Big Doin's!

It was a big day in Moon Land today. Jessie, Lily, Rachel, Liz Sparks, and I were all set to get pedicures this morning. Liz was excited. She told me that the last pedicure she got was for the wedding of a friend. She thought about it for a second and then she said, "And her son is about to graduate high school."
So it's been about seventeen years for her. I whooped with laughter. 
Of course it turned out that Jessie could not come. Not only did August test positive for strep, so did Levon although he wasn't showing symptoms. So they were both home from school although both were feeling pretty darn good. 
Here's what they looked like after Liz took them some chocolate chip, pecan cookies. 

Before I met up with the ladies, I took my leftover turkey soup and last night's eggplant parmesan for the Weatherford's to eat. I gave the boys a quick hello and August asked me what I was doing there. "Bringing you some food," I said. 

"What kind?" he asked. 
I told him and he said, "I won't like that," and I said, "And that does not bother me in the least."
He gave me a hug anyway. 

It looked like Lily might not make it today either. Maggie and Gibson are both home from school with icky coughs but Lauren offered to stay with them. Lauren is...the best.

So we got our magical massaging chairs with foot baths and chose our colors. I opted for a rather violet-hued pink today, instead of my usual dark red but Liz liked the red one. Lily got sparkly green and gold and Rachel got a sparkly bronze, I think we'd call it. We felt so fancy. The tiny lady who did my pedicure was the sweetest thing. She would look at me over her mask with the most caring expression like, "Is this good? Is this?" And I praised her over and over. She reminded me a little of the nurse who took care of me after I had the kidney stone blasting procedure who seemed to view me as a cherished grandmother. She treated me with such tenderness. I would adopt either one of them in a heartbeat. 

Lily went home right after we finished up at the nail salon and Liz and Rachel and I went to lunch at a new Peruvian place nearby. It was fun and lovely, too. 

Isn't Rachel beautiful? 

And doesn't Liz look like a movie star in her sunglasses? 

Yes. Yes she does. We all three got sandwiches and what was called "pumpkin soup." The soup tasted entirely of cheese in our opinions but who could complain about that? It was delicious! 

We talked and laughed and there may have even been a tear or two (I mean, I WAS there) and when lunch was over I thanked Rachel for hanging out with her elders. She's as sweet as she is pretty. 

And then I went to a kitchen supply store to get cheesecloth and it turned out that the guy working there is someone I knew back in the olden, olden days. He and his wife were good friends with my darling Sue-Sue. We caught up and he seems to be great. Says his wife has just retired after teaching for 47 years and is now volunteering in the same school and taking a Master Gardening class. 

Some people really do not know how to relax. 

And their daughter is about to get her PhD. So they are well and it was good to see him, good to hear such fine things. 

Then on to Costco where I bought a giant bottle of spiced rum because of course you can't buy a small bottle of anything at Costco. That's what I plan to soak the cheesecloth in before I wrap the fruitcakes in it, and then cover them tightly with aluminum foil. I now have enough spiced rum to make fruitcakes well into the next decade.

So that was my big day. I've really not felt great today. I hope with all of my heart that I'm not coming down with strep and I'm probably not. Lord knows I've been exposed to it quite a few times in the past year and haven't gotten it. Seems like I'm always getting a little sick at fruit-cake making time. Another fine holiday tradition. 

I have not gotten any more of the horrid spammy comments since I started comment moderation but in a way, that disturbs me because it seems that perhaps whoever was making the comments actually does read the blog and knows that they wouldn't get through. I don't know. I'm going to be a good hippie and say, "I'm just not going to give that a lot of energy," and soon I'll take comment moderation off and see what happens then. I think that for people who always moderate, it's no big deal to do but I am so used to not having to do it that it seems like a bit of a pain in the ass to me. I'm not complaining. What blogger does not live for comments? And honestly, it's more of a disturbance in my holy and proscribed daily routine than a bother. 
Man, the rut I'm in is so deep that I have to look up to see bottom. 
I cannot take credit for that line. When I lived in Winter Haven, our across-the-street neighbor was a woman named Wilma who was country-born and country-bred and she had some terrific phrases. The one I just quoted was something she said once about a person who was in a deep depression and it went more like, "He's so down he's looking up to see bottom."

I'm not sure I've ever heard a more accurate description of depression. I have never forgotten it. And when I think about it, I also remember a friend of mine whom I loved so very dearly who got completely hooked on meth (or was it crack?) and one time, when we were talking honestly, he said, "Mary, people always say you have to reach bottom before you can get better but what they don't know is that there is no bottom. Every time you think you get there, it just goes lower down."

Phew. 

He did later get off drugs and was doing well and his joy in life was enormous. And then...he had a cardiac event that killed him instantly. He is sorely missed by many and will always be.

You know what? It's really hard to be a human. That's one of the things Liz and Rachel and I talked about today. 

Let us ponder that and remember to be open to the possibility that most of us are doing the very best we can, no matter what it looks like from the outside. 

Carry on.

Love...Ms. Moon

Let's Eat!

There's my supper from last night. I had a salad too. I could not finish up what was on that plate. I over-served my own damn self. It was so good though! I had more for lunch and there are still leftovers. 

I swear- even on these days when I do very little, the time goes by so fast. It was cold when I got up this morning. 32° on the porch. I could hear the melting dew drip, drip, dripping off the leaves. 
Sigh. 
BUT! It does not appear that my plants took much of a hit. I guess it didn't stay below freezing for very long. It's chilly now and probably going to get back into the mid 30's tonight but I'm not going to worry too much. 

So I did something today that was unusual for me. I am almost embarrassed to admit this but Mr. Moon does all of the bill-paying and financial stuff around here, the reason being that it makes me crazy-anxious and mostly because he is so good at it. I'm on all the accounts but he just takes care of it. However, this morning he called me to ask if I could write checks for our taxes because if you pay before November 30th, you get a lower rate. ARGGGGHHH! 
I really am embarrassed. 
He told me where to find the checkbook and where the bills were and I did it. I hadn't written out a check in so long I'd about forgotten how. It struck me once again that I sure as shit better die before he does. This is not a joke. But I got those envelopes in the mail with their Forever Pete Seeger stamps before noon. And of course I felt that I'd accomplished all I needed to do for the day when that little chore was done. 

I worked out in the yard for awhile, not very long, pulling more border grass and crocosmia. I really want to get that one part I'm working on done because there are so many other places in the yard I want to tackle. I pulled a canning-kettle full which made a small dent in the project. The crocosmia are already coming back up where I've cleared because there is no way to get all of those bulbs. There just isn't unless nuclear warheads are involved. Or the chemical equivalent which I refuse to use. 

I was worried that the firespike had gotten frozen which would mean that I couldn't snip some to overwinter in water to root and plant more of in the spring but although a few leaves looked burned, it was mostly fine so I went ahead and did that. 

This has become a decorating tradition for me. That firespike will look lovely all winter long. 

Speaking of decoration, I got an extremely beautiful card today that came all the way from across the ocean, sent by someone who knows me so very, very well. 

It's like looking into a different world. It's so beautiful and with it, she sent a little card that was so dear I put it up too.

There it is on the left, magnetized to the range hood with a few of my Mary's. 

So. Christmas decorating almost complete!

I've decided to make the fruit cakes on Friday. I want to get the cheesecloth and rum that I need for them before I start. I'm going to meet up with Liz Sparks and Rachel and hopefully Lily and Lauren to get pedicures tomorrow. Jessie was going to come but August has strep again. 
I know. I know. Jessie is so very depressed about this. And trust me- they do the hand washing and the toothbrush sterilizing and all that stuff and still, this shitty bacteria persists in their family. I hear that Maggie has also been staying home from school with a cough but it does not appear to be strep-related. 

Anyway, I'll get the cheesecloth and rum when I'm in town tomorrow. 

I sat down at the piano this afternoon and for whatever reason, I enjoyed it so much that when I finished I said to myself, "Oooh." Trust me- it wasn't because my playing was good. It was simply because I enjoyed it so much. 

And that is that.  

Some of y'all were concerned that your comments are not appearing  when you submit them. That's because I have comment moderation on and it sometimes takes me awhile to get to them. Be patient with me. I am not used to dealing with this situation. 

And now I believe I'll go do something productive with an eggplant. 

Love...Ms. Moon

P.S. The AARP website crashed due to the huge number of people trying to get tickets to the Hackney Diamonds tour. There is nothing about this that does not amuse and delight me greatly. 

The Excitement Around Here Just Never Ends

 
It's supposed to freeze tonight and because I am lazy as hell, I didn't do what I should have done, which is to at least push my porch plants against the wall and cover them. Some of those plants weigh at least a hundred pounds and even sliding them is a struggle. I did bring in my maiden hair fern which almost died last winter in the house for no apparent reason but came back to life this summer outside. 

And I covered up one of my giant begonia plants and as added insurance, I plucked three of its leaves and set them in bottles of water to root in the window of the bathroom off the kitchen which is what you see in the top picture where the hanging crystal is making rainbows dance on the walls. I also brought in my sea grape that I started from seeds I got near the Sebastian inlet. It is not exactly what I might call thriving but it did recently put on a new leaf which gives me hope for it. Lloyd is just not its native country. Poor thing.

Now look at this boy's legs!

It would appear that Levon has sized-out and aged-out on his child's car seat and is now ready for the booster stage of life. I keep car seats in my car because I do sometimes drive them places and August has been using Gibson's old booster seat. The cover for the child's seat I have got a good washing last week and I have yet to put that thing back on and buckle the seat back into the car and of course all of this requires a degree in advanced engineering which I do not have so I used the excuse of Levon not needing the thing anymore to go buy him a booster seat. Those things are not complicated in the least to put in the car. Because I never want to go any farther west into Tallahassee than I need to, I decided to go to Walmart to get one which I knew was a perilous thing for me to do but I told myself that yes, I could do it, and although as soon as I walked into that horrid, horrid place I started disassociating, I focused on finding what I needed and getting out of there. That was mostly successful. The only thing I bought beside the booster seat was two emory boards. Not so bad. 

The weird thing was that I kept almost running into other people's carts. I mean, over and over again. Perhaps it was because I wasn't really paying attention the way I should have been. But I kept getting in other people's way. Sometimes the same person two or three times. And then when I went to Publix, the same thing happened! And yes, both stores were somewhat crowded but far from packed. 
"Excuse me, excuse me. I'm sorry." I have no idea how many times I said that today. And a few times other people almost ran into me. It's like the stars were aligned in such a way as to cause aisle confusion. Thankfully, I did not actually hit anyone nor did anyone hit me but boy, I was glad to get out of both places. 

Here are two cat pictures.

That was what Jack looked like last night when we were just about ready to go to sleep. Doesn't he look demur? He mostly is. 

And here's Maurice when she came outside to watch me bring in the groceries.

I like the way her little chest hairs are glowing in the late afternoon sun. Sorry about that dying flower stalk. You know- I don't even notice things like that when I take a picture. That's how non-visual I am. 

And...

Guess it's time to make the fruit cakes. This is just about the only part of Christmas that I enjoy. Making fruitcake and eating fruitcake. Go ahead- give me your best shot about how nasty fruitcake is. 
I do not care. I love it. And May loves it. And the rest of the family can eat some strudel or something. Whatever. 

I just saw some pictures from the memorial service for Rosalyn Carter. It was good to see the former first ladies all together although I sure as hell wish that Melania T. wasn't one of them. The thing that broke my heart were the images of Rosalyn's Jimmy. I would like to say that I don't think they should have put him through that. He is obviously very close to his own death. But I have no idea what his wishes were about being there. And if it was his choice then I respect that. 
Bless him. He is doing right by his beloved as he sees that he should. 

What a man of honor he was. What a man of honor he still is. 

Cauliflower and salmon for supper tonight! Perhaps some green peas too. Oh but things are wild around here when the man is gone. What's next? Eggplant? 
It could happen. I bought one today.

Love...Ms. Moon

Dammit

 I've put comment moderation on because I've got some horrible pedophile, I think, spamming me. 

We shall persevere.

Past And Present

Well, I tried to be the slightest bit productive today and I did reach that goal- I was absolutely the slightest bit productive. I decided to go through books and cull some. The little free library down the road has been looking sad with the same books in it for weeks now. The books on that table are some of the ones I've decided to donate, either to that little library or to some place that will appreciate them. I also had a short pile of books that really just need to go into the trash- things like old nursing school textbooks that are completely outdated by now. And I did a little dusting as I went. If you look carefully, you can see that Jack was overseeing my process. The things on the little piece of furniture there in the back corner are some camping kitchen items that Mr. Moon won at a duck hunting association dinner a few weeks ago. I think they're going to Jessie and Vergil as they actually go camping. 

I took some of the books to the take-one/leave-one library and spent about ten minutes, trying to Jenga all of them in. I have no idea if anyone who passes that thing will be interested in the least in any of them. I put a few kids' books in there too. I hardly ever see children on my walks but there may be some grandmas or grandpas who'd like a nice book about trucks or a Mother Goose to read to their babies. It sort of tore my heart a little bit, getting rid of those books. Remember how much Levon adored books about trucks and heavy machinery? And let's face it- there are children's books that will be with me when I die because I just cannot bear to let them go. To hold them in my hands is to remember reading to children I love, cuddled up next to me. Whether to my own children or to my grandchildren- those moments have been among the very happiest of my life. 

I went out to the garden today to pick a salad and while I was nipping arugula leaves with my thumb nail, I glanced up to see these pretty little plants. They are the sugar snap peas I planted a few weeks ago that I thought were never going to come up. I'd used old seeds from last year (and possibly ones from the year before) and I'd soaked them overnight,  planted them, and checked them daily for awhile but there were no signs of any of them breaking ground. 
Well. The unwatched pot finally boiled, I guess. I was so cheered to see them. This is the first time I've ever planted peas in the fall. The traditional time to plant them around here is Valentine's Day but we get freezes in February and March sometimes and I've never seen my tender little plants die with the cold temperatures so...why not? 

I am looking forward to my salad tonight. I had to wash the greens three times because yesterday's rain splashed dirt up onto the leaves but I think I got them cleaned. They are resting in a dish towel in the refrigerator, waiting to be torn and combined in a bowl with tomatoes and cucumbers, garlic, basil, olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper. I'm going to cook some shrimp that I had in the freezer, too. Quite honestly, my soup last night was so surprisingly delicious that I really enjoyed it and even ate some more turkey for lunch. I guess I'm not quite sick unto death of it yet. 

A little while ago as the day was beginning to fade into nighttime, I flashed back on how I felt years and years ago when Hank and May were little and I lived down the road from where I live now, in a little house in the woods. I was still married to my first husband and those twilight hours were the worst for me. I was generally alone with the children because my husband would go to town around midday to teach guitar and then go to band rehearsal and would often be gone into the very wee hours. It was hard for me, those long, long days and evenings, even though I adored my children and I loved my house and I had my garden. I had friends and we did visit back and forth, but never in the evenings. That was suppertime, a time to be with family. And some of my friends' husband were also in my ex's band so they were home with their children. 
I can remember feeling so alone, so desolate. There was no internet, of course, to keep me entertained or give me a sense of online community. Hell, our TV only got three channels and that was if we were lucky. I had books. I did all sorts of needlework, sewing clothes for my kids, making baby quilts for babies coming soon, crocheted afghans, did embroidery, wrote letters. Because we lived in Jefferson County and almost everyone I knew lived in Leon County, calling a friend often meant paying long distance charges. Remember those? We didn't have a lot of money to spare. And one of the worst parts of it all, was knowing that I had no idea when my husband would be home or where he would be when rehearsal had ended and he didn't come home for hours. For so many years I was the absolute Queen of Denial. 
I knew but I didn't want to know. 

Things are so different now. When my husband goes away, even for days at a time, I know what he's doing. And I have this community which is so precious to me. I often wonder what my life would have been like if I could could have been a mommy blogger then. I think it would have been tremendously helpful. And at this point in my life, I love being alone. I feel safe alone. I feel like a lady of leisure. I can mess around in my (MY!) library, I can sit and knit and watch TV. I eat whatever I want. I can read in bed until I can't keep my eyes open any longer. And I know that if I need someone, some THING, I can call my children and they will be here for me. But most of all, I know that my husband will be home and that there will be hugs and love and someone to take care of and someone to take care of me and that is what I never even dared to dream of. 

Lord, I do ramble when the man is gone and I feel no time constraints when it comes to getting supper on the table. Forgive me. 

Love...Ms. Moon

Sweet Rain, Sweet Day

It's been a gloomy, rainy old day and I have loved every second of it. I had nothing I had to do outside of the house at all and so used the rain as an excuse to stay inside and be cozy and sit on the couch and play with yarn and watch two episodes of "All The Light We Cannot See" on Netflix. 

I read the book years ago and loved it and as I told Jessie- I even remember a lot of it! From what I gather, there are some major differences in the movie and in the book and I hope they do not disturb me. So far I'm enjoying it, or at least as much as one can enjoy a story set in wartime Occupied France with Nazi's everywhere and a blind girl doing her best to survive and continue broadcasting from her attic, all alone and starving. 

I have to tell you that the scenes where Nazis are marching and unfurling flags and Heil Hitler-ing are even more chilling than they would have been ten years ago when I would never have ever thought that anything like that could happen here.
But the acting is good, especially the scenes with the younger version of the daughter with her father. Their love for each other is palpable. 

I finished reading Patchett's "Tom Lake" last night and I wish I could say I loved it as much at the end as I did at the beginning but I did not. It was fine. There were parts of it that rang so true when it comes to mother-daughter relationships and especially how hard it is for daughters to realize that their mothers had entire lives before they were born. That there are things about their mothers that they do not know. That they may never know. Things that mothers keep in the tiniest, deepest recesses of the very hearts that are mostly filled with her love for her children. So the exploration of that was good. And I did love the connection with "Our Town". I have to admit that although I know that "The Cherry Orchard" was also an influence, if I have ever even read that play, I do not remember any of it. 
I know. I know! How can I call myself educated? 
So any ties with that play go beyond my ken. 

And I'm not sure why my interest in the story faded a bit. But it did. I will say that there are scenes in it that I will probably remember for a very long time. Scenes that I recognize all too well. 

I made a soup today, as one does on chilly, rainy days. 

You want to know the truth? I am sick unto death of turkey. That soup has carrots, celery, tomatoes, onions, collards, broccoli, lemon juice, and...turkey. And turkey broth. I will add some orzo at the end.
I still have more turkey in the freezer. And that is where it's going to stay for awhile. The soup that I do not eat tonight may go into the freezer too. In fact, unless I give it to one of the kids, that's exactly what's going to happen to it. 

Jessie came over for a little visit this early afternoon. She was dropping off the equipment that Mr. Moon had lent them to process the deer he got last week into ground meat. The boys helped Vergil do that and then Jessie and Vergil vacuum-sealed it this morning. So we had a little chat and discussed Very Important Things and also, silly things. Mothers and daughters. Mothers and daughters. 
I am so grateful that my daughters and I can speak way more openly together about things than my mother and I ever could. I always felt that she was judging me and was disappointed in me which made it hard to want to discuss any but the most shallow subjects with her. Never the heart things. 

Sigh. God, I hope reincarnation is not real because if I have to go through another relationship with her in another lifetime in order to work this shit out, I either never want to die or else I want to die right now. I don't know. 
Luckily for me, I don't believe in it. 

That's sort of one of the things Jessie and I talked about today. Not reincarnation, specifically, but religion in its many forms from Catholicism to New Age stuff. I told her about the baby-welcoming ceremony I'd been to many, many years ago that was held at a Unitarian church where the first thing the pastor did was to invoke the spirits of the four directions and I had to restrain myself from yelling, "What the fucking fuck? There's not one Native American in this entire church and you're invoking the four directions!?"
Things like that just truly do not make any sense to me. And you know me- I believe in the sacred and the holy but they are things like the way a mother and her newborn look at each other right after that baby is born, the way the sun looks when it slips beneath the horizon over water, the ancient trees whether oaks or redwoods, the creation of music and art, the miracle of the seed when it meets with dirt, water, and sun, the way humans can show empathy and caring for strangers. 
The pragmatic miracles, as I call them. 
Well, as I also always say, some of us are born with the religion gene, some are not. I was not. 

The man reports in that he is doing well. They are up early to go sit in a deer stand, come in to eat lunch and take a nap, and then they go out again. He is having so much fun being with his community of fellas. I love that. There is very little that makes me happier than knowing he is happy. 
And he sends me the sweetest texts when he is gone. He is the Boss of love notes, that man. 

Well, that's that for tonight. A series review, a book review. A "my view" about religion. 
And soup. 

Just about the same as always. 

Love...Ms. Moon 

Quiet Soul Tonight

I took that picture from the deck of a Mexican restaurant in Tallahassee today. That's a bald cypress, celebrating fall with all of the appropriate colors. I was there with five grandchildren, two daughters, two might-as-well-be-daughters-in-law and two granddogs. They'd all met up at the little park by the library and although I'd been invited, I just could not get myself together early enough to meet them there but for some reason, I was able to get to the restaurant for lunch. 

Here's some pictures from the park. 

The kids are getting a lot of good cousin time this week. 

I've never been to the restaurant where we went for lunch but I've passed it many times. It was terrific and they brought us so many chips and bowls of salsa and we sat on the deck so that Pepper and Chloe could be with us. They are such good doggies.

It was a rowdy lunch, of course. How did I raise such rowdy people? You know perfectly well that I trained them up to be perfect ladies and gentlemen. 
Try not to laugh your ass off. 

I've told Owen to let me know when he's going to be working at Publix so I can go see him in his new capacity as an employee. He told me today that next Sunday will be his first day. I asked him to please text to remind me because I definitely want to go see him at work. I also told him that there was little doubt that I'd cry when I was there. And even as I told him this, I began to cry. 
Good Lord, but I'm so ridiculous. 
But as Jessie pointed out (and it was exactly what I was thinking of) I used to take Owen to his mama at that same Publix on her breaks so that she could nurse him. 

That seems like yesterday. God, what a stupid cliche! But it's so true. I'd pack that little baby up in his car seat and carry him out to my car, buckle him in, and drive the interstate because it's only about eight or nine minutes from my house to that Publix if I take I-10. Classical music seemed to soothe him and so I'd play that on the radio. It was tricky timing because I didn't want to give him a bottle right before he went to his mother, but I didn't want to starve the poor little guy either. So he was usually fussy on the way. I have never in my life been any good at not feeling great anxiety and despair when I hear a baby crying and cannot do anything about it. It is the most heartbreaking, heartrending sound in the world to me. 

But he and I both survived and look at this boy now.

He is way taller than I am and he's only fourteen. My heart. 
Gibson keeps telling me that he's as tall as I am but he's not there yet. Give him a year and he will be. And August? Well, who knows how tall that child will get? Vergil comes from a family of very tall people as does Jessie, of course. Well, her daddy's side of the family, anyway. My side is all a bunch of short people. Perhaps there was something about his height that called to me. I needed to add some stature to my bloodline! And so I have. 
Owen is so loving towards me. I think he truly knows how much I love him- how fiercely and deeply. As I do all of those babies, but he was the first. He gave me my grandmother name. He knows my heart. 

It's Maggie's turn up on the big wheel next to come spend the night. She's planning it already. She's going to give me another make-over with her Claire's cosmetic set. I can't wait! God, I need a make-over.

That dress I'm wearing in the picture just arrived today. It's flannel and has excellent deep pockets and yes, it looks like a tent which is what I need these days to fit my formidable body but my only real requirements in clothing now is comfort and that includes fit, fabric, and pockets. This dress is as comfortable as they come and the pockets are more than adequate. Leggings go under it nicely for warmth. I am still wearing it as we speak. I took off the bra-like garment I was wearing under it and replaced that with a very soft, comfy, old long-sleeved cotton shirt so I'm feeling good. I got the dress from a company called Natural Life. They have a sort of hippie/Bohemian vibe and the things I've ordered from them are fine. They are generally of decent quality and do not cost an arm and a leg. 

 

I would just like to say that I am not getting any sort of kickback from them. I wish. 

I haven't heard from the man today. He called me last night around 10:30 and I told him that he was being rather bold, calling that late. He wanted to report that he'd already spent some time in the deer stand and had seen a buck. I'm sure he told me how many points it had but I've forgotten already. Points are those pointy things on the male deer's horns. Horns? Antlers. Yeah. That's it. 
Well. He's happy. 

And so am I. I didn't get any pills wedged in my throat this morning, my kidney stone is quiet. I talked to the urologist early in the week and honestly, he's not recommending that I get the lithotripsy at this point. I can if I want. He's made that clear. But he keeps saying, "It may never really move that much at all and if it does, we can take care of it then." 
Eh. This is true. And I like the fact that he's not not trying to pad his surgery schedule with a patient with good insurance. So that's where I am with that. 

This morning when I got up, the sky was so blue that the single contrail that streaked across it was startling in its whiteness. A simple thing that we see all the time, but made brilliant by the clear, fall sky. I could hear hawks making their piercing cry, loudly, and I wondered what in the world was going on with them. I was grateful that I had no chickens for them to be diving for. I miss those birds but I do not miss the constant worry about them. Still, I think the way their gentle clucking presence soothed me may have balanced that worry out. At least until the fox began his or her taking of them, one at a time. One at a murderous time. 

It's supposed to rain tomorrow and then we're going to get some cooler temperatures. Some even in the thirties. This always happens when Glen is out of town and I don't have any help moving plants to more protected places. It always works out. 

He just called. He's fine. He took a bunch of shrimp up there and they're about to cook it, eat it, and drink some whiskey. He's not getting home until next Saturday due to a situation where he has to pick up some small boats for someone (does this sound like Mr. Moon or not?) in another part of Tennessee. I told him that's all right. That maybe I'd knit a rug or something while he is gone. 
I am not going to knit a rug. Trust me. 

But oh, Maurice is going to be so mad at him that she's not going to talk to him for days when he gets home. She started getting upset when he began laying out his duffel bag and backpack on the bed in the guest room. That girl knows her daddy's habits. She does not like it when he leaves.

I guess I'll go heat up some leftovers. I should have stopped at Publix today and gotten some salmon, cauliflower, and baby peas. What was I thinking? 
I believe I was thinking I just wanted to get home. I need to eat some salads anyway. I sure have the greens to make them. I'll do that tomorrow. 

Love...Ms. Moon

Do Not Read This If The Word "Slime" Offends You

Here is another picture of yesterday's Pink Perfections that I just took because the only other picture I have from today (so far) is one I snapped to send Mr. Moon of the turkey carcass after I boiled it and who needs to see that? He didn't even need to see it but I sent it anyway. 

He has made it safely to Tennessee. 

Phew. 

I get so worried when he's on the road. And he's driving a different truck so there's that. Remember a few weeks ago when he was arranging for Vergil to buy a truck and helping our friend Tom sell a truck and, oh god...he explained it all to me and I really have no clue what happened but I think at this moment WE own Tom's truck. He fixed a problem it's had for a long time and became rather fond of it but it had no cruise control which is of utmost importance to him. So that man Youtubed the situation and discovered there was an easy (for him) fix and the truck now has cruise control which works perfectly. He is a clever boy. 

I had an interesting experience today. One that I'd never had before and hope to never have again. Every morning I take a handful of meds and supplements and I just toss those things into my mouth, take in a big gulp of water and wash 'em down without a thought. 
It's always worked for me. I've never had difficulties swallowing pills. 
Today though, it did not work so well and one of the big ass supplements and a big ass med got stuck. I think the med blocked the passage of the supplement after it got stuck. 
Whoa!
Not a good feeling. Also, rather scary. I mean- I knew I wasn't going to die because the food was not lodged in my trachea and I was having no problems breathing. But it felt very, very wrong. I could almost visualize those pills stuck sideways and it was a little painful. I tried swallowing more water but that did nothing to alleviate the situation. I had no idea what to do. Luckily, my body did and just like a cat harking up a hairball, I coughed up first one pill, then the next. 
This was not fun either but it was a relief. I am not even going to google this situation because I don't want to know what could have happened if things had not gone they way they did. I'm certain I didn't tear my esophagus because I've seen no blood but my throat is pretty sore. And of course I am now wary of swallowing anything more substantial than a spoonful of yogurt. I girded my loins, however, and took those pills again. They were slime-coated but thank goodness for the body's quick reaction in creating that slime and they were going right back into where they'd come from except hopefully, farther down. 
And they did. 

I'm going to have to put a trigger warning on this, aren't I? 

So that was more excitement than I cared for and the rest of the day has been blessedly without incident. The biggest thing I did was to take the trash and stop by the post office. I have lazed and rested and even started a new jigsaw puzzle. 

I think this one is going to be pretty easy because it has so much going on in different colors and designs. 

Oh, I did boil the turkey bones and there will be meat to freeze to make flautas and plenty of good broth for other things. Soup, probably. And of course I washed the sheets! Is it not Friday? 

Oh my gosh! I forgot the most exciting that that happened! And in this instance, fun-exciting. I got Wordle in TWO! That's a first for me and of course, it was complete luck. 

Strange, huh? Two firsts- Wordle in two tries and getting pills stuck in my gullet. 

Here's what the sunset looked like a few minutes ago from the steps on my back porch.

Fiery! 

But now it has set and there is peace and mostly quiet here which is exactly what I need. I will now go pick all the turkey meat off those bones. Another wild night in Lloyd. 

Happy Friday, y'all. 

Love...Ms. Moon

Thanksgiving, 2023

The sea foam camellia in the front yard has suddenly begun producing its creamy white blooms. I picked some and brought them in, set them in a vase. I wonder if anyone noticed them. I would not be surprised if no one did. 
It was quite a Thanksgiving. 

I was so proud of myself. I got that turkey stuffed and in the oven by eight this morning and by noon I had the biscuits rolled and cut and ready to bake, the gravy made, the greens reheating, the cream whipped, and the pies out of the freezer. I got the house tidied, some laundry folded and put away, my back porch table cleared and ready for the spread to come. 
I told my husband, "I think I'm ready." 
He said, "Ready for what? To start drinking?"
But no, I was not ready for that yet. 

And people started showing up. Jessie and Vergil and the boys, Hank and Rachel, and then May and Michael and finally Lily, Lauren, and all of their crew. After two days of quiet, peaceful preparation, the house was suddenly bursting with sisters, brothers, mamas, daddies, grandbabies, uncles, aunts, partners in all different possible combinations and every one of them carrying baskets and bags and coolers and boxes and dishes. Kisses and hugs were happening everywhere. We were dizzy with it all! 

The children were feral wild things, running through the house, playing games inside and out and once again I realized that I fell in love with this house because it is such a good grandparents' house. So many places to hide. So many places to play. 

Jessie, Lily, Rachel, and I did the Lynn shot of rum and then Glen and Vergil came in and they did one too. It was good rum. It was yum-rum. 

It was so great having the turkey done and out so that all of the casseroles could go into the oven to heat and warm. Meanwhile, Lauren, whom I thought was bringing a few cheeses, made a charcuterie (or as we call it- charcootchie) TABLE. The food on it alone could easily have fed us all. 

Lily made those gorgeous deviled eggs. 

Bless Lauren. Every year I come to love that woman more and more. She is the funniest, the sweetest, the most hardworking, caring woman you can imagine. What a lucky family we are to have her as part of us now. 

Eventually, I managed to convince everyone that we really did need to get this meal on the table. The weather was a little chilly but not bad and the guys had set up tables and chairs in the back yard. Vergil carved the turkey.

We took the casseroles out of the oven, I heated it up to 425, put the biscuits in, and we transferred all the rest of the dishes out to the back porch along with the Chinet (yes!), put hot sauces and pepper vinegar and butter on the table. And then we filled our plates and we sat down and we ate. 

And we laughed. Oh, Lord how we laughed. When the kids were full, they ran off again to resume their games and the adults stayed at the table and discussed a little bit of everything. 

And then it was time. The dreaded time. When everyone pitched in to clean up and leftovers were put in individual containers for people to take home and the kitchen was packed with people and Mr. Moon was loading up things in his truck to take to Tennessee and chairs were being brought back in the house and children were rounded up and there were more hugs and kisses and I was completely overwhelmed and people kept asking me if I wanted more of this or that to keep and I kept saying,  "It's just going to be me!" and I made Vergil and Jessie take home a vat of whipped cream and oh, by the way- this is what the angel biscuits looked like.

August told me, just before they left, that he had thrown up a little bit in his throat which I informed him meant that he had eaten too much pie and too many angel biscuits and then he asked me for a bye-bye treat. 

He did not get one but perhaps he can have pie and whipped cream for breakfast. 

Mr. Moon will be getting up early and leaving around six tomorrow morning. I will already be up and out, standing in line for Walmart to open for those amazing Black Friday sales. 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

I have a reasonable amount of leftovers in my refrigerator. Well, the turkey carcass I have with plenty of turkey left on it is more than a reasonable amount for one person but I will get the rest of the meat off of it and then boil the bones for a soup. 

Chicken flautas may be in our future. We shall see. 

I have no idea why but the turkey came out perfectly this year. Probably because it got to sit for a few hours. It was completely done but not dry in the least. I did not spatchcock it or brine it. I just roasted it and basted it with butter and seasoned it with salt and pepper. 

So that's how Thanksgiving went. Here's a picture of Levon that Jessie sent to the group text. 

That's what I'm going to look like in about half an hour. Only not as cute and I'll be prone. 

I think I'll play a little piano tomorrow. 

Love...Ms. Moon

P.S. Rachel took many of these pictures. Lily may have taken a few. I'm too tired to go back and figure it all out. I apologize.