Rainy Tuesday

To me, the only thing worse than a cloudy Monday is a rainy Tuesday morning. There is a cold front that is trying to pass the Heartland and for some reason is sticking around and giving us more moisture. Normally a warm front and a cold front meet overhead and they rush past each other and a few hours of clouds later it is sunny. For some reason there is not much in the cold front and it has met a warm front that is just hanging around and.... Well Rain. You can hear the rumble of thunder in the background but the wind doesn't seem to want to do much. The rain falling on the leaves is making more noise in what normally is a symphony of wind noises.

I just spent about an hour looking at the experiences of Andrew Zimmern and his travels across the US. To me, that would be the perfect life where you get to meet fun people, eat fun foods and laugh your butt off. This morning I have traveled from Palm Springs in California to rowing on the Charles river near Boston. There was a stop in Milwaukee and Chicago thrown in for the cholesterol. I'm sure that I gained five pounds just watching him eat. The best of the artery plugging was in Wisconsin where he ate a butter burger. That sirloin burger was fried on a grill, topped with cheese and the only condiment on the bun was a dollop (a whooping couple tablespoons) of butter. Normally I would use the term slathered to indicate it was smeared to coat the bun. In this case I think plopped on the bun might be the best. Can you imagine what it would be like to go to Ben and Gerry's and get to invent your own brand of Ice Cream? Andrew got to eat a scallop that he cut from the shell and cooked on the grill with pork belly pieces fried in the deep fat fryer as a tasty tidbit on the plate. No, I think I gained 8 lbs, I had forgotten the trip to the Bratwurst factory. Then to share the hand made brats with a group of people in a bar. How sweet is that?

My latest project here at Rabbit Run will be an arbor to support the wisteria out in front of the house. I have put it off until the wisteria has almost completely covered the ground for about 25 feet and has started up the house. I spent most of the first day on the project just clearing things so I could get in there to run the chain saw. Yes, after 20 years, Barb has decided that I can cut down a couple of the trees to make room for the wisteria arbor. I think the proof in the pudding for her came after I cut down one tree that was dying and the resulting hole was closed up inside of a year. Give a tree and inch and it will grow a foot. I am struggling with the idea that there will be some gymnastics required up on a ladder and I only have two hands. I guess I do have boards to build a scaffold and clamps. We'll see. If all of a sudden by blog stops, you will know that somewhere the combination of ladders, chain saw and clamps have taken their toll. Or as that age old book of Lumber jacking is titled, "For whom the saw cuts." I really want it to be a what it cuts not a whom, who or any good parts. "Parts is Parts" works for me unless they are my parts.

This morning I was reminded of an old quote. "Don't sweat the petty things, and don't pet the sweaty things." I offer you this tidbit to help you get through the day with a smile on your face. That follows with the other side of my twisted sense of humor and that is, "Smile and make the bastards wonder what you have been up to."

MUD