Realization!

When I had surgery on my sinus on March 28th I do believe they sucked my brain out as well. I have some memory issues that make no sense to me. I can sit and watch Jeopardy and rattle off answers one after another but the trivia at the casino I come up empty. The only ones I seem to know are the ones everyone else knows too! However, I have been responsible for adding two new members to the team that has been a blessing.  Karla and Devon are on top of things and have amazed me on more than one occasion. We have always had trouble with the timeline and lost lyrics questions. Those Texas folk will tell you just how hard those two categories can be! Karla has nailed those two questions the past two weeks!! We cannot and do not expect perfection from her but we are sure glad to have her at our table.
On every other level, I am feeling great. Energy level is way up. Sleeping well. Getting lots done in all aspects of my life. I have a bunch of projects lined up and can hardly wait to get to them. Most of them are things I have put aside for probably a year or more.

Yesterday I cleaned all the helicopters and some of the old mulch from the hosta bed. This project is half done because I plan to renew the mulch until the hostas grow enough to take care of themselves.

While taking a picture of the hosta I noticed the neighbor's dog is quiet for a change. Look at the corner of the house. The dog wanted in obviously. Perhaps last winter.

 The flowers I transport to Texas and back each year are not fond of the trip but they have once again recovered and the Christmas cactus is getting ready to bloom. The blue tile is covering a sewer cleanout. Good way to deal with a backyard eyesore.

Recent Bird Pics

These were taken this morning. House Finch baby pic

 
Woodpeckers stay barely long enough for one pic. 3 trips represented here

Dynamo!

I was an absolute dynamo this morning! It has been such a long time since I was a dynamo! I did more work in one day than I have been able to do in a week. I suppose I can attribute it to the Keto Life Plan. Refuse to call it a diet. On Netflix watch the documentary "The Magic Pill". It is quite an eye-opener. I didn't come to this easily. Laura and Jason do Keto and they have been very successful in managing their weight for the past year. So I sort of knew about it. So after feeling like Crap with a capital cee, I decided to dabble in it and after finding out how easy it is and feeling the benefits it was easy to be all in. And I am 9.4 pounds down in two weeks and feeling downright perky.

Yesterday

Butch went to the golf course for his walk and while there the field adjacent to the course was being mowed so he picked up golf balls. He was rather late getting home.  He found 60.

I worked outside trying to get most of those "helicopters" from the tree picked up. Ugly job but even uglier when they sprout. Tedious job but feeling up to it is a gift in itself.
These are some pics I have taken lately.

 This is a House Finch

And this is a Common Grackle. The Grackles in South Texas are much more elegant.

 And this cutie is a Goldfinch- I needed better light!

  Speaking of light, it is the sole reason I take a photo at times and this is a good example. I liked the way the light was coming through the trunk of the tree.

I found these charts to tell the difference between a House Finch and a Purple Finch. I think the House Finch deserves a fancier name, don't you?

Taking care

As the years pile up we find that it takes more time to do, well, EVERYTHING!  Butch's Birthday came and went. He is recovering from his dental experience slowly. He did play golf with Jason and came home and watched golf. Pretty much his favorite way to spend a Sunday. He is 78 now and that is hard for both of us to fathom.

Keri found a snake in her basement and asked Butch to take care of it. What fun! We were off for an adventure. Butch asked what he should take. I said take a bucket and your grippers. You know, those things with the grabbers on the end that old people use to grab things they can't reach. We have one they were promoting at Harbor Freight. The garter snake was in the laundry room in the basement and there was no obvious way he could get in. Butch caught him in quick order. I told Butch to twirl him around so he would be dizzy and have a hard time finding his way back from the cornfield he has for a new home. So Far, So Good.

Saw this on RVNewsletter: