motion after the dive is a slow motion type walk/swim combination, leaving behind you clues to where you came from in the form of wet spots as the parted moisture drops from your body. If it becomes too bothersome it can be circumvented by staying in the house with the air on.

As with you, this high humidity over time can cause some problems with nature too. We got treated again early this morning to the realization of how nature makes the correction. She sends the terrible scary looking streaks of lightning out to pulverize the humidity then with some teeth jarring booms of thunder she shakes the pieces out of the sky to the ground. So far this last bunch of accumulated pieces only total .6 inches but it isn't over till mother say's it is.

It is with our passions as it is with fire and water, they are good servants, but bad masters. -Aesop

June 13

We choose to live in Missouri even while realizing the extreme weather conditions that can and sometimes does occur. More often than not the severe storm warnings are given with not much happening but just in case one should take a few extra precautions.

We choose to live right on the Lake of the Ozarks which has is niceties but some disadvantages too. Without scratching out a list of both I'll just tell you one aggravating thing that any half smart person living this close to a huge body of water would think to do.

Many times we get into bed for a nights sleep with the warning of tornadoes ringing in our ears. If one should hit and blow us toward Oz the chances aren't too good that we would make it. Just in case the attempt should put us about half asleep into the lake we take the precaution of wearing a life jacket to bed.

Yes, siree, Bob, that makes for a very uncomfortable nights sleep despite the safety factor. Shoot even huddled in a corner of the basement it kinda chafes you.

1.5 inches or rain as of 8:00 a.m., still raining and more is forecast along with some severe weather possibilities. Rather than wear a life jacket all day we're heading inland to Eldon where we'll attempt to anchor ourselves to the ground with a bowling ball.

Early and provident fear is the mother of safety. -Edmund Burke

June 12

A partly cloudy day with extra heat and humidity but the real nasty is said to be arriving here after 10:00 tonight and stay with us through tomorrow. Severe storms possible and at least 2.5 inches of rain probable.

We can take it and will give as little thought as we can to how fast it is making the grass grow which makes more often the need to mow. I myself might nigh run out of gas before I get all the damn grass cut. And the with lawn mower running on that $3.85 gas keeps me wondering which will happen first, me running out of gas completely (a nice way to say die) or us running out of funds for the chore.

I guess the actual dying can be easy but sometimes it can be a hard and rough place to get to. Big time I hope that my mamma had an easy time giving me birth. You know how it is, easy come, easy go and when I leave I sure want to go easy.

If that is so, the hard earned funds could go hard and believe me that is true so far. It is so hard to turn any loose that we go without a lot just to avoid the associated pain.

Humm, wait a minute. Stopping this typing and hitting send is pretty easy but the looking for some kind of content that always ends in nothing is never easy. Nothing! Everyone knows nothing is easy.

Death, the most dreaded of all evils, is therefore of no concern to us; for while we exist death is not present, and when death is present we no longer exist. -Epicurus

June 11

Looks and sounds like it's going to be another one of those butt scratching days but isn't it supposed to be good when something tickles your fanny. Or whatever. Doesn't make us any difference we'll do what we want even if it is outside.

Our attitude stays pretty good although there may be times we need to prompt it a little by counting a few of our trillion God given blessings.

You do know that happiness is controlled close to 137% by attitude and we're full of it. You can make the it anything you feel is proper but I know what I meant.


This mindless blather has somehow engaged my meager mind into action allowing me to see how dumb these notes are. Causes me to quit, at least until the mind numbs up again.

Happiness is a small and unworthy goal for something as big and fancy as a whole lifetime, and should be taken in small doses. — Russell Baker.

June 10

Each of the three of us were a little disappointed in the results of our trip yesterday with the free buffet being a piss poor highlight of the day. One would think that a barbequed pork steak couldn't help but be good but that wasn't the case with this deli styled 1/4 inch thick piece of meat that you had to fish out of the thick gravy like sauce that it was sunk in.

They had some other eatery items like fried fish and chicken but when we go out to eat those are about the last things that would ever tweak a desire in me. Even so there was enough stuff to amply fill the huge temporary storage area that I carry with me every where I go.

It did take a moderate cash outlay to obtain our free piss poor food buffet but I'm sure we're still going to be okay although another insult to the injury was noted this morning when I stepped on the scales. Seems like a lot of that stored stuff wasn't temporary after all.

One of the best temporary cures for pride and affection is seasickness; a man who wants to vomit never puts on airs. -Josh Billings

June 9

Wowee! Yesterday was more of what I call, 'butt scratching weather'. You know, to step out into this 90 plus degree temperature with a 99% humidity that kicks the old body cooler into action as it sends the internally contained cooling moisture running down the body. It works pretty good too but when it finally begins to run down the sensitive buttocks it never fails to create the desire to scratch there. There you go, 'butt scratching weather'.

Today is somewhat cooler with rain so Glenda and Ruthie have figured out a way to possibly get rid of some scratch by having me drive them to the Boonville boat and their luckless player powered pay us as you play money suckers.

Not wanting to be left out of the conversation on the way home, I'll play a little too just to enable me to complain about my loses along with the rest...........and then you never know for sure when a win might stumble in.......

Never let a win get to your head, or a loss to your heart.~unknown

June 6

A trip to Columbia yesterday for our scheduled visits to the doctors where we were reassured after a sonogram revealed that the little thing on Glenda's thyroid had diminished in size and didn't appear to pose a problem at all.

Now for me, we went to the audiologist to retrieve and pay $213 for the repair of my left hearing amplifier which I promptly stuck in my ear. Then across town to the medical doctor where he promptly stuck what must have been four fingers up my rear. A tetanus shot in my right shoulder, a pneumonia shot in my left and then a needle into the crook of my arm for a couple tubes of blood. Left there feeling very pricked and violated but was able to waddle out of there after being deemed healthy......so to speak.

Afterwards we stopped at a near by HyVee for a spot of breakfast. I did drop my wallet when paying and Glenda had to pick it up for me because I was afraid to bend over. Anyway by the time we had finished eating, the old mind had dropped the torment and I was able to lose the waddle as we walked out.

Before we headed home Glenda was able to gleam it on some radically reduced prices at sears in the mall where she bought over a hundred dollars worth of stuff for less than ten. As in a lot of cases worth only means the original tagged price that someone might pay but would never have been anywhere near that much worth to us.

Today is our regular trip to Eldon and the fights.....er bowling. Last week there were 17 of us and that high number of kinda old set in their way folks, increases the chance for disagreements and there was.

No matter how many, there is always a bit of blowing taking place which I might contribute to but last week a couple folks got into hard blowing and throwing in some nasty personal obiter dictums. It made some of us uncomfortable while a few seemed to regale in the not so quite phraseology. Life is just a game sweetheart!

"To knock a thing down, especially if it is cocked at an arrogant angle, is a deep delight to the blood." - George Santayana

June 3

Another day without the sun, tends to makes a man feel older never young. Now that I give it a little thought I do remember some staying in type dreary days when I did feel pretty young and feisty too. I can't say that I felt especially young at the time but looking back I can see that I must have. Don't know about the feisty back then either but some of the things I remember seem to have been pretty feisty to me now.

These days it helps to have memories to overcome the drearies of another sunless day. Every once in awhile I reflect and have yet to fail to get a little rise out of it. Each day as well as memories should all be lived and viewed with a passion! Tis' true that my skills may never match my passion but I'm loving everyday I get anyway!

I don't know whoever said that life is not for the weak or maybe no one ever said it but isn't it great that we can always find someone who is a bit weaker than we are. Glenda is so lucky to have me and I'm blessed with a dog and a cat. Don't know where that sentence came from, just found it floating around in there....

I thought I had a few more floating around but they either sunk or drained off leaving me sitting here with my three typing fingers poised but with nary a note to type. This is the only possible way I know where I might be appreciated for being a little short.

I could say I'm sorry about that but who can be sorry about a thing when it makes others so happy.

The trouble with most people is that they think with their memories or hopes or fears or wishes rather than with their minds.~Will Durant (edt)

June 2

Kinda cloudy out with a small chance of rain and a forecasted high of around 86*. The forecasted high for tomorrow is for 88 degrees and then for Wednesday it goes to 90. Not bad until you add the 80/90 humidity into the deal. That combination always opens a few extra pores. Like flood gates, they open to allow a lot of damned sweat roll down your body and into your eyes. Shower in the morning, shower in the evening shower at supper time.

Oh what a life! Doing mostly what we want to with a few need to's mixed in. I fear one 'need to' isn't very far down the calendar. All the moisture we've been getting has pretty much kicked the grass into high gear reaching for the sun. I've mowed a couple other lawns in the past few days and am about mowed out but ours looks like it's now ready again.

I need to go out and cut each little blade of grass back to the Glenda approved height. She read somewhere that keeping the grass cut discourages ticks from hanging around. At least I think she said ticks, when I'm out there mowing I'm not hanging around either.

One might think that all that salty persperation raining the grass along your path would kill it or stunt it but that doesn't seem to be the case.

Well so much for this days worthless attempt.

Good written things, when short, are twice as good. For bad, it doesn't make any difference.~Gracián (edt)