Mountain Mama's Point Of View

  Okay, Cujo here. Where did we leave off? I remember now. Toni Louise and Eddie have once again been plagued with itching. Mom has to slather their undersides (she calls it their undercarriage, but HeWho is our Dad says this is a word for cars, leaving us all in a state of confusion). This stuff she puts on helps with the itching. But, Toni Louise has a rash on her back now. In case you don't know, Toni has long hair. Eddie does, too, so I do not think it is a girl dog thing, this long hair. When Mom puts the stuff in Toni's hair it gets all matted. Toni is opposed to daily brushing and grooming.  The other evening, Mom went out on the porch and told us dogs to come out with her. I thought about it, but I was just settling on the couch for a lovely nap. I didn't see any treats or food, so I decided to just stay where I was. Eddie and Bo went out with Toni. Eddie saw that Mom was closing the doggie door on the end of the porch that leads to our yard. Then she started fiddli...

  Cujo here again. Mom stayed in her gardens for hours today. She took a shower when she came in and fixed lunch for HeWho is our Dad and herself. She was looking sleepy to me and I was all set to help her take a nap. But she looked at the clock on the stove and declared the time to be too late for napping. I do not agree. It is always time for a nap! She sat herself down on the couch and motioned for me to come to her to be lifted up to sit by her side. That seemed like a great idea, I can grab a nap on the couch. I did not see what she had in her hand when she sat down. I will need to pay closer attention from now on. She had the nail clippers! She told HeWho is the master of Toni Louise that she was tired of Toni stabbing her legs with her talons (what are talons?) and that he needs to take command of the situation and cut her nails. Are talons just another word for nails? I sure could use Wall-E's wisdom about now! Mom said that Toni's nails were so long that she should be ...

  Happy to report air conditioning at my house! Works almost too well. I like to be a little chilly while sleeping, but this was bone chilling. HeWho assured me that the temperature was set at 75. He was in a fetal position try to keep warm under the sheet and lightweight bedspread, but did not get up to check the temp. The register is in the floor on my side of the bed and was blowing in my face. I got up and grabbed my warm and cozy robe and tossed it over my shoulders. There are two thermostats and the one that I needed to get to was in a dark corner. I could not find a flashlight to save my life! This morning I located a flashlight and hung it on the hooks by the door that hold our keys. Then I took my pills and got ready for my appointment. I have grown tired of all the appointments and trips to see the doctor. Seems like that is all I do lately! Monday was a big day. We finally got our drivers license for the state of North Carolina. We were prepared with our birth certificat...

  Cujo here. Things have been hot and sweaty here. The man in the white truck finally came and did whatever these men called repairmen do and we are finally cool inside. Just in time for the really hot days. The nights are not nearly so hot. Last night after the man fixed the air conditioner, it was downright cold in our bedroom. I heard Mom ask HeWho is our Dad what temperature he had set the air on. He said 75, but Mom said that it could not be set that high because she was cold. What you should know about this, is that Mom is never cold unless she is sick! Did HeWho is our Dad get up and go check the thermostat (this is what Mom calls that thing on the wall that tells us what the temperature is)? No, he did not. Mom removed the blankets from the bed when the weather changed. I slept close to Mom and kept her warm. Bo sleeps down at the foot of the bed and he told me that Mom's feet were icy cold. Bo is a good sport and stayed with her feet until he warmed them up. Eddie got up o...

  We are still without benefit of central air. Repair man came on Monday. It is the motor. Unfortunately, he did not have one on his truck and it had to be ordered. Next week it will be installed. It is not as bad as you may be imagining. The nights are cool, downright chilly. Good sleeping weather if your mate doesn't hog the quilt! Mr. BoJangles is the real culprit. He likes to burrow between the quilt and sheet. In doing so, he pulls the quilt off me and makes a mound in the middle of the bed around himself. For such a little guy, he manages to take up a lot of space. We have a temporary window unit in the living room that manages to keep the temperature down during the 90 degree afternoons. That unit will be going to the She Shed after the central unit has been repaired. Not in one of my windows, but in the outer wall. $500 for a new motor seems like a lot, until you compare that with replacing the unit. Such is life!

  The pool noodles have been installed and the net is covering everything. One noodle looks askew, but it is holding the net up. About those noodles .... I studied them carefully after they arrived. Something was different. I bought these by the dozens every year for the pool season and thought something was different. They are abut a foot shorter than they used to be! Not only did they raise the price by a quarter, they made them shorter! Looks a little like a circus, don't you think? It was a challenge to get the netting in place. I placed everything as close to the ravine as I could, so there was no walking around on the far side! It was quite the stretch to get the net over. It caught on everything. I hope it will be worth the effort. Up the hill, by the She Shed things are beginning to sprout. I am looking forward to some color. I still need to "hide" the soaker hose under the mulch. My next big project will be a fence panel on the end of the shed to hide the trailer...

  When planning a vegetable garden, the sun plays a big part. I haven't really found a spot I like, so I haven't tilled up any ground. All in containers, this is my garden this year. Before we left on our trip, I covered everything with a net to keep the rabbits at bay. I had put everything together in a tight little area to be sure it would cover everything. Yesterday I spent the cooler morning hours taking the netting off and making sure all the containers were where the sun cold hit them all. I realized the net was bigger than I thought it would be. I mean, I could have read the description on the package to determine this but this was more fun. HeWho is my errand boy has been dispatched for some pool noodles from the Dollar and a Quarter Tree. My beans and tomato vines were growing through the net. This made it difficult to harvest any thing, not being able to lift the net easily. The pool noodles will create an arch over the garden and the net will lie atop the noodles. I ...