Old Woman

Old Woman - Traditional Folk Song

VERSE 1
Old Woman, ole woman are you fond of courting
Old woman, ole woman are you fond of courting
Speak a little louder, sir, I'm rather hard-of-hearing
Speak a little louder sir, I'm rather hard-of-hearing

VERSE 2
Old woman, old woman, are you fond of smoking
Old woman, old woman, are you fond of smoking
Speak a little louder sir, I've just begin to hear you
Speak a little louder sir, I've just begin to hear you

VERSE 3
Old woman, ole woman do you think you'd marry me
Old woman, ole woman do you think you'd marry me
O, my goodness, gracious me, I do believe I hear you
O, my goodness, gracious me, I do believe I hear you

I remember singing this song at Washington Elementary in Atlantic. Don't remember the smoking verse...
Of course, back then I never thought about the time when I'd be the old woman. It happened so fast. AND I'm not quite clear on just when the "old" descriptor kicks in.

I'm okay with being an old woman. Sometime. I guess it depends on just who is calling me an old woman. When I'm with my peers - no problem. We joke about being old women. It's almost a source of pride. Look how nicely we've growed up! I've explained how I forget how old I am - until I look in the mirror. Or when I get out of the car after riding a long distance. "Walk young" our pal Don McKim recommends. My joints don't always obey.

Photo of a project partially funded by the Derelict Building program - will be new City Hall

My nose got a little out of joint this week on a work trip through Eastern and NE Iowa. A younger woman riding with me on a work trip called me an old woman because of the way I parallel parked on a busy street. I'm afraid I briefly saw red and told her she could drive if she wasn't happy with my parking. (she's my boss - oops!) The old girl (me) still has some spunk. So call me Old Woman - if you dare! I may laugh or snap.

Paul and I took a quick trip to Saint Louis Saturday (overnight) to deliver the bookshelf he built and stained for Jud and Kara. Oak with a black finish. It turned out super. It matches the desk he built for them last year. Kara uses the office when she works from home. She has big plans on how to fill all those shelves. It was good to see the kids - and get that big unit out of our garage! 

A night out after delivery - at the Shaved Duck, a family favorite

Des Moines was hit by a huge rainstorm while we were gone - over 10 inches in some areas. A local sports personality was swept away by flood waters after his van was stranded on a city street. Prayers to his family.

We had under five inches at our house and were very pleased to find our basement unfazed. Sump pumps rule! On to one of my favorite holidays - Independence Day. It's tough when it falls on Wednesday. I think a lot of people are taking vaca. Not me! That's next week when we head to Cannon Beach for our Bullock Girl fam reunion. I'm looking forward to it! If you've never been to the Oregon coast, consider checking it out.

Have a great and safe 4th of July all! Remember - sparkler can be HOT!

Catching up

It's been a while. I must admit - I haven't been up to blogging lately. At least blogs fit for public consumption. I have written a few political rants that I decided to keep just for myself. 😑

Nevertheless, life goes on, and eventually, I must write~

Last weekend we finally had a chance to head south to visit Jud and Kara, dogs Henry and Archie and their new adorable home in the STL area. They had a short list of "to-do's" for Paul. My job was entertaining the dogs. Yes, I'm the dog whisperer. Odie hates the "boys" and growled at them quite often. It didn't seem to phase them, especially Archie - his whole body wiggles in a wag when he walks.

Supper at the Shaved Duck

I love St. Louis! There are so many cool neighborhoods around the city. Jud and Kara are fun to hang out with and we always go to interesting places to eat and drink. We spent the morning Saturday running errands. Paul and Jud bonded in a manly way by putting together a new Weber grill. That afternoon, we went to a game-watch for the Iowa State University men's basketball team. It was in a suburb about 10 minutes from J&K's new place. Later we went to a restaurant that had beer tappers at several of the tables. Talk about serve yourself! I had a sloppy joe that was a bun that had a brand sizzled into it, surrounded by a tasty meaty concoction.

By the time we got home to DSM, most of the prior week's snow had melted. The Iowa weather has taken a warm turn! It's weird - and we'll probably suffer later, like through a plague of bugs or something. But for now, a respite from winter has been lovely!

On Wednesday, Paul had a little tune up. His shoulder had been bothering him for a while, and a visit with a surgeon and an MRI determined he needed surgery on his rotator cuff. Dr. (very cute) Sullivan told me it was 90% torn, so he fixed that and trimmed the rough bone. The first evening was a little rough - because my husband was still goofy from the anesthetic. Paul is in a restrictive sling and slept in his chair that first night.

On Thursday, he did pretty well. I was a super great nurse, of course. For me, anyway. Did you know you can use Press N Seal on a shoulder to keep it dry during a shower? I haven't dressed another person since Jud was a youngster - and certainly never anyone this big. He really only needs assistance with his shirt - but it's a good thing he's sharp because I almost put it on him backward the first time. Awkward.

We stayed pretty close to home until Saturday. Lucky our friends Jane and Ken sent us a week of Blue Apron - delivered grocery meal kits. We made burgers with garlic paste and onions Friday night with a nice salad.

We ventured out to the ISU basketball game Saturday afternoon. It was in the balmy 60's. The Cyclones won and we had a nice meal with our pals, Kevin and Kari. On Sunday, Paul actually marched around in the timber. I'm glad he didn't tip over. I went to a meeting of like-minded people from my Senate district. We are just getting organized.

That afternoon we had a visit from Paul's sister Carol. We stopped by Fox Brewery in Valley Junction for a beer while we caught up on winter (?) activities. She's been to Arizona, and then she brought the weather back!