Will a Hoe and Two Old Ladies Kill a Snake?Maybe A Shovel?

I was headed over to Mama's next door  for our morning coffee chat, when I saw her headed my way-fast...really she was a movin' on ....like she was a young thing of 60.(Mama doesn't "do" fast!She's 78.) "Where's the hoe?" she said in a winded voice.
Neither of us garden, and the way we weed is to shell out a fortune on Round Up Weed Control. [Yes.... that is a google keyword...but  a gal's gotta do what a gal's gotta do! ;)] So when we need a hoe, it's a weapon! "Whatcha need it for?" I questioned, hoping it wasn't a snake. "Well it IS a snake, so I'm takin' this hoe and coming up from behind the snake, and I'm gonna chop it's head off." Mama stated ,with just a smidgen of bravado.

Long story short????? A hoe that has never been resharpened since the day you bought it will not kill a 3ft long sausage width snake. Not even with two old ladies (I'm 61.)taking turns. Add a shovel and chop-chop. ..... nope. Chop-chop,twist. Nope.So Mama got her biggest butcher knife while I held the wounded snake with the shovel. The knife got'em. Whew!

SNAKE! photo by Jackie D. Kimball copyright 10/11/2010 by DMCA

Well,after that how can I not see a snake in my mind every two hours? I mean, as I walk by a bush is that sound the crisp rustle of fall leaves or another dad-blamed snake easing across the brittle leaves ready to plunge? Jeepers!

Y'all Won't believe This !

It has been a day so far... an unusual day!
First, my dear Australian friend Mary Ellen called me bright and early (EARLY..LOL!) I met her on a teacher sight. We have been friends for a decade. She is my daughter Lisa's age...but I digress.....

Got right to the point,she did. She told me to go to our local grocery store and get my present.

Present? (Now I'm thinking that they have a photo pickup there, 'cuz I 've been asking for a recent picture.So I diddy-bop up to the store and she has surprised me with the means to go buy THIS:

 I have been wanting a convection toaster oven.HERE it is! This one also has a rotisserie.I was going to get my oil changed today, so I went to get the oven while I waited. Lucky me...only one left. YES!! What a nice gift, Mary Ellen! I'm so touched, you are SO sweet.It will surely save on my electric bill!

My son Mike also called, right after Mary Ellen and I hung up. I haven't talked to him in a month, because his phone does not work out on the Gulf. So I was just feeling like..."could this day get any better?......It is just a lovely day outside,too." Then it happened.

Before I left for town,  I lost my poor Mama! See,I  went to her house next door to tell her something and she was gone.That was okay, until I saw that her purse,keys, cell phone still there, doors open,lights on, and shrimp thawing on the counter. But she...SHE was gone.

 Thinking she might have fallen, I even searched the property and sheds.She was..... nowhere.After 40 minutes. I called my fellow worry wart.(My relatives know who she is.) Fellow worrier is now worried as well,thanks to me. But in our defense..(notice how I pulled her in to this...?) my mother is very methodical when she leaves. Purse?Check.Keys? Check.Cell phone? Check. Door locked? Check. She obviously didn't have time...did someone come and tell her something so horrible that she just ran with them, got in their car and LEFT? (Oh, yeah..that is how my mind works...sad....but true!)

So I called my sister-in-law that lives just a few miles away, but certainly not walking distance. I asked her had there been an emergency. "No", she said. "Why?" So I started telling her about finding Mama gone( told her about the shrimp,the purse....yada,yada,ya)...predictable Mama gone. So she went through the "did you look..."thing, to which I assured her I had.

Now that I had her good and worried, my sweet lil' ole Mama walks in. Turns out, a neice of hers drove by, and they went joy riding.That's right. Mama went without her essentials.(You would just have to know how she is..)

She saw me with the phone in my hand, and said.....,"uh-oh....were you looking for me?" I was so relieved I almost cried.
Well,none of this woulda' happened if Mama isn't always so predictable.
S, I had to backtrack and call off the troops!
I think I'm going to rest a while now...yep.........Tonight, I'm going to bake some chicken and brown rice in my new oven and raise my (sweet tea )glass to Mary Ellen!

Fall at My house.

Fall is my favorite season. Thought I'd share some of my happy spots with you.

My favorite holiday is Christmas, but fall is full of my favorite color combinations. Even my living room is in greens,browns,yellows, and reds.

I just bought this fall quilt with my birthday money. Don't you just love it?

 So just scroll down and look at little glimpses of how I celebrate the season. I'm not finished, and will add more snippets in a future blog.

Glorius October!

My favorite season is here! I love fall, and today it finally feels like fall. I woke up yesterday at 8:00 a.m. The air was crisp, and leaves crushed under my little dog Sweetie's feet. I got on my riding lawn mower and happily cruised around the big ole yard, singing and just taking in the beauty of the day. After I mowed the front and my back yard(left the sides for today)I was give out, but only because of the lymphedema in my legs.Just a beautiful day! Boring, but that is how I roll!

Daughter Lisa and I had  sauteed chicken and onions over a bed of crisp spinach for supper. For dessert, a yogurt fruit smoothie.
Recipe for Sauteed Chicken Over Spinach Salad
Procedure:
~Cut 2 raw skin-off chicken breast filets into small pieces.
~Cover the bottom of a cast iron skillet with olive oil and heat.
~Place chicken in the cast iron skillet which has been covered with olive oil.Use a medium heat.
~ Stir chicken in the oil frequently .
~When the chicken is about half-way done, add 1/2 cup of chopped onions and cook until done.
~Sprinkle with a little salt and Mrs. Dash (liberally), or your favorite seasonings.
~ Remove chicken from heat and cover for 10 minutes.

Using (washed ,chopped , and drained )spinach, green onions, two chopped boiled eggs, and 1/2 cup (or more) of shredded Montery Jack (jalepeno) cheese, toss your salad .
Divide the salad  into individual salad bowls. Arrange Chicken and onions on top of salad, and provide favorite dressing. We use ranch dressing.
This salad is also delicious with a handful of dried cranberries added.Lip smacking good!

Popcorn Balls

Read my new hubber friend's great recipe for popcorn balls! She also has other great recipes you can check out by clicking her name. This will take you to her profile. Scroll down and you will see her recipe "hubs".
Popcorn Balls

Family Time!

All my siblings except my baby sister Sandy met at our mom's last night for a family potluck supper.My nieces and their families were also there. We had so much food until you couldn't get a sample of everything on your plate. (Not counting three desserts!) I made meatloaf,loaded mashed potatoes, and beef tips with onion gravy. All of us try to eat healthy , but twice a month...we meet at Mama's and nearly kill ourselves!

Dutch Oven Beef Tips and Onion Gravy
ingredients:
Chuck roast                               Self-risng flour
Extra virgin olive oil                1/2 package onion soup mix
optional onion and bell pepper

Method:
(1)Cut up a medium chuck roast into chunks about two inches long and one inch wide.
(2) Pour in olive oil,barely covering the bottom of a cast iron dutch oven.Add meat and optional  1/2 c of chopped bell pepper and  1/2 cup of a diced onion. Stir fry the meat on medium heat until it begins to brown.
(3) Turn heat down as low as it will go and cook with lid on about three hours .
(4) Make your favorite brown gravy and add 1/2 of a package of  onion soup mix. Add to the beef tips and simmer uncovered  until thick and bubbly.(about 15 min.)  VARIATION- Use barbeque sauce instead of gravy.

A Grateful Mama

I am so happy  tonight! My beautiful angel daughter had laser gall bladder removal surgery yesterday. I talked to her yesterday and today and she seems to be doing well,though sore. Her bloodwork is showing no abnormalties that indicate cancer now.I'm so grateful to God!

She did not want me to come to AL for the surgery , because she was worried about my legs (lymphedema)and knew it would be hard for me. I felt lousy not going,though!

in late October or early November, she will have her thyroid removed. I will be headed to Alabama for that !



                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Mama(my sweet next door neighbor) has been talking about /wishing for an I Pad. I have been online today a good bit, and my laptop is getting heavy. I started thinking I wouldn't mind having one myself. I know nothing about wireless fees, or phone fees, and need to study up on it.Still, since I am trying to make moneu by writing on hubpages, I would love to have this...I think. Wish I still had money to throw around...(pre-retirement) I'd sure see about this for Mama!



I guess I could afford the carrying case!Or maybe a mini-laptop!
 Jackie




Worth looking into...maybe Santa will give me the $114.00 for Christmas...yeah,right!Ha!

Happy Birthday to ME !

Yesterday was my birthday! I am 61! People say I look 50. (Liars..ha!) I can still kick it though!

I had a wonderful day. Nothing really that special, but wonderful anyhow.

After taking my coffeee next door to Mama'a house and chatting for at least a half hour,I mowed the front yard and my back yard.

I came in and cooled off, took a shower, and fixed lunch for Lisa and me.Both of my other grown kids called to wish me a happy birthday...AWWwwwww....sniff, I miss them so much!

At 5:00 P. M. , Mama, Lisa , and I went out to a fish,seafood, and steak restaurant called Brown's Landing.The fish was perfect and the salad bar was totally drool worthy!

Later , I joined several other women at our church for scrapbooking.(Until 12:30!)

Then tonight , we had a big family get together. Everyone bought a few delicious food dishes, and it was a smashing success. I asked my sister-in-law Linda to make a dessert called Oreo fluff instead of a birthday cake. OH-MY-GOODNESS.......

Came home and took off my compression hose( for the lymphedema) and got into my old green gown. Now I am just playing on the computer.Cheers!

Beautiful Tuesday in Louisiana

You never know in LA what the last day of August is going to look like. I'd say there is a hint of fall in the air today. The temp is in the 80s and quite pleasant , with a few trees beginning to adorn themselves in  lovely orange/gold ensembles. Fall is my favorite time of the year. The central air conditioner is rarely kicking on, so it is blissfully quiet except for an occasional sound of a tractor in the distance.

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The picture of the cotton field  is  from flickr creative commons . The cotton fields in my area have been replaced over the last few years by bean crops. I always thought seeing the dazzling white cotton perched atop the cinnamon  brown stalks was beautiful. I miss being surrounded on three sides by it's beauty.The beans, meanwhile, are boring and  are full of mice!

   I still haven't heard from my son , so I don't know if he is coming this way or not. Just two days until he gets off, so I'm thinking probably not..sigh...Also missing my daughter in AL. I bet their weather is even cooler.