There have been stories in the media lately about Mother Theresa having doubts in her faith, presented with an "O no!" kind of attitude. If you read about the saints, you see that most had doubts at times - but still strived to do what is right. I find it comforting. If those who have such obvious love and personal moral strength doubt, then who am I not to?

Sassy

Sassy has been having trouble with her eye. First it was watering a lot and she was rubbing it. Then it stopped bothering her so much, but it clouded over. Chet took her to the vet who told him he couldn't see much, because there was blood in it. We gave her a topical steroid which didn't take the swelling down enough, so now she is on oral steroids. The vet says it's probably a tumor. We don't know what is causing it yet. Perhaps the vet will be able to see after the steroids treatment. We could take her to an ophthalmologist for an MRI, but most likely she will lose her eye either way. Dogs are wonderful. Even when they feel bad, they are always ready to play.

Gone Visiting

Spent the weekend visiting with Jim and Mary. Saturday we went to the Clifton Gorge for lunch and a hike.

Sunday we went for about a 4-5 mile walk in Sharon Woods and then went to the Cinti. Zoo - I haven't been there since it was all fixed up. It was a lot of fun, but after all that walking, my legs are tired!

Mom and Dad loved going around the country and visiting with their children and grandchildren. So happy were they to be with us, they would just do and do. On this visit to our home on Arcadia I had gone out and they decided to clean my house. When I returned it was sparkling. I had never seen my kitchen faucets so shiny. I was surprised, because I knew I was out of cleanser. Mom informed me that I had some left on the counter. Imagine her surprise to learn she had cleaned my whole kitchen with hand lotion!

Musings

It's funny the changes you notice. I woke up in the night because the house was too quiet - and I couldn't get back to sleep. I supposed once you get used to something, it's absence makes you think something is wrong. They tell me our new pump will make very little noise, so I'll have to get used to that.

I took the girls out for a walk this morning and took my camera (well, it's really Chet's, but I won't go into that). I think I'm going to see something I'll want to share. If you've ever walked two dogs without leashes, you know you can't go anywhere unanounced. Which is why I was so surprised that we startled a hawk in a tree stump. Though we weren't close enough to touch, we were close enough for the girls to notice. Of course, by the time I got the camera out of it's case and on, the hawk flew into a tree. He didn't go very far, so I still had hopes. As I tried to get closer, he flew away. There was a small bird following his flight path exactly. I have seen this pair before - or one very like it. I couldn't see the small bird well, so I don't know if it is a juvenile, or another type of bird. I just imagined a daddy bird showing his boy how to fly (why do I assume they were male?). I don't even know if hawks do that. I'm so glad fantasies don't have to be hampered by reality - life would be so boring then!

The joys of Country Living

When I got home last night, our well pump was running constantly. As Chet wasn't home yet, and I was going out, I just turned if off. Chet called me later to inform me that I had better bring home some water because we didn't have any in the house. We put in a new pressure tank last year, so that isn't the problem. Here I sit, waiting for the Well & Pump guy. The forced day off would be much more enjoyable if not for the fear it's not the pump (money) but the well (MUCH BIGGER MONEY).

Not as bad as it could have been, not as good as I'd hoped.

The problem was a hole in the rubber pipe coming up from the well. So, they had to pull it up and out. This is more complicated than usual in our case because our well is inside the house. They told me that if they couldn't get it out, we would have to dig a new well. What they didn't tell me was that they didn't expect to get it out - often they have to use a truck to help get it out. Fortunately ours came out. So we have a new galvanized steel pipe and a new well pump, and we are $1185 poorer. I keep telling myself at least we didn't dig a well, and hopefully the electric bill will also go down.

Happy Birthday Bev!

This is my good friend Bev chasing seagulls in Florida. I met her when her daughter was in preschool with David. Her life has gone through many changes - but the hard part is over and good things are coming. Happy Birthday!

Raising Deer

These are Chet's Deer Gardens.

They are at the back of the property and were planted specifically for the deer to eat. One is corn, and the other is a mix of turnips and clover. As you can see, something has already been at the corn. Now, lest you think Chet has gone soft, our friend Todd and his son will be hunting this fall. Last year they got two which Chet helped get to Todd's truck (that's as close as Chet gets to hunting.) This is how Todd feeds his family, so it doesn't bother me as long as I don't have see it. The deer are pretty to watch when they run, though.

Kent Heritage Festival

This past weekend the city of Kent held their Heritage Festival and our company has a booth - bet you didn't know that Century 21 has a mascot, but we do. His name is Nestor. This festival has gotten better every year. All we really do is hand out balloons, take pictures of kids with Nestor, talk to people and occasssionally stop into one of the local "establishments" to cool off and have something cold to drink, but it's fun. Chet also went to a tractor show this weekend, but didn't get any pictures.