Saturday, July 10, 2010

It Was A Really, Really Good Day

Mr. Moon and I pondered the fly problem in the dining room and back porch this morning and decided that a Shop Vac might be the answer. But before Mr. Moon tackled the flies, he discovered a pile of eggs underneath the old photo lab in a place that we could not get to with hands or rakes.



Because I have possibly the smartest and most ingenious husband in the world, he realized that the Shop Vac could solve that problem too. The hose of the Shop Vac was too large in diameter to retrieve the eggs safely so he took a piece of PVC pipe and some duct tape and made an egg-retrieval device.

And then he got on his hands and knees and RETRIEVED THOSE EGGS!


I know. He's so damn cute. Sorry girls, he's taken.

This picture is fogged-up because it was already that hot and humid outside. But see how nicely the Shop Vac sucked those eggs up? It was obviously the work of one hen because all of the eggs looked the same.

I can totally tell by now if an egg is laid by one hen or another. And these were all the fruit of one hen's loins. Take my word for that.

Okay. Eggs retrieved. On to the flies.

It turns out that you CAN Shop Vac flies. And if your man is enjoying the fly vacuuming, he might actually start vacuuming things like spider webs and dust. It was like a dream come true.

He cleaned the entire back porch and then moved to the dining room.

At one point he said, "It's really fun to suck the flies up. Do you want to do some?" And I said, "Oh, no thanks. I believe you should have all the pleasure."
Do you see all those flies to the right of him in that picture? Dang.

By the time he was finished, there had been a whole lot of cleaning going on and there were no flies left in the house.
My hero.
Sigh.

He took garbage to the garbage place and I kept telling him how grateful I was to him for helping me. And I was. I truly was.

I finished up my "fluff and stuff" cleaning, as Lis says and made the enchiladas and some meringue cookies with miniature chocolate chips and took a shower and washed my hair and put on a hippie dress and we had a martini and then Judy and Denise (Sweetie and Lovie) showed up with Kathleen and the party began.

Oh my. It was fun. The tall handsome guy (Colin) came with his tiny darling girlfriend from France and the Lovers showed up and Fred and Marcie and the guy who just gives and gives and gives and his friend whom I shall call Mr. Nice Cutie, and Ms. Fleur dropped by with a friend and they all brought food and beverages and well, it looked like this in the kitchen:

And people settled here and there and I gave about eighteen tours of the house and a few of the yard and the chickens made everyone laugh, especially when they came right up on the porch and looked like they might want to come in.

I took this picture of the people in the dining room from the porch:


And there was much eating and much drinking and so much laughing. Really. It was fun. I didn't have one moment of anxiety or worry. How could I with people like this?

And then it was time for people to go and we wrapped up leftovers (Mr. Nice Cutie's curry was the favorite leftover to take home) and everyone took their leave. Hugs and hugs and hugs. Such sweetness.

And as they left, I noticed this guy hanging out on the kitchen porch:

"Oh!" I cried. And ran for the camera. I do love my little green tree frogs.

Yes. It was a good day and a better night and it's time for bed and if I dream again tonight, as I did last night, about that house where half of it is populated by ghosts, well, so be it.
They are friendly ghosts and they love the attention I give them and they wear such beautiful clothes.

And because of the flies, my house is cleaner and my porch mermaid floats above me gleaming and happy with wide-spread wings.


And I think it was a good party and I have leftovers and I hope that everyone, everyone has sweet dreams.

21 comments:

  1. I've been waiting for a party recap :) Looks like everyone had a wonderful time!!!

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  2. Looks like a wonderful party. I loved seeing the lovers so happy.

    And the eggs! Mr. Moon is the best.

    Glad you got rid of the flies. I did wonder if geckos might solve your fly problem, you might try them next time. When I lived in Miami, I'd just leave the door open for a little bit and one would move in. I never had an ant problem when I had geckos.

    Thanks for sending us over to Kathleen. I'm angry somehow about her cancer. It's not right for the good ones to suffer.

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  3. Corinne- Oh. We did!

    Kathleen Scott- I think the fly problem arose (haha!) from something which died under the house. I know how disgusting that sounds but it was pretty obvious from where the flies were. My son has geckos in his house. Maybe I should get one from him.
    As to Kathleen- thanks for visiting her. I am hoping with all of my heart that if she does have to suffer it will be short in time. Cancer certainly doesn't consider fairness at all. I'm sure that hearing from people like you who have been through it and are here and vibrant on the other side is going to be so helpful.

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  4. Any friend of yours is someone worth knowing, I'm sure! I visited Kathleen's blog and look forward to reading her words as she HEALS.

    Love to you and Mr. Moon with none spared for the flies.

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  5. I am so glad you had a great time at your party. It looked like fun times. My daddy sure is a smart man, however what I thought were flies were really spots on my screen. (I cleaned it after that.) I love you, talk to you soon.

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  6. oh that is my fav post in days!! i mean..first all the fun about the eggs and the smart mr moon sucking them with the vac...then the horror of all the flies..and teh relief when they were gone..and on to all the party and goodness of that evening..perfect mix of all whats good:-)

    ps i love the flying mermaid!!!

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  7. Those picts of Mr Moon and his genius eggvac made me laugh out loud. And damn that looks like a good time at Chez Moon. Such happiness.

    Happy Sunday
    xoxoxo

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  8. Elizabeth- You have no idea how much your presence will mean to Kathleen. Thank-you.

    Lily- You DO have a smart daddy. And by the way- you make me laugh. I love you.

    Danielle- I'm glad you liked it. It was a fun day and I never let anything make me stressed. Even when the electricity kept going out beforehand. I knew it would all come out okay.
    And Owen loves the flying mermaid, too.

    Michelle- Yes! He should patent the EggVac. What with all these people jumping on the backyard flock, there may be a market for it! Plus, it works well for vacuuming behind the couch.

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  9. That was great! Mr. Moon what a clever man he is. And what a lot of eggs tucked under. Of course do you know when they were laid? Perhaps some new baby chicks could be in your family...

    Your party looked wonderful and once more Mr. Moon saved the day...he didn't know how helpful he was to you..and he was having fun..hhhmmmm. So glad the nasty black flies are gone and did not cause a problem for your dinner that night. You all looked like you were having such a great time. I do love a secret photo from the outside looking in...it can be such a delight to observe friends together that way...a time to reflect on your evening....

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  10. It was a fabulous suare! I enjoyed our time there. I wish I could have stayed on for a bit longer.

    Did anyone get drunk enough to jump in the kiddie pool? heh heh!
    xxooo PS I will come by for my enchilada!! :-) Yummy!

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  11. Nice. So glad that you had a great party. Shop vacs have lots of great uses, don't they?

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  12. Nice. So glad that you had a great party. Shop vacs have lots of great uses, don't they?

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  13. Too hot to comment.
    Just - hi!

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  14. Dad's so smart! And I bet it was fun to suck up the flies - it was always satisfying to suck up a penny with that old electrolux.

    Beautiful party, too.

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  15. Ellen- Mr. Moon is amazing. I just have to say that. I did the float test on all of the eggs and none of them floated so I stuck them in the refrigerator. No new baby chicks here!

    Ms. Fleur- Some did get drunk enough to get in the kiddie pool but I believe may have been too drunk to find it in the dark.

    Syd- Indeed they do!

    Mwa- I'm about to go get in the kiddie pool. I am not drunk, just hot.
    Hi!

    DTG- It was weird. It was the first party I've had in...oh, forever? which did not center around the family.

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  16. DTG- Well, of course, these people ARE sort of family in a lot of ways.

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  17. I totally love the photo of all the guests from your porch through the window...

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  18. Who'da thunk that a man with a vacuum in had could look so good and devilish, too, look at that grin on his face. I am so glad you have such a good man who helped you get ready for a fun party and had fun doing it. x0 N2

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  19. What a fun, fun party. I've never been one who was good at entertaining...it stresses me so much. I envy those who are able to just freely open their home to friends and family.

    What an ingenious man that Mr. Moon is! That looked like quite the clutch of eggs. I'm surprised the snakes or racoons had not already found them.

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  20. I just found your blog this morning and especially enjoyed the egg retrieval and photos:)Your blog was well written, funny,and the photos were fabulous!

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  21. I love the damn porch mermaid. That bitch is STUNNING!

    Love you, too. The par-tay looked like a real kick.

    SB

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