Never thought retirement would be like this

Yep, looks like you are going to have some "young" neighbors when the Fall Session begins! Hope they do not party all night...although that deck screams "PARTY"!

I just want to get rid of sweat pants, sweat shirts, hoodies and all the other clothing associated with cold weather! Although they say we are suppose to get to 76 degrees tomorrow...lets see! I was freezing all day yesterday with this continuous wind. I want to get outside! And no, the floor is not finished yet....but I am making some headway. But if the weather turns...all bets are off! I ain't got nothing but time to get it finished.
 

Yes they could have beer parties for the whole neighborhood in their new parking lot. :eewwk:

It will be ok. I don't know if I mentioned this but the rear of the men's athletic dorm used to adjoin the back of my lot. The boys would put their boom boxes and speakers out on the balcony facing my house and play them all day. I survived that. They tore that dorm down years ago. This is when they first started demolishing it.

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This closet is by far the most complicated thing I've ever tried to do. Every little thing results in a new problem. I should have done this years ago but stuff got in the way. At the last minute I decided to put a little short fake wall in front of those tubes and wires coming down from the attic. It will keep from bumping into them with junk. I may pull an all-nighter tonight, and get past this step. :rolleyes:

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I was so sick of the cold when the furnace wasn't working, I've got the new one turned way up high. It's working well so far. The wind has been awful. It's supposed to get to 79 tomorrow here. I suspect I'll have to give in and mow all the lawns this week before the rain comes. :p
 
Drug out all 3 lawnmowers and the trim saw, from winter hibernation, and all of them started with little trouble! :) Haven't been able to get the saw started since last fall, but I guess I didn't really try all that hard. Mowed the lawn at the farm and the front lawn in town, mostly early weeds. Will have to give a try at those trees still on the fence now as soon as a good day comes along. I imagine just clearing the road to get there will be an afternoon job. Haven't traveled the perimeter fence since last fall. I can surely use the exercise. Way too much sitting this winter.

The silhouette of a house wren in the goat barn today. Every year since the barn was built, a wren makes a nest in that same spot. It must be a really good spot. :rolleyes: Usually they are too shy to let you get this close. I guess they are getting used to me. Somehow I feel like just one of the many wildlife creatures out there lately. It's a spooky feeling. :confused:

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Updates: The rain washed away all the chalk marks.
 

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This afternoon I went half way around the perimeter fence, just to clear the road, and to take another look at that tree pile from the hurricane, on the fence on the far back side. The road wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Along the way...

The new neighbor's horse pasture, with 3 horses, specks way off in the distance.

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The drainage ditch from their pond runs under the road with a culvert. Looks like their drain pipe is stopped up.

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I thought the tree pile would look smaller with all the leaves off the trees, but it didn't. :(

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Doesn't look nearly as bad from the other side, and farther away. ;)

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Looking on toward the other half of the circle, looks like a new tree down. :rolleyes: I should have walked down there to check it out better, but it was getting late.

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Anyway, I can get there quickly now. First free day when it's not raining, maybe. I think I *might* be able to do this. Just clear out enough around the fence to rehook the electric, and wait for the rest of the trees to rot. Maybe I'll be gone, one way or another, before that happens. LOL.

Heading back, decided I'd better check the cabin. Three geese honking like crazy in the pond and echoing off the side of the hill. Beavers are back! :( Haven't had one in years. A lot of recent activity in that hole near the cabin. Don't smell any skunk, but did notice that weak coffee smell (skunk) in the house again one day last week.

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Beautiful, but long, day. High about 68.

Happy Easter!

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Just happened to be awake at sunrise this morning (long story). There was a beautiful sunrise! Tried to take a picture, but you could only see it from upstairs and there are screens on the windows. :( Even so, the colors wouldn't have come out as pretty as it actually looked. A tiny picture, just to prove I'm not making this up. (You can't fake a picture this bad. LOL)

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I was disappointed not to be able to capture a beautiful Easter sunrise. Maybe next year. {sigh}
 
NancyNGA said:
Just happened to be awake at sunrise this morning (long story). There was a beautiful sunrise! Tried to take a picture, but you could only see it from upstairs and there are screens on the windows. :( Even so, the colors wouldn't have come out as pretty as it actually looked. A tiny picture, just to prove I'm not making this up. (You can't fake a picture this bad. LOL)

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I was disappointed not to be able to capture a beautiful Easter sunrise. Maybe next year. {sigh}
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I think it is still a beautiful picture! You were awake to capture the beauty...beats the alternative!
 
Nancy, those are some good size trees that are down. Are you going to try to cut them up yourself? What beautiful country side! Unspoiled by development!
 
maggiemae said:
Nancy, those are some good size trees that are down. Are you going to try to cut them up yourself?....
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This is a close up right near the fence. The saw should go through all those, except maybe that forked one in the middle. The highest branches right now are above the fence. I'll just start cutting off little chunks from the tops of the trees, on down, and see how it works out. If they stay up there, I'll leave them until they rot and fall down. If they fall down, then I can cut them up.

If nothing else, it will be really good strength exercise, and I need it! So out of shape over the winter. One time jobs like this are fun. Each pile of trees is a different puzzle. If I had to cut trees every day, I wouldn't like it. LOL

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Got all the numbers penciled in for IRS taxes last night. Wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. Last year I got a refund. This year I'll have to pay some, but not enough to trigger a penalty. Can't ever seem to get the withholding amount right. There is more work involved in paying, than in getting a refund, and I do not *ever* want to have to do estimated taxes.

Still got the State taxes to do. They are much simpler, but they force you to round off everything to whole dollars. I like to figure everything to the penny, and send in paper forms, just to annoy them. And I refuse to pay, just to file electronically. If that's what they want everyone to do, then let them make if free for everyone. Don't like contributing money to the salaries of the CEO's of the tax prep companies. I'd rather send that money to the IRS. :playful:
 
Update: Well golly gee whiz, am I behind the times, or what!?! :rolleyes: Just found out you can schedule estimated tax payments electronically for free. I was still remembering the old days, when friends were struggling with quarterly paperwork, and missing deadlines, or scheduling appointments with tax professionals every quarter. I can do this! :cool: :) :eek:nthego:

"EFTPS is the free Electronic Federal Tax Payment System provided by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Payments can be scheduled weekly, biweekly, monthly, and quarterly. ... This is especially useful for Form 1040-ES estimated tax payments that are due quarterly."

EFTPS
 
High of 81F today. Rain coming in a couple of days. Decided I better work on those trees again, but as I was leaving the house this was sitting out on the street---a 1964 Ford Galaxy 500.:cool: My first car, though not this color.

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Only had a couple of hours, so I set a simple goal of clearing a path so you could at least drive around those trees and get back to the road.

BEFORE: (upper branches)
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AFTER:
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Only took an hour. The hard part was carrying the limbs out of the way. Every time I sat down to take a break, 3 vultures circled overhead. Figured I better keep busy. Cleared two of the trees away from the fence. They were easy to cut. Now really all that's left is just one big forked oak, but it's complicated. :rolleyes: Two hours was enough :)p), so I left it like this. Next time I'll clear the smaller limbs out of the top of that tree and see what's left.

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Looks like the new neighbors are setting up beehives now? They surely are interesting and hard-working folks.

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Don't laugh. I'm posting this only because it will help me keep at it and improve, LOL. Anyway, this is the style of guitar I'd like to learn---no singing or strumming of chords---just the melody with a little harmony.


Miss the sustain pedal on the piano. It sounds choppy without some kind of accompaniment to cover the silent gaps as you move your hand around, but the tone of a guitar is so much prettier than that of a piano, imo.

Bucket list...

To play this song like Les Paul, by the time I'm his age (90) in this video. I've got 19 years to practice.:) Guess you call it jazz, but it's not the crazy kind of jazz, where you can't even recognize the song. Love the tone! I like all kinds of music, though.

 
NancyNGA said:
Looks like the new neighbors are setting up beehives now? They surely are interesting and hard-working folks.

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Our neighbor has beehives and brings us jars of honey atleast once a year. I have seen him out with his suit and helmet and smoking the hives. Very interesting!
 
You have been one busy lady! Just one hour of tree removal made a huge difference! I have to call a couple of tree removal companies to give estimates to have about 9 trees removed here. Most of them are large pines. The pines really lost some big limbs this past winter when we had that wet snow. I do not want to deal with that again. And they are close to the house. Hope I don't go into cardiac arrest when I see the estimates! LOL
 
maggiemae said:
Our neighbor has beehives and brings us jars of honey atleast once a year. I have seen him out with his suit and helmet and smoking the hives. Very interesting!
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The neighbor across the street out there has a chicken house and she used to bring my parents eggs often.

I suppose it sounds odd that I haven't met the beehive neighbors yet. Our property adjoins only on the back sides of each. Their house is way down the road from me and has a gate at the road. I'm just enjoying watching their progress. One day we'll meet across the fence. They have a website and sell goats, guard dogs, donkeys, alpacas, emus, and also milk, cheese, probably honey now too. I can't imagine how much work that must be.

Those trees down on the fence actually belong to a different neighbor. Not even sure who. There are about 10 neighbors out there, if you count adjoining property lines. Don't want to bother them, in case it would end up making them, or me, angry. I'd rather have peace, and it's really good exercise. I wouldn't put that much effort in at a gym. Two or three more days out there and I'll get it, I think.

Even that new light fixture for the closet is causing trouble! I knew that, from the reviews, but it was so perfect otherwise, I bought it anyway.

Hows it going with you? Working outside some?
 
maggiemae said:
You have been one busy lady! Just one hour of tree removal made a huge difference! I have to call a couple of tree removal companies to give estimates to have about 9 trees removed here. Most of them are large pines. The pines really lost some big limbs this past winter when we had that wet snow. I do not want to deal with that again. And they are close to the house. Hope I don't go into cardiac arrest when I see the estimates! LOL
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The tree guys I've talked to say pines are the easiest (cheapest?) to remove. Not so many limbs. That's one good thing, maybe.
 
Had the granddaughter for three days this week because they are out for Spring break. The grandson went to Orlando with his Dad. She was a delight (she is 6-1/2). My daughter has the rest of week the off so maybe I can get some things done. Need to mow the green onions and dandelions that are every where now! But sleeping in tomorrow is my main objective! Getting up at 6:30 in the morning is not something I planned for when I retired! Although Ansley and I did go back to sleep in the recliners when her Mom dropped her off! LOL What happens at Nana's house...stays at Nana's House! LOL
 
So much for the parking lot theory...

A tall fence? But why so close to the house? There would almost not be enough room left to park in front of it now. A building back there to keep his tractor and equipment? Maybe there will be more (fence) posts later this afternoon. The plot thickens. :playful:

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Oh well back to the closet. Had to build a special brace just to fasten that light yesterday. I don't want the light attached only to hollow drywall. Need a few sturdy braces to attach clothes rods. Always little things I forgot about. My old clothes rod was an old galvanized water pipe. :) It worked fine for 30 years.
 
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