Way Past Due...

Well, I did so well for so long and then***raspberry***NOTHING! I know that must have left my blog fans hanging and I do apologize for that. I was just trying to post a picture, but somehow it did not work! We have yet another duck in our home. I went out to feed the squawkers Sunday afternoon and to my delight there was a tiny black hatchling still in part of its egg. I rushed to the scene and took it into my arms. Not only is it a black duck with little black feet but it also has a yellow belly, hence the name Chicken (coward). We tend to call it Chickie. It is very cute. Meanwhile, Scooter is nearly fully grown and, yes, still inside. He will follow you around in the yard like a puppy. I don't know about that. We have some puppies that came down from the farm the other day and they did not follow us one bit. They did manage to wallow out the flower bed though.

Let me talk about something unrelated to animals. The Lord laid on my heart a CPMA program to decorate the graves of our deceased members. I arranged R/W/B/P flowers with a tag. I have yet to get them placed. It is a shame that some of these resting places may have even been forgotten and uncared for all of these years. The tags proclaim the Biblical bursting forth. Though absent from the body, these members who left behind such rich heritage are present with the Lord. Placing these flowers shows that these Christian soldiers have not been forgotten, nor has their sacrifice and testimony. We had a very moving CPMA service the other night. We may not have some of the great properties that these funds (CPMA) once went for but we do have all of these others where great men and women were laid to rest. It would be great to have some permanent markers for this endeavor.

The pictures above are Maggie (Magnificent) Roloff. She is a "little dog." She is a third the size of her siblings. What she lacks in size, she makes up for in attitude. The other picture is the table I designed for our back porch. We wanted something bigger that would not break the budget. A ready made table was not available that fit those criteria. It has been pretty uneventful around here. Just working and cleaning...I guess I should get back to it.

Weeds In The Garden...

Well, I will start by stating that after 4 weeks, Scooter is still in the house. He seems to be half grown and we still have no intentions of returning him to the others at this point. In fact there have been rumored successful house-breaking's of ducks. I will research that a little once I get off here. I finally named the other new duck that lives with his momma, Goose. Out there is Duck, Duck, Duck, Duck, Duck...GOOSE! I love it!

Enough about the ducks though. It seems that I have to pull weeds every time I turn around. Places where I just pulled weeds the next day will have more. It is kind of like a gray hair. They say don't pull them or ten will take its place. Some people should really have listened. No, I am just kidding. I do not believe the superstition. I do not pull my gray hairs because I am follicularly challenged and no matter what color, every hair counts. Where was I? Yes, weeds! No, not weed, but weeds. The way my mind jumps around I wonder about the first. I will be the first to say I never smoked marijuana. My uncles did in front of me though while they were supposed to be the responsible ones babysitting me! No wonder I am so warped. One of those uncles has really turned his life around. The other...not so much. Let's see...follicularly challenged...pot...WEEDS!

I thought it best to start a new paragraph (if blogger really breaks it up. For some reason my paragraphs never split ????) I pull weeds and pull weeds (THANKS A LOT ADAM!) . There are some I do not. Those that would risk uprooting a valuable plant I leave. I don't want to damage the good by removing the bad. In some cases I could probably get the weed out with some minor damage to the roots. I don't want to stress that plant or cause undue pain. Some things may be considered weeds but I like them and tend them tenderly as my little green children (I am crazy today). It has been said one is nearest to God when in a garden. I don't know all about that, there have been many times I have felt him closer. But there are some deep lessons that can be learned. We grow here in the Garden of God and He tends us to be the very best plant. Some perform different tasks. One thing is sure, the grass whithereth and the flower fadeth. There is but a short time, a short growing season to catch the eye of someone. Just as plants don't so much draw attention to themselves, we reflect back the mastery of the Gardener. Some plants are fussy and require much toiling and care. Others just need the right conditions. He knows our perfect placement, care instructions. He knows just where to place us on the path to be awe inspiring. Plants are at the whim of the gardener to do as he pleases. May we find ourselves in the same position of the Master Gardener.

Haunted...

Don't be fooled by my title. It is not an apparition that plagues me, it is the constant sound, "Cheep, cheep..." It is everywhere. I hear it when I am in the yard. I am at the hospital now and met an older man walking down the hall. Something about him made that screaking sound very similar to the call, cry if you will, of my precious child, Scooter. I hear that sound so much at home, it seems to be universal. A moment ago I even heard the elevator make the same sound. Cheep! Some people must be quackers (you know who you are). I guess I am just cheap! Well, this has to be a brief post. The kiosk I am at has timed out on me before when I had a wealth of wisdom typed and prepared to be an immense blessing. Did any of you ever feel that way about your real children (don't tell me Scooter is not real)? Did it seem like you always heard them whether they were really making noise or not?

Strange Night...

A few weeks ago we had the strangest night. I immediately ran for my camera knowing that this moment could not be duplicated. A storm had just passed through at sunset. That was the only sun we saw that day...right at the end. It was such a glorious sunset. It was dark and light all at the same time. The trees seemed golden. I just wanted to leave you all with this and the following two posts before the weekend. If you have not read in a while we have gone to the ducks. In that case there are several inspiring posts you should read (Is this a commercial for my blog or what?) I have much to do today. We have a mission auction at our Church tonight. See there, I do attend some functions. I have to do a little cooking and cleaning and sleeping today. It sounds like the weather will not permit much else. The rumble of thunder can be heard in the distance. What a good day for a nap! I don't say that lazily. For those who might not know, I go to work tonight as 10:30 and work until 11 am in the morning, then basically repeat it the following night. It is time for another crazy weekend of work. It really does get crazy. I had a girl tell me last week, "You would look cute with earrings." My thought was, "Girl, What is your problem, I look cute without them." Isn't that like the world? They think you have to have some bling to shine. I would rather shine with the Light and Love of Christ. I had another lady tell me she knew she had a tumor because it moved around just like a baby. I was like, "Woh! Get this woman a psych eval." While tumors do have their own blood supply and show up enhanced on contrasted CT's and are able to metastasize, they are not living breathing creatures that move around of their own will. They have no wills, brains or intelligence. It sounds like she had an alien to me. There is also the case of the shrunken head. A woman repeated exclaimed during her test, "You are shrink my head!" Sigh! The overnight hours on the weekend either produces those who are genuinely ill or those who are genuinely mentally ill. There is never a dull moment, I assure you.

I will just concentrate on that photo above and think of the beauty that God has made. We are, after all, fearfully and wonderfully made. That does not mean God was scared of us although some people scare me witless. He took great thought and care in creating us. The very design and complexity of our bodies clearly demonstrates that. So even those who seem a bit off...still deserve the same care from me. The Master potter is able to remove even the deepest marring from these vessels. I am not that potter, I just simply get them to His hands.

I Let the Cat Out of the "Box"...

This is what your children look like the next morning when they stay up all night. He has decided to sleep in my box of pool supplies way up high on top of a desk on top of another desk. It was placed in such a precarious spot of altitude to avoid having the cat in the box. I have not made any attempts to evict him yet. It is kind of cute. I am sure I can get cat hair off of everything (I think). Don't the poor baby look tired. He has been with us over a year now. Other than laying out all night at times he has really calmed down. He does not attack me anymore. He's been really good or just really tired. I'm not sure.

Nintendo D(uck)S...

It seems that Scooter has developed the same mind rotting habit of his mother (Tabithia). He is addicted to video games. Tabithia can break this out in the car or at a restaurant and you never hear a peep out of her. It seems that our little duckie is no different. Really though, this game is not suck an intelligence deteriorating activity. It causes one to think and react quickly. I personally stink at it. Scooter really caught on quickly. You can see the motion of his wings. he is really getting after it. If he keeps this up, we will have to at least find him a blue game. I don't want to give him a complex. The next morning he read the mail with me. I was unable to successfully get his picture as he skimmed over the Arkansas Vacation Package. I have to get this duck a job. AFLAC's got nothing on him. I am quite sure he could peck that little GEICO gecko's eyes out, too. I don't promote violence or anything but if it should come to it my child is tougher. I know, I am just another one of those competitive parents, one of those sick people trying to make their child a star. Just ask yourself this, "Have you ever seen a duck play a video game?"

Ducky See...Ducky Doo...Lots of Ducky Doo...

Having Scooter in the house has been quite the adventure. Really it has not been bad. He has only started to make messes. Yes, piles of messes. Last night, though, I put him down on the floor. He never had one "accident" as we call it. Why we call something that comes naturally to an animal an accident I will never know. Anyway, that is all pretty easily cleaned. A little disinfectant and paper towel and we are as good as new. The floor is clean enough to eat off of again (GROSS!!). Scooter does not scoot now. It is quite a run that he does. The funny thing is when he is down, he takes every step you do. If you sit he sits. It is like a game of Simon Says (not American Idol, the old school game).

I had a really small water bowl for him and that was always getting overturned, etc. So I thought I would put in a larger one. I have heard that baby ducks not raised with their mama's should not get wet. They get the oils they need for waterproofing from her. So no baths for Scooter...or so I thought. The bigger bowl apparently screamed swimming pool. He can hop in and out like it was nothing. He splashed water everywhere. Hmmm...(rethinking this whole keeping the duck inside thing).

The first pic was still his first night of life. I just could not help but think of the M&M logo, "Melts in mouth not in your hands." That is sick. I could never eat an animal with a name, certainly not with a face. Last night we got in from the barn really late. We nuked some frozen chicken patties and made instant potatoes. Dinner in a flash. We topped it off with the left over jello mold from the other night. Anyway, in the process of preparing (you see how random my thoughts are and how quickly they can go in any direction...imagine what it must be like to be me) this wonderful meal, I dropped the chicken patties. I was just thankful it did not hit Scooter. Could you imagine the headlines...Duckling Killed By Falling Frozen Chicken? It was no where close to him and no where close to where he walks to my delight. It quickly became a place that he goes because the crumbs on the floor looked very appetizing (chicken patties removed). He really liked the crumbs though. He is one sick bird. He does not even know that was a cousin.

Tonight is a big night after Church. It is 31 cent scoop night at Baskin Robbins. You can purchase up t o 10 per customer. We are taking the youth to the mall and pigging out (I guess I am all about the animals these days). This is a nationwide thing. So if you read this (as if anyone does) and have a BR store nearby, 5-10 is discounted scoops. It goes to a good cause as well. I am supposed to getting Tabithia something for breakfast. We are grocery-less at home. Gotta go before I am sleeping in the duck box.

Update...

Okay, I have been doing some serious posting here lately. I just wanted to bring everyone up to date on the previous posts. No name duck is thriving like a weed. She fits right in with the others. Scooter's condition is much improved and he has been upgraded for critical condition. He is really doing fine. Does anyone know a trick for removing duck excrement from carpeting. I had (or shall I say Scooter had) one tiny accident while I was making arrangements to care for him. The bunny sadly wen to sleep forever. Poor thing. I tried though. It is after 3 am at the time of this post and it is time for me to eat while the rest of you sleep on. A little folding of the hands...Anyway, I gots to go!

Mission of Mercy...

I know the title sounds like the evangelistic work that I am supposed to be doing. I am. Okay, anyway. This refers to my day yesterday. I rose early to beat the rain and get my garden planted. I pretty much succeeded in that. I got a little wet but not bad. There are now some 51 tomato plants of 5 different varieties in addition to peppers, green beans, peas, radishes, okra, pumpkins, eggplants, squash, zucchini and cucumbers. I might just be quite the farmer this year if I can avoid cultivating grass, which is what I tend to grow best in the garden. Once I finished I went to see the baby duck which is after this post. I looked and saw a tiny near lifeless baby duck in the nesting house. I rushed in braving the protective feathered assassin and quickly clutched the tiny, freshly cracked infant barley cling to life. We rushed to the pet emergency care clinic (or our bathroom) and began to bring the baby's body temperature up (with a hair dryer). After a couple of hours of toiling with the weak animal, finally it began to come out of it. It may not be 100% yet. It does not really act right. I may have interrupted nature's way of preserving the strongest. Nonetheless I rescued Scooter (he is quiet). I think he may have been pecked a little. So it might take a little bit to nurse him back to health. He is on his way though. He does eat and drink on his own. If he makes it through the next couple of days, he should be able to come out of ICU (our kitchen) and return to the duck pen. He is not the least bit afraid of us.

That was not the only act of mercy performed to the animal kingdom by yours truly. I was preparing dinner last night. I wanted to attend the revival at Harrisburg with our General Overseer but I had heard a rumor that Bro Smith might not be able to attend. Since I was not sure I decided to cook the turkey that has been perched in my freezer. No, that was not the charitable act. I had to run to Pocahontas (where I learned that Bro and Sis Smith were in fact here) and then home for a whirlwind of preparation. I did not have all the ingredients for dinner. I rushed to Wal-Mart and back. Around 4:30 everything was well underway for a 7 pm meeting. I barley made it. I think I might have been a few minutes over. During all of this chaos, I heard what sounded like a puppy crying in my half open garage. I went to look a little excited at what I might find. I looked and there was the cat, Mushu. He was eyeballing something large. I looked and it was a baby rabbit of about 6-8 inches long. Not teeny tiny. I took it away from him and placed it on the front porch to monitor it. I was unsure if it would make it or not. I think I interfered again because it seems to have a back injury. I am just not a knock-it-in-the-head kind of guy. I think it will get better. I have place the bunny in with the ducks. He does seem to be on the mend. I just don't know how much mending is possible. I am monitoring it closely. As long as he stays away from the eggs and babies he should be fine. Dinner was served shortly after seven, deep fried turkey, deviled potatoes, asparagus, rasberry applesauce jello mold, pineapple cream layered angel food cake, mashed potatoes, tomato/cucumber salad and rolls. I think that was it. I am big on list in this post. It was a busy, productive day. I have another list I am working on for tomorrow after work. But for today-- nothing. I hope to be able to attend the revival tonight. I have babies to tend! What am I doing on here!

Drumroll please...Ta Da-uck...

This is the duckling that hatched Monday, I think. We managed to steal it away from its very upset and very aggressive mother. I thought she was going to eat me live. It was so loud. Don't mess with a mama duck! We actually just borrowed him for a little while. A poultry expert informed us that she would be fine with the adult quackers. "How do I know it is a she?" you ask. It is quite simple. A human female gathering is often referred to as a "hen party." This is due to the loud and often obnoxious sounds that are emitted from the gaggle. Young female ducks can be identified by the amount of noise they make. Male hatchlings are quiet(er). My how nature imitates civilization. Ha...ha...ha...ha! I had to let everyone know just how much I laugh as I type this. This little girl has no name as of yet. I am open to suggestions. Quack now or forever hold your peace.

I love little baby ducks...Old pick up trucks...Not so much...

I had some time off this last weekend finishing up my vacation time before it runs out. Of course Tabithia wants to clean up the farm every chance we get. This small piece of land contains years of accumulation of her grandfather. He still operates his horse...uh...well...He just has some horses back there. Sometimes as many as ten. I think we are a little below that now. It is amazing there is room for that many horses with all of that junk. We have burned termite colonies that were once stacks of boards. We have loaded trailers with heaps of metal to be recycled and I think raised over $1000 for whatever cause it is going for. I think it is cause he needs some money. That brings me to my title. There are old truck beds and one complete smashed in old truck. Why? Why do old(er) people find the need to head up, hoard up mountains of worthless stuff? I know one man's trash is another's treasure. I see no value in much of this. I do not like these old pick up trucks and don't know how we will ever get them loaded and gone.

As for the little baby duck, I have one. After years of having ducks, finally one hatched a baby. It is the cutest little thing. Mama duck is protective, too. She has been less than friendly to me. She never heard that old adage about biting the hand that feeds you. She is guarding it very well. We had another one over the weekend that did not make it. This one is very healthy looking and does well with the others, too. I am so proud and I took the best picture of it yesterday. I will have to post that some other time. You will love it also. I also forgot my jump drive with Puerto Rico pics. That will have to wait as well. Today you just get me. Isn't that enough?

That is really all I have at this time. I can remember saying that when I started preaching and have heard others say it. That is all I have. Usually that was when it was so short that you would not believe it was over. No, really, that is it. That's funny. I had not thought about that in a while. I never do that anymore. I think they said my message itself was only 20 minutes Sunday. Tabithia, who accuses me of longwindedness, said it was just right. I was just so sick. Really I was done though and then we formed a prayer line in which the whole congregation passed through. There were more people there than it seemed. The line just kept coming. Prayer lines are really a lot of work. I learned that at the General Assembly. My voice is usually always gone by the time we are half way. Good times! I would rather loose my voice in Church (some people would not understand that at all) than at a football game. I don't even understand football. Am I un-American? I grew up a small school where we did not have football. We consolidated to a school that had it but the interest was never there.

The merry rambler has said too much. I gotta go!

A Little PR...

Notice anything strange?

No Prejudice...

One thing I truly loved about Puerto Rico was something that was said by a tour guide. According to Mr. Sunshine (Sunshine Tours--he really had that type personality very positive. he was quite the tree-hugger though, very new age--paints with all the colors of the wind sort of thing--back to the story) there is no prejudice in Puerto Rico. One of the most degrading and divisive practices of society to me is prejudice. I cannot hate on the basis of color or culture or for an other reason. How can there be a Great Speckled Bird if there were no different tones of people? I heard someone try to blame our nation's problems on the influx of different nationalities. Last time I looked in the mirror I was clearly a cracker, not Native American. So I am, and so was the other person, a transplant. We came in on a boat! Maybe I just have wild melting pot ideas. I can see the All Nations Flag proudly waving in all parts of the world regardless of skin color.

Aside from talking to the trees, Mr. Sunshine had it right and so does Puerto Rico. Really I saw no hint of prejudice while there. There are Spanish, English, Spanglish, black, white, Hispanic and some all combined in one. It is such mixture that it is nearly impossible to separate one from the other. As for the talking to trees...I do feel like you can venture out into God's creation and revel in the beauty of it and worship the Mastermind behind it all. I also feel it does deserve respect. One must be careful treading through the Garden of God. We were sent to dress and keep. What an easy task that was preAdamic curse--no weeds! The diverse flora and fawna from one location to the next amazes me. Our imagination could not have contrived such complexity. His ways and thoughts are truly higher than ours. While I respect nature, I would rather hug people than trees.

Is this not the most different post I have ever come up with? Maybe it is the result of spring being in full bloom or maybe the fact that my garden is broken and near ready for planting. I don't know. I do love creation, but I love the Creator even more.

"I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well" Psalm 139:14

Here's One More...