Apopheniac

Pat gives Jean a hole in the ground.

Jean has wanted a koi pond and fountain for years but it just never came together. Well, now it is and has advanced to the expanding hole in the ground stage.

Jean is bringing the yard into bloom as these new blossoms and additions show:

Two of the cherry trees we planted are showing blossoms. More as they open.

She is filling in the side bed along the side of the house.

The front yard got a new wisteria.

Lubbock's wind plays with the petals of a new pot of petunias.

Jean completes her Herculean Tasks

Jean has had her head down and her ears back for the past few days as she first built a website that got her a grade of 100% on the final for her college Dreamweaver course. Then she turned to seasonal matters. You will see her above as she converts our pile of receipts and papers into a tax return. Way to go Jean!

Matt's New Shop Roof - Bringing it home.

Saturday morning was the day to put on the second half of the new roof on Matt's shop. Tommy and his friends Ethan and Brad worked on the roof. Kirk worked in the shop. Debris removal was accomplished with Matt driving the tractor and me piling on the front-end loader. Note the "before" and "after" shots of the debris field.

Matt surveys the results. Tomorrow there's a barbecue to celebrate.

A New Roof for Matt's Shop

Kirk and I have been working the past few days to help Matt give rebirth to his shop building. The roof required replacing and that is going on now. The yoeman's work is being done by Matt's son Tommy (shown above) and his friend Ethan. They are up there tearing off the old roof and laying down the new. Kirk, Matt and I are supporting by going on shopping runs for materials and passing them up to the roof. (90 pound rolls of roofing, 50 pound cans of tar - ugh!). We are also helping Matt clean and organize the shop. Tommy and Ethan are coming over after a full day's work and then putting in a great job here. Tonight they worked until over an hour after dark. Great job guys!

Cappucino Withdrawal

Last weekend my 8 year old Starbucks Barista espresso machine stopped working correctly. I think one of the temperature sensors has gone out but I have been without my morning latte for several days. This may explain the quiet whimpering you have heard each morning.

I am in the process of troubleshooting and hopefully repairing this essential household appliance.

John Hartford

I recently came across a 6 hour memorial broadcast for singer-songwriter-musician John Hartford. John had been performing since the 60s but the success of his hit "Gentle on My Mind" set him free of the constraints of commercial music and allowed him to write and perform as he pleased. From writing for the old Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour all the way up to consulting and performing on the soundtrack of "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou," John was a force in American music.

I was introduced to John's album Areoplane in the mid 70s by my friend Gregg Freeman. It was only natural that Gregg should introduce me to John's wry wit and unassuming style. I followed John's music as I encountered it. We even got to see him perform in Atlanta in the mid 90s. He sang and played his songs, even dancing out a rendition on a 15 foot piano keyboard spread across the stage floor.

Getting to listen to this retrospective, hearing interviews and performances which allowed me to watch his craft develop over time, gave me an even deeper appreciation for this gifted man and his craft.

Playing with photoshop

I've been messing around with the effects in photoshop and came up with this.

Thoughts of coffee in my head.

This morning Jean and I were working side by side at our computers.
I said to Jean, "I hear you."
She looked at me askance and said, "What did you hear?"
I said, "You would like another cup of coffee."
She said yes.

"I would like a second cup of coffee," was the exact phrase she had formulated in her mind 3-4 seconds before.

Ooooooooh!

We're Back in touch with Maryse

We've been out of contact with our granddaughter Maryse for quite a while. We are so pleased to be back in touch. Here's a picture Chloe took of her. Isn't she beautiful?

Finally Hung the Screen in the Bedroom

Since we don't have a fireplace here, Jean decided to hang our fireplace screen over her altar. This was the last piece of bedroom furniture to be "arted" and it joined:

Jean's Dresser and:

Pat's Dresser.