1001 Reasons to Not Cut the Grass

1000 reasons





+ 1 reason: The lawn mower is broken.

sigh....it is always something.

Don't Walk Under Those Power Lines.

without an umbrella.




or something.








Flock of Grackles.

Montgomery, AL

February a Month in Pictures.

Cold. Rain. Snow.































Pretty much sums up February around ThirteenEleven.

Hello March!

Sunday Shadow Play

I love my dog. I just wish he would pick up the ladder.

I learned something today about Pink.

....And I was excited, so I thought I would share.

Let's back up a bit.

I know... It has been a whole month since you have heard from me.

Life has been busy, the vege garden has been demanding, the house has been at a standstill and I was a bit board with the blog. I am working on changing things up a bit around here. So stay tuned while I work out some details.

Anyway.....

Do you remember me telling you how ThirteenEleven was at one time all pink? The pink that your mind associates with upset stomachs and fake bubble gum flavor. ( Is there really a natural bubble gum flavor? ) Yes, I have scraped pepto pink wall paper, pepto pink plastic tile, pepto pink trim paint and even pepto carpet, 'til I needed a strong dose of Pepto-Bismol myself. ( click for THE color)

THAT color Pink has a name.

__________________________

The name of the Pink Color that was very popular for home interiors from 1953-1957.

(insert Jeopardy music)

"What is Mamie Pink, Alex?" (Aly, are you reading?)

__________________________

Mamie Pink, is the name of THAT color pink.

I was hopping through Twitter today and went to a link, then another, then another. I then landed on Save the Pink Bathrooms. As I scroll around, I land on THIS post.

"Where have I been?
Why did I not know this?"
"History and Design are my things."
"I feel like a blonde."

So go over there and read up, but basically THAT PINK color is named for
Dwight Eisenhower's wife Mamie. Mamie decorated the White House's private quarters all pink, causing a design rage of the times. Pepto Pink (oops Mamie Pink or First Lady Pink) then spewed through all the magazines, oozing into paint cans and on to the walls of your old home.



Mamie Doud Eisenhower
our 34th First Lady.

Image via Library of Congress.


Thank you Save the Pink Bathrooms for teaching me something for the day.

oh.....and giving me something to blog about.

We have been Adopted

And somebody is not happy.

Panic ! Maybe ?

At first I was not concerned when I saw the helicopter circling. The local hospital is only about a quarter mile away. We hear medic-vac choppers quite often so I glance up, sun in my eyes, glance back down and kept watering the young plants in the front flower bed.

Chris arrives home and states that chopper has a camera. Camera? I question. Then the chopper circles. I see it is the news crew from the big city. Why would the news crew be HERE? Overhead? What has Chris done now? Is there already a watering ban and I am in deep trouble? Then I see another news crew truck pass by.

I decide it is time to go in and turn on the t.v. "What is being reported from down the street?" When I worked in the city, choppers were no big thing. Just a visual reminder to avoid that area. There was a wreck, a 357 car pile up on the connector. My drive home was gonna be a pain. Maybe, I should go shopping instead.

When the news does not report live from the area, I call my Uncle. Our town is a small town. Yes, one of THOSE small towns. There are a handful of folks you can call to find out the 411 on what is happening. Uncle M is one of the few. This time, he does NOT know a thing.

Finally there is a small blip, a teaser of sorts. The long report would be on the 11:00 news.

The short report was....."A confirmed case of TYPE A unidentifiable flu" at the hospital. The local hospital, the hospital just a very short distance from our home. I also think "confirmed, unidentifiable" really means they think, but do not know.

EEEKKK!

Well this morning, word on the street passed much quicker than the news. Some of it true, some of it....not.

Yes....It is here....THAT flu. The first confirmed case in the southeast. Swine Flu, Pig Flu, Abc123 flu. CDC confirmed it, not just Rumor Mills. (You know him. He lives in every town.)

Hold on...

Just typing that made me need to wash my hands. Just whose hands have been on this mouse?

I have mixed feelings. Should I stock up on groceries, Dial soap, dust masks, and hand sanitizers? Or should I have confidence, all will be OK?

I am planning on going to the Piggly Wiggly in a bit, making sure I have everything I need for the week. I did hear that no Purell can be found in town. (Rumor told me.)

And if we really need masks.

I would fancy one of these....

Blogging Blues....

I have not had much to say here lately.

Maybe it is the blogging blues.

Or maybe I've just let the birds do all the talking.

Can you hear them?

Images from Spring Break...

We had a great Spring Break....

A mini Staycation. My sister and her family came for a visit.



We went to see the King Tut Exhibit. There my sister and I decided that solid gold flip flops may not be comfortable, but we could learn to walk in them.



We saw fish at the Georgia Aquarium.



Jelly Fish, too.

And finally.... We headed to the Auburn Basketball game.







We had a great visit and hope they come back to visit soon.

Stools at ReStore.

My heart skipped a beat, when I saw these stools at Habitat Re-Store last week.



I have been looking for 2 vintage-ish type stools to go with the stainless steel kitchen table that I received for Christmas. There was a coffee shop near my old office that had vintage lab stools at the bar and I loved how the these stools looked against the shiny stainless steel counter.


I was so sad to read on the little red tag above the ladder.

SOLD.

I was there too late. They sold earlier that day. All of them. For $10 each.


Oh and this picture was made with my cell phone. My camera died.

I've Just Been Busy.

Sometimes work has to comes first.



In this economy,

It's gotta. If ya want to keep it and all.

Anyway....

Hopefully I will have more time for all of ya'll real soon.

I miss you.

love,

Jenni

This Time Last Year.

A year ago today, we had snow.

The "S" word is expected again tonight.

Last night's view from the deck.

Growing Red Ferns.

The first time I read, Where the Red Fern Grows, I was in Summer Reading Club at Coleman Library. Every summer as soon as the last school bell rang, it was time for reading club.


Oh sometimes, I would take other lessons like baton, art, music, and even...tennis. Those other lessons would vary from summer to summer. However reading club was every summer.



Last week, I won this copy of Where the Red Fern Grows, from The Country Doctor's Wife. I look forward to reading this touching tale again. I also remember seeing the movie.

Do you remember the movie? It ranks up there with Old Yeller, and The Yearling.


Thank You, Rechelle and Kleenex thanks you , too.


I will forward the book on to my nephews when I finish.

_______________________________________________


As far as growing red ferns.....

The only thing that grows freely around here is.....



and.....



Wonder what the Indians would have to say about that? hummmmm..........


oh .....and....

My grandfather once had dogs that looked like those coon hounds on the cover.

Luck-n-Money

Heaven knows we need them both.

Re:Cap New Years Day 2009

Here at ThirteenEleven, we need all the luck and folding money we can get. Thus, I drug my bright eyed self out of bed after getting home at.....cough....3:30 and washed the collard greens. (Remember the husband is a drummer in a band that had a gig New Years Eve.)



We had greens last year. Meaning....we should have had plenty of folding money if you are one to believe all the folklore. Maybe it was the poor economy in 2008, or maybe we did not eat enough greens, but folding money was short in 2008. Or maybe...it really, actually had absolutely nothing to do with the greens. Just in case.... I made myself get up to cook the greens. The consequences of not having the greens would keep me up at night.


Actually....with the state of the economy....why wasn't everyone eating greens? Where were the public service announcements blipping below the Rose Bowl parade reminding citizens, "Help the Economy....Eat your Greens." Instead of bailouts for the big three....send them turnip greens. When the banks come knocking at the federal door, cup in hand, fill it with collards. Worth a try? Maybe?


I digress...


We also had peas. Black Eye peas. For luck and/or pocket change. Some insist on dried peas. Me, I normally have plenty of formerly farm fresh peas in the freezer. I use those.





And for all the Pot-likker both of these dishes produce, I made cornbread. Cornbread for sopping up all the delicious juice. We also had pork roast, baked sweet potatoes, and corn.

I then took a nap during a football game.

____________________________________________

Do you have any New Years Day traditions? Things you feel like you just gotta do, or the whole year might be unlucky. Any special foods you eat?

Or maybe things NOT to do on the new year. Things like....Not washing clothes on New Years Day or you will have bad luck. ( I did not wash, and would NOT allow Chris to wash.)


Best of Luck to you in 2009.

One. The lonely number.

House Resolutions for 2009

2008 was a tough year, and um.........not much was done around this old bungalow.

Our list was short. Only 8. Just to complete 8 things in 2008. That was all. Which at the time I thought was realistic. I was wrong.

Again. WRONG. ( See I said it right here for the world to see.... I was wrong.)

This year my goal is only one thing.

One. 1. Uno. Un. Une. Unis. I. The loneliest number.

(Sing it outloud, I know you want to.)

And if I combine it with the 8 other things that did not get finished ....ahem......even started. That would be 9.

Nine things for 2009.


I know you are wondering.....questioning...
"What the ONE thing that she is placing on her list?"




Paint the area around the light switch in the front bedroom ( our bedroom) where the terrible electricians re-wired the switch and completely tore up the wall...after I had patched, sanded, primed, and painted two coats of paint on the wall. I will also say that they tore up the wall .....
cough.....two years ago next week. And I re-patched and re-sanded everything....probably two years ago in March.


So Folks....That is it the ONE thing that I have on my list.


And as far as the 8 other things..... The only 8 things that we did not get accomplished.

We did work on the yard. A Lot. And the yard does look much better, except in the front where the grass is dying because someone turns his truck around on the grass.

I did work on stripping paint off the mouldings and door casings. Which is a major pain. Don't let anyone let you think otherwise. IT IS A PAIN. You can work for hours and maybe even days on one 8' board and still not get down to the wood.

Anyway.....

The Kitchen..... I think I am glad we did not get further with the kitchen cabinets. After using the kitchen, I want to change some things around. Nothing big like a sink. Just one area about 3' long. (P.S. Chris doesn't know yet.)


That is it for 2009. Maybe just maybe we can work on some stuff from our 2008 list and complete the one thing for 2009.

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!


p.s.
Tonight it is off to some bar that Chris and his band has never played at before. I guess we will not be sleeping in the new year like normal and I will be washing the bar smell out of my hair at 3 a.m. I am excited. You can tell.