May Flowers and NO MORE LOWES

 That didn't last long.  Our warm days have again disappeared into the atmosphere.  It's now 45 degrees with a high of 62 and rain on the horizon .... but WOW .... that warm weather sure brought out the flowers.

I can't believe that in just four short days, these "carpet roses" are blooming like crazy.  Here's the quick "carpet rose" story.  When I bought the house I had a landscaper/gardener come in and put down the sod and plant trees and shrubs since there was nothing but dirt.  I specifically asked for 12" high ground-cover-like, easy to care for, CARPET ROSES.  

Oh these are very pretty ... but they require several garbage bins full of pruning twice a year.  SO MUCH WORK!!  

On the other hand, there were four very nice HARDY plants here that apparently didn't like the frost and rain.  It appears they won't be coming back to visit any time soon.

At any rate, I had more important things to be doing.  Company was coming ... my girlfriend from Sacramento.  We both use the same gal to cut our hair, plus she has a rental here she needs to check up on. The hotel is open for business and we get to catch up on all our adventures. 

Yessirree ... she forces me to clean my entire house at least twice a year.  There's nothing better than company coming to get me motivated.  You want to live in the country?  Next to the fabulous almond orchards?  Close to the dairies and pastureland?  This is what you can look forward to.  

It doesn't really bother me ... having lived on the ranch most of my life which isn't exactly clean and tidy.  It always amazes me just how much dirt gets into an air tight house.  This is just two rooms worth by the way.  I get the dirt part, but where in the heck do all the dust bunnies come from?  It makes me wonder who is cavorting around my house when I'm gone.

So after she arrived, we went out for a nice long walk.  We both could use a lot more exercise.  For two miles we sauntered along, admiring all the houses in the neighborhood and trying to decide which of THEIR plants I could put in MY yard.

After she left, I decided I needed to get back out again.  I can tell I'm getting soft around the edges by the excruciating pain in my hips by the end of that first two miles.  So yesterday, I went out for a run.  It's an addiction ... running is.  In your head you are constantly saying "I need to go run".  

I kind of wish I hadn't listened to myself because this time I RAN the two miles.  Well, jogged actually.  I have never been known for my speed, but I'm tenacious.  It was fun to run into the Attack Kitty that lives around the corner.  He was sunning himself in the cold morning air.

THIS morning, I really wish I had not listened to myself.  Just about every single muscle aches.  I keep doing stretches, but it's not helping.  Maybe some aspirin is in order.  

I've been putting off the B. A. T. H. for some time now.  Never say that word out loud.  If you think he looks sad now, you should have seen him when he went under the faucet.  He's still pretty damp around the edges here, and NOT a happy camper.  That's mostly because he knows the hair dryer is coming up.

He hates the hair dryer.  But at last he's mostly dry and is waiting for that snack to hit his lips.  

I contemplated the gutter repairs using Rubber Flexx.  I've got a couple of seam leaks to fix and this was the easiest way I could find.  Of course I had to walk from one corner of Lowes to the other to find what I needed.  Luckily I found the $40 cartridge for the back sink repair also.  $#@!%$#!!

In fact, I picked up six items from Lowes.  I will never shop there again.  It's all Check Yourself Out now.  They have only six stations, two of which were closed.  I finally got up to the stand and scanned everything.  That's when I noticed it said RECORDING on the screen.  What?  It's recording you as you scan stuff?  Oh yeah ... right in your face recording.  

Then I discovered it stopped on the very first item because they had to verify my age.  Are you kidding me?  It was a long wait as the only checkout girl was helping someone two aisles away.  Behind me the next guy had the same problem, trying to buy a can of spray paint.  Both red lights were flashing.

We waited ... and waited ... while another employee just stood there and looked at us.  You know that didn't set well with me.  I yelled at them to get some help over here.  She finally wandered over and punched in the keys to let me check out everything for a SECOND time.  That will be the last time I ever go to Lowes.  

The last repair of the day ... a water filter for the fridge.  Ummmm yeah, the one that was in there was dated 2018.  It's okay, I have never used the fridge water since I had the Osmosis thingy.  With that now gone, I needed something for my coffee.  

You can't be picky ... there was only one kind to get and it was $57.00.  YIKES!!  But my coffee tastes YUMMY!!

I'm running late today, so I better get to it, only there will be NO running, I guarantee!!  Next up ... faucet repair .... maybe.  The gutters have to wait until I heal up a bit.