On A Roll!

Yesterday was so much fun. Friday morning our great friends/dog-walking volunteers came out and walked our dogs for us. Then all of us went to the Apple Store, in Medina, to eat lunch together and to celebrate Chris' and Suzanne's April birthdays.

Eileen brought the cutest, themed birthday cake for them and it was absolutely delicious, but too fattening when we topped it off with the Cider Mill's tasty apple ice cream.

And I didn't complain about my high calorie count intake, but my jeans sure did, on our way back home. To say the least, "It was pretty painful."

Later in the afternoon our good friend Steve Pietzsch came over and he brought along his brother Mike and his son Daniel, who were down here visiting him. They came over so we could do some picking' & grinnin' and we did and it was a lot of fun. And right after we had put our guitars away, Carol, who we had also invited, came over. And then we spent about an hour, inside The Cabin, catching up with each other and talking and laughing about life in general.

The other day when I wrote about giving up on making a quilt, because many of the seams did not line up with each other, even though the layout had looked fine, when I had placed the pretty 5 inch squares, on the stove top, before I sewed them together.

And as you already know, I have decided to cut up and use my quilt to make throw pillow covers to give away as Cousin Nancy gifts and to also make matching, tiny quilts for Little Debbie and Big Al(ice). And possibly make place mats if there is any leftover, scrap quilting-material.

Then I put my stupid-looking, wanna-be quilt out of mind and turned my attention to making Carol's Christmas bun—using our dog's hair. But after surfing the Web for my intense, five minute research, on the cost of spinning wheels—I gave up on that too, because of that potholder warning sign. 

Anyway, when I told Carol about me not making a dog-hair bun for her Christmas present she tried to hide it, but I could tell that she was really disappointed. "Nancy, I totally understand and don't worry about it, even though I have already been collecting Scout's and Pepper's hair to give to you. I thought it would be nice to have a little bit of their hair, in my little bun, too...."

Late Saturday evening, I was thinking that I was so glad that I had told Carol upfront about me ditching her Christmas bun project, before letting her waste anymore of her time collecting her dog's hair. And I was ready to lay to rest my dog-hair-bun project and forget about it and get on with other important things to make. 

Well, that thought didn't last long, because Saturday night, when I checked my e-mail Fay had sent me this e-mail that I want to share with you now. Fay wrote: 

"I was interested on the yarn making process after reading your blog, and Lord knows I want to see Carol get her dog-hair bun. LOL!

I found this really sweet girl who does spinning tutorials on Youtube, who also has an Etsy shop! So I ordered you a Drop Spindle & Yarn Beginner's Kit and it should arrive by mail next week. Here is a video you can watch where she explains it so easily, so you'll be ready to go once the spindle arrives.

Have a great weekend & get that dog hair washed, dried and ready!

Bunches of love,

Fay"

So that got me excited all over again, so I checked out the drop-spindle video that Fay had sent and I was on a roll! So I did a little more research and found this video on how to spin dog hair into yarn. So it looks like Carol is going to get her dog-hair bun after all.

I am now looking forward to receiving Fay's cool Drop Spindle & Yarn Beginner's Kit gift, but I already know that I am going to need some extra help collecting enough dog hair to make Carol's hairy bun. 

So before I ask you to please send me some of your collected dogs' hair, I want you to know that I've already checked it out and YES—it is legal to mail dog hair to people. So if you can help me out please send it.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

P.S. My good friend Cathie sent me this hilarious Star Wars youtube about bad lip reading and I am still laughing about it.

My Head Was Spinning!

Last night I re-watched that great movie A Street Cat Named Bob and I enjoyed watching it as much as I had the first time I watched it.

Then I surfed around, on Netflix, to watch something funny and I found Jim Gaffigan: Cinco and he was so hilarious it caused my back to start aching, because I was laughing so much. But I kept on watching the King of Clean Comedy.

In one part of his brilliant comic routine he made an observation about people never talking when they are inside an elevator and it hit so close to home—I laughed so hard that Henry Standing Bear barked and then came running, into the big room, to see if I was okay and that made me laugh even harder.

And the reason that I found Jim Gaffigan's remark about no one ever talking on elevators to be so funny was because Kinky had just done that to me when I had called him, yesterday morning, to let him know that Fay & Ian and their daughter and boyfriend were coming to his show that night. And our conversation went something like this:

"Hi Kinky!"

"Hello Nance! Is everything okay?"

"Yes. I've called, because I have two things to tell you."

"Wait a minute, Nance. Can you please hold on for just a minute?" Kinky asked, sounding a little bit agitated. "I can't talk, because I'm in an elevator right now. Hold on."

"Okay."

After I had waited for at least a half a minute, Kinky finally says, "Okay, I can talk now. Are The Friedmans doing okay?"

"Yes."

"How are Sophie and Mr. Pee doing?...."Then I told him about Fay & Ian coming to his show, in Buffalo and that they were bringing their daughter and her boyfriend.

Today has been great. This morning while I was drinking a cup of coffee I returned a few e-mails and phone calls. Then I decided to check out the cost of spinning wheels and it literally through me for a loop, because even the cheapest ones are pretty pricey.

And during my exhausting, intense, five-minute research, on the cost of spinning wheels, this adorable potholder, popped up on Amazon and I immediately knew that it was meant as a sign for me and I took it seriously.

First, I wondered if it was warning me that I would look exactly like that old woman spinning yarn, while I spun our dog's hair together. Then it hit me like a bolt of lightning—that maybe I should consider making Carol a pretty potholder instead of a bun, for her Christmas present. It certainly would be less expensive and I already have the expensive equipment (A $10.00 loom) and a bag over 300 loopers, that is collecting dust, on a shelf in my office.

I felt confused and my head was spinning. Because since going out, to Terlingua, I've had my heart set on making Carol a little bun to wear, on the top of her head. So not wanting to give up so easily on my idea of making Carol a small bun, out of our dog's hair, I chose to dig a little deeper. 

And I am so glad that I did, because I watched this great YouTube video on how to use a spinning wheel. And after watching it and paying very close attention to all of the details to the art of spinning yarn—it was pretty clear to me that Carol ain't getting a homemade bun, from me, for Christmas. 

Feeling so relieved with my decision to save money and just get Jean to help me make another pretty potholder for Carol's Christmas present I poured myself another delicious cup of Donut Shop Coffee and then our dogs and I went, into Outer Space, to enjoy the beautiful, Spring morning. 

While I was in Outer Space enjoying the weather with my best friends a bad thought came into my head and I nearly choked on my coffee. "Omg!" I said to our dogs. What if Jon's sister tries to charge me an arm and a  leg to make Carol's stupid Christmas gift? She might hold me hostage, because she knows that I can't make a potholder by myself."

With Henry giving me that familiar puzzled look, on his face, like "Are you totally crazy or what?" 

I wiped away my spilled coffee on my shirt and then I smiled at Henry, and said, "I think I'll just give Carol one of my used Carl Hiaasen books for Christmas. She'll never know if it's a new or a used copy. Problem solved. Let's go back inside."

 Y'all have a great day and evening and keep on laughing!

Red-Medicine!

Yesterday afternoon I worked tirelessly on my quilt and then I went over to Carol's ranch for a fun visit. We talked about last weeks fun trip to Terlingua and how much fun we had out there. While we were talking about music and some of our favorite musicians such as: Willie Nelson, Neil Young, David Crosby, the Knotting Hillbillies, Gary P. Nunn, Chet O'Keefe, Jim Keaveny and Jimmy LaFave , etc. I asked Carol if she had heard the sad news about Jimmy LaFave's battle with cancer. "Yes," Carol replied. "I heard about it a few days ago and I was going to tell you about it if you hadn't already heard. I love Jimmy LaFave and his music."

"The other day my friend, Cindy, told me about it and she sent me the Austin Chronicle's article interview with Jimmy talking about his cancer and a link to a YouTube video of a Jimmy LaFave performing, on April 21st, at Threadgill's, in Austin. Where at the end of his song, Jimmy talks to the audience about his long battle with cancer. It was very emotional and it made me tear up. His music is so great and can you imagine how many hearts, all around this world, that his music has touched?...."

Before Carol and I adios-ed each other we started talking about how much we have enjoyed reading Marie Bostwick's Texas novels, so that gave me the opportunity to brag to her about the quilt that I am making.

Which ended up being a being a huge mistake for me, because I should've known better to have bragged without knocking-on-wood afterwards. Anyway when I got back home I spent about two more hours working on my quilt. And after I had ironed it—it didn't look right, because a lot of the seams were not lining up. So I sadly folded it up and put it back inside "my pink, quilt bag."

Then I poured myself a glass of my fine, red-boxed-wine with added water and four ice cubes and then I went, into Outer Space, with our dogs, to think about my crummy-looking wanna-be quilt. And by the time I finished drinking my red-medicine I was no longer sad, because I had decided that I would use my unevenly, pieced-together, stupid-looking quilt to make throw pillow covers. Sort of like when life gives you lemons—make lemonade.

So friends beware, because for Christmas you just might be getting an original Cousin Nancy Quilted Throw Pillow. Of course, except for Carol, because I'm giving her a small, hair-piece bun to wear on the top of her head—hand-made by me, from our dog's hair. But first, I will need to get a spinning wheel and learn how to spin dog hair into thread. So wish me luck there, even though Christmas is only eight months away.

Today has been great. This afternoon Tony and I went to Kerrville to get groceries, at the big H-E-B and after our expensive, boring shopping spree, we decided to eat lunch, at Hippie Chicks Bakery & Bistro. And as you can guess—we ordered the exact same thing—Meatball Subs and iced tea. But Tony did have a side order of sweet potato fries while I ate their delicious coleslaw.

Before leaving this super, cool place we decided to split a dessert and eat it on our way home. So we chose one of their delicious-looking, fresh, out-of-the-oven Brownies. And while Sarita was wrapping up our Brownie-to-go, I visited with her sweet mom, Karly Ann. And she told me a great big secret about a certain kind of specialty sandwich that they will be offering soon, that sadly I cannot divulge what kind it is, until a week after this Friday, when it will first be appearing on their daily menu.

Anyway, I told Karly Ann that I wanted to blog about their upcoming secret sandwich, tonight and she suggested that we follow them on their Facebook page Hippie Chicks Bakery & Bistro, because they will be announcing when this awesome, secret sandwich will be added to their menu.

And that is about it for tonight, because I need to go vacuum up some more dog hair and wash it and dry it, so I can add it to my growing pile of cleaned-dog-hair, for Carol's upcoming Christmas present.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

P.S. This morning I called Kinky to let him know that our great Canadian friends, Fay & Ian, plus their daughter and her boyfriend will be at his show tonight, in Buffalo, New York. And he was thrilled that they will be there. And late this afternoon, when I told Carol about Fay & Ian going to Kinky's show tonight, in Buffalo, I said, "I bet Ian will be wearing his cowboy hat."

And Carol said, "I bet he will, too. Because when he wear his cowboy hat he looks just like an authentic cowboy, from Texas."

Love Copper Love!

Yesterday, Tony and I spent most of the day mowing and I am proud to say that our rescue ranch looks beautiful—until it rains again. : (

Last night Little Debbie, Big Al(ice) and me and the rest of our dogs watched the movie A Street Cat Named Bob: And How He Saved My Life by James Bowen and we absolutely loved it.

This fabulous movie is based on a true story and it is a feel-good, heart-warming movie that I highly recommend you watch. But don't be surprised when your dogs jump up and run, to the television screen, when they hear Bob meow or dogs barking.

Today has been great. This morning when I did the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch's segment, on Big G's show, sweet, eleven-year-old, Baxter Black was his Pet of the Week.

While Big G (Gordon Ames) and I were talking about Terlingua and West Texas I asked him if I could make an announcement about our dear friend, Copper Love, who was in a fatal car accident, on March 28th. "Sure Nancy. Go right ahead. Copper was a friend of mine."

And instead of telling you about Copper Love's Celebration of Life party—I am going to show you the invitation that was sent out about the event, which Tony and I will definitely be attending.

This morning I plan to do a little more mowing. Then take care of some rescue ranch paperwork and phone calls, etc. Then after I've cooked us lunch and cleaned up the kitchen—I plan to spend a few hours working on my pretty, patchwork quilt that so far is coming along nicely.

Y'all have a great day and keep on laughing!

October 19, 2009! or And The Winner Is!

Yesterday evening I watched this fabulous documentary on Netflix. The name of the documentary is Bruce Springsteen & 1. Mixing fan shot videos with some awesome Springsteen and the E Street Band performance clips. The documentary is about how important Bruce Springsteen has been to his worldwide fans. And I totally loved it. In fact, after watching this wonderful documentary—I am now an even bigger fan of him than I already was.

One of my favorite clips of all, in this entertaining documentary, is when this nice couple is being interviewed about the night, October 19, 2009, when they attended a Bruce Springsteen Concert, at the Spectrum, in Philly, in hopes that the husband, an incredibly great Elvis impersonator, could fulfill his lifelong dream of being on stage, as Elvis, with The Boss. And Bruce knew absolutely nothing about it until he saw their hand-made sign, in the audience, that they had held up.

I highly recommend watching this documentary, even if you're not a big Springsteen fan, because it will warm your heart and show you what a great musician Springsteen is and how big his heart is.

If you can't watch the Springsteen & 1 documentary, it is too bad, but I have found this unedited video clip, from the documentary, on YouTube, of the couple's interview along with video of Nick, as Elvis, joining The Boss,on stage.

And if you don't want to watch the entire length of The Philly Elvis Story, I suggest that you start watching it around the 2 minute marker, where Nick and his sweet wife, Dottie, are sitting together, on a park bench, telling their famous story The Philly Elvis Story.

Today has been great. Tony and I started mowing early this morning and we mowed for nearly three hours, before running to Kerrville, to eat lunch and to buy groceries, at the little H-E-B store.

We made it a quick trip to town this afternoon, because we needed to get back, to the rescue ranch, as soon as possible, so we could adopt out one of our super, great dogs, to our friends Jennifer & Robert.

A little before 4:30, Robert and his friend arrived to adopt this lucky, winning dog. "And now, may I have the envelope, please. And the winner is..."

"Miss Hollywood!" Yes, our super sweet Hollywood has been adopted!" And when Robert opened the backseat door, of his fancy black pickup—Hollywood jumped inside faster than the blink of an eye and it made us all laugh, because it was obvious to all that she could not wait to get out of here and go to her new, loving, forever home, in Kerrville. And to say the least, "We are more than thrilled about her long awaited and much deserved adoption."

And as I wind up tonight's post, so I can re-watch that great Springsteen & 1 documentary again, all I have to say is, "Elvis has left the building and so has Hollywood!" Life is good.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

Between Heaven and Texas/From Here to Home! or Cale/Kale!

Last night after blogging, I finally found the perfect places to display my beautiful, little, hand-carved, wooden bear and the Made-In-Mexico, turquoise, stained glass cross with the cobalt blue center, that I purchased when Carol, Lorri and I were shopping, at the Terlingua Trading Company. While our three husbands were outside drinking beers, on the famous front porch, listening to Chet O'Keefe jam with Marc Utter.

Anyway, I put my adorable, little bear, on the top shelf, next to the two cows candle holder that don't have candles in them. And I hung the pretty cross, from the top shelf, too—above my kitchen sink. Because I do spend a lot of time, in that area.

Then I spent the rest of the evening reading and savoring the last few pages of Marie Bostwick's fabulous book Between Heaven and Texas.

If you'll remember, a while back, my good friend Kris gave me her copy of Marie Bostwick's awesome book From Here to Home and I could not put it down, because I loved reading it and it touched my heart in several  ways.

And not knowing that it was actually the second book of Bostwick's Texas novels—I read them out of sequence. But it actually didn't matter at all, because these two books can each stand alone, because they are such great reads. And I know that Carol will agree with me on this.

Today has been great. After our great friends/dog-walking-volunteers had walked our dogs for us we all decided to eat lunch, at the Medina Highpoint Resort's Koyote Grill. And to say the least, "Our meals were absolutely delicious." Eileen and I both ordered their delicious Steak Salad and we highly recommend it, too.

When we were about to adios each other and leave in different directions, we asked our friend, Craig Newton, the great General Manager, "Who is playing tonight, during y'all's delicious All You Can Eat Catfish Dinner?"

"Paul Hilliard," he answered. And then Eileen asked him who would be playing there, in May, because she has some musician friends, from Nashville, coming to visit. And when he told us that Hogan & Moss would be performing twice, in May, I interrupted him and started telling Eileen about how great those two musicians were. 

And after I had quit raving about how great Jon Hogan's and Maria Moss' music was—Eileen could not wait to hear them. "I'm definitely coming to see them!" Eileen stated. "And I think we should get all of our volunteers to meet up here when they play. Wouldn't that be fun, Nancy?" I was so tired from talking so much about how great Hogan & Moss were—I just nodded my head. 

This afternoon when we got back to the rescue ranch, I told Tony, "Tony, last night I finished reading Between Heaven and Texas and I am just sick about it, because I love both of those books. Now, I don't have anything good to read, so I'm going to go to the Little Cottage Quilt Shop, in Medina and buy a few more yards of fabric, so I can work on my quilt."

The quilt shop was busy with friendly, quilting customers, so I strolled around the shop looking for more fabrics that would compliment the Crazy Quilt that I am already working on. And I found four more fabrics and I purchased them. And then I came back home.

A little while ago, I watched the most upbeat music, YouTube video of Eric Clapton performing, on stage, with JJ Cale, my rock 'n roll hero, playing that great song Call Me The Breeze, that JJ Cale wrote and Lynrd Skynrd made famous. It has had over 3 million views and it is totally awesome and here's the link to it. 

And while I was watching that video and enjoying the music, with the volume cranked up high, it reminded me that I had planned to fix us this new salad recipe I had found for our lunch today, but as you already know I didn't, because we ate lunch, at the Koyote Grill. 

Anyway, I think it is kind of weird that I was, sitting here, listening to JJ Cale and thinking about that Brussels Sprouts With Kale salad recipe, that is served with a Maple Syrup vinaigrette—at the exact same time. Get it? Cale/Kale. 

And tonight before I finish writing this I want to let you know that Tony and I won the race back to Medina, because Carol & Bill had to make a pit stop, at a roadside rest area, for their dogs: Scout and Pepper to exercise and for them to take care of "business." And all that I have to say about that is S*&% Happens!

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!  

It's A Small World!

We had so much fun in Terlingua, but our fun actually started when our good friends, Carol & Bill met us for lunch, at The Smokin' Cuban food truck, in Alpine. Before we took off and sort of caravanned to the Terlingua Ranch Lodge, where Tony and I were staying.

Omg! The Cuban food was absolutely delicious and we ate our lunch, sitting under a shaded patio. And this is a picture I took of the top of Carol's head while we ate our lunch. And not to start any rumors, please note that Carol does not have a little, round bun, on the top of her head or a big bump—it's the woman's hair, who was standing behind her. But it does look cute, so I'm now thinking that I might surprise Carol and buy her a little hair-piece-bun to wear on the top of her head for Christmas.

When we arrived at the Lodge, after Tony & I checked-in, we gave Carol & Bill a quick tour of the Lodge, which included the beautiful swimming pool, the corral & barn, the Bad Rabbit Cafe and our cozy #54 Cabin.

Because the four of us were a little road weary and ready to rest, we then took off to go show them our property, but that didn't actually happen, because I got us lost and couldn't find our land. 

So finally at one point, on this pretty dusty road surrounded by rocks and cactus and then more rocks and cactus, I asked Tony to please stop, so we could tell Bill & Carol to turn around and just go ahead and go on to the Terlingua Ghost Town, where they were staying, at Lorri & Jess' super cool, off-grid vacation home. (Please note that Jess & Lorri live in Bandera, which is only 22 miles from here.)

After I had confessed to them that I had gotten us lost and that I didn't know where we were or where our land was—like Tony, they had the exact same reaction. Sort of like "So what's new? We know that you always get lost. We're not surprised at all and it is no big deal."

So after we had quit laughing about me getting us lost-in-space—they took off for Lorri & Jess' place, in the Terlingua Ghost town. And we went back to our cute cabin and relaxed for a little bit, before Chet O'Keefe met us for a delicious dinner, at the Bad Rabbit. And before I poured myself a delicious, plastic cup of my favorite Chillable Red box wine, with some added ice cubes, here's a picture that I took from inside our cabin, of the remaining sunset.

Early Tuesday morning, Chet met us for a delicious breakfast, at the Bad Rabbit and Tony and I ate too much, because "We're on vacation!" And that is why I didn't eat much today.

After breakfast we went to talk to Chet's friend Ron, who sells these cute, cabin shells. And while we were visiting with him, a friendly man walks up to us, and says, "Hi Tony," and then Tony recognized him and they shook hands and started talking. Come to find out, Tony's friend, Steve, who also lives, in Medina, drinks coffee with Tony, at the Old Timer and he also owns property out there, too. So while they were visiting I'm thinking to myself, "It's a small world. We should have all carpooled."

A little while later, we adios-ed Ron and then Chet carefully explained to us how to find our land without getting lost, as I wrote it down and Tony drove us to our property.

We only spent about an hour there, but we found the perfect location for our off the grid, cabin-to-be and here is a picture that Tony took of "my favorite mountain" in our 360 degree beautiful view. It will be the mountain that looking out our front porch will face as we cozy up to our wood-burning stove.

After we left our property, we went to see Ronda, our friend and nearby neighbor out there, because she had invited us to come over to check out her newest Airbnb additions for her Tin Valley Retro Rentals, which is already famous and has a TripAdvisor rating of 5-stars. 

We had a blast visiting with Ronda and she gave us a grand tour of her vintage, RV rentals. She has tee pees camp grounds, adorable RV's and now she's added a "land yacht" and a awesome outdoor shower. And to say the least, we were totally impressed with all of it, especially her "Willie" vintage, refurbished Greyhound bus that is just like Willie's old touring bus. That she had an artist friend come over and spray-paint Willie's face, on the side of it. And when she told us that it only took the artist fifteen minutes to do it—our jaws dropped. Here are just a few pictures that Tony took at her place.

Later in the day, after I took a short nap, at the cabin, I finally got a signal and I text Carol to let her know that all of us would be at "the front porch" in the ghost town around 4:30, so we could all meet up. 

Chet, Tony and I arrived there first and we got to visit with our friends Jeff Haislip and Marc Utter, who were already sitting, on the porch, visiting and playing music. And a few minutes later, Carol & Bill and Lorri & Jess arrived, so we all hung out for a little while, on that famous porch, that is in front of the general store and the famous Starlight Theatre.

Then we went to Jess & Lorri's incredibly beautiful, off-grid home. We sat around and visited for about an hour and then we jumped into the trucks and drove to the La Kiva bar and grill, where Jess & Lorri treated us to a round of drinks. And while we sat around a picnic table outside on the porch, we hardly ever quit laughing, because we shared some hilarious stories about our pasts and younger days. And Lorri's, Jess' and Carol's stories were absolutely the best. 

Wednesday morning, we had planned to leave around 7:00 and Carol & Bill had planned on leaving a little later. Well, Tony's and my earlier plans changed, because we decided to stay a little bit longer, so we could eat breakfast with Chet, at the Bad Rabbit Cafe.

Anyway, when we packed and then took off, we had no idea if we were ahead of or behind Carol & Bill, because there were no cells. But we found out about an hour later, when we pulled into the Valero, in Alpine, to fill up on gas, because Carol's SUV was the only other car parked, at the pumps. And when we saw each other we burst out laughing, because there was no way that we could have timed it any better.

Ater a fun, but brief visit with our friends, they adios-ed us and took off first, because we needed to pay for our gas. Then the race was on as to who would get back home first. We doubted it would be us, because we had to make a stop, at Hoegemeyer Animal Clinic, to pick up Lori Darlin' and Henry Standing Bear, before coming home. 

To Be Continued...

Will Carol & Bill be the winners of our race to get home first or will it be us? Find out tomorrow night. (Sorry, Mari!)

Viva Terlingua!

We had a total blast in Terlingua and we had so much fun being with our friends: Chet, Carol & Bill, Lori & Jess, Ronda, Hailslip and several other friends. We got back late this afternoon, around 3:30 and I am so happy to be back home with Roy, Belle, Beau, Little Debbie, Big Al(ice) and Henry Standing Bear.

Tomorrow night I will write some more about our fun-filled mini-vacation, because I am a little pooped and am planning to hopefully hit-the-hay early. Viva Terlingua!

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

I'll Be Back!

The past few days have been great and we've been busy getting ready for our trip to Terlingua. We're leaving tomorrow morning and we will be back late Wednesday afternoon. And when we return home—I'll be back and start blogging more regularly.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

Pickin' & Grinnin'! or Spin To The End!

Today has been great. This morning our dear friend Gerry Olert, the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch's and my Official Videographer, came out to visit us this morning and we had a total blast visiting with him.

During our fun visit with Gerry I showed him my new banjo and then told him how easy it was to play and about how much I was enjoying playing it. Tony asked me to play it for him, so I went to my computer, then to the YouTube Channel I had found, a while back, on How To Play The Banjo: Lesson One. Then I sat down and played a couple of songs with this YouTube banjo instructor.

Not to brag, but Gerry was pretty impressed. Gerry is a great guitarist, so I handed him my banjo and let him watch that, same, 6 minute long, beginner lesson, where this instructor quickly teaches you how to play the C, D7th, G and Em banjo chords. And then you get to play the two songs with him, like I had just done. Bottom   Line: Gerry played great and he was excited about how easy it is to play the banjo. So I replayed that same YouTube video, again and restarted it, near the end, after the lesson, where you get to play along with the instructor. And Gerry was playing as good as the instructor or even better.

Because our good friend was so excited about learning how to play the banjo, I took out my guitar, so he and I could play some more music. And we started picking' & grinnin' until both our fingers got sore and they were starving. Then we went, to Kerrville and ate lunch together, before adios-ing each other and going our separate ways.

This afternoon, after we got back to the ranch, I checked my email. And omg, Kris sent me the cutest story, that has a very happy ending, about this 10 year old, Great Pyrenees named General, that escaped from an animal hospital—by opening four doors.

After reading the story I watched the surveillance video of him opening these doors and wandering around the hospital and the office before leaving the building. I was laughing so hard it made my back start aching and then it made my heart ache, because General reminded me so much of my many beloved Pyrs—especially sweet Mama.

For some reason all Great Pyrenees instinctively know how to open doors and gates to escape—without having any training. And Mama was one of the best at doing that. Like the time, many, many years ago, when late one night, she opened the front yard gate and let herself out and then wandered off for several hours before finally returning, to The Cabin, at 2:30 AM.

I was worried about her taking off, so I stayed up reading while I waited for Mama to return which in a way was a sad mistake. Because when Mama finally appeared at the front door I was so filled with joy I opened the door to let her come back inside.

Mama was so glad to be back home again she rushed inside The Cabin and then ran straight back to our bedroom and was followed by that recognizable, foul scent—Eau-de-Skunk. And before I could stop her and get her to go back outside—she jumped up on our bed and nearly bounced Tony off of the bed and then she started rolling all over the blanket trying to remove the freshly, sprayed oil of Eau-de-Skunk.

It's a long story and it is funny to me now and I know that I have blogged about it a very long time ago. Anyway, I need to finish writing this post before it turns into another book. So to put a happy spin to the end of tonight's post I hope that you will take the time to enjoy reading and watching the hilarious video of General's caught-on-camera escape. Because I promise that it will put a big smile on your face.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

A Meet and Greet! or Taking Care of Business!

Yesterday afternoon, Tony and I went to, Kerrville, because I needed to go to Office Max. But more importantly we were meeting our dear friend Ellen and her good friend Maury, so Maury could meet sweet Cindy, in the Office Max parking lot, while I was taking care of business, in Office Max.

All of this came about last Friday when we were eating a delicious lunch with our good friends/dog-walking volunteers, at Hippie Chicks Bakery & Bistro.

Near the end of our lunch Sara told us that she was in love with Cindy's little sister Misty and that she wanted to adopt her, but she didn't want to leave Cindy behind to be all alone. Then I saw Ellen prick her ears and say that her friend, Maury, was thinking about adopting Cindy. So we got to talking about getting those two, precious, six-year-old sisters adopted.

Saturday, Ellen called and left me a message, "Nancy, I wanted to let you know that Maury is thinking seriously about adopting Cindy and...."

Sunday afternoon I called Ellen about possibly baby-sitting our rescue ranch, in the near future, so Tony and I could take two days off, to go out, to Terlingua, for a mini-vacation with friends. After Ellen told us that she could baby-sit for us she asked me to please call Maury that afternoon, because she was really interested in Miss Cindy. "Ellen, I would be glad to call Maury later today, after we get back from Kerrville. I have to get some papers scanned. It's 2:45 right now and we're leaving in about fifteen minutes. It takes an hour of drive time and getting my documents scanned should only take no more than ten minutes to scan, so I should be able to call her around 4:00. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good to me," Ellen said. "But wait a second. Since y'all are coming to Kerrville what do you think about bringing Cindy along with you. I could pick up Maury and we could meet y'all, at Office Max, so Maury can meet Cindy. It would only be a meet and greet today. What do you think about that?"

At approximately 3:30, as Tony looked for a place to park Buttermilk we saw Ellen and Maury, standing by Ellen's car ~~ waving their hands at us. So we ~~ed back as Tony parked real close to them. Then Ellen introduced us to Maury and then we asked Ellen to help Tony put Cindy's halter on her, while I took off for Office Max.

And the few minutes that it took for me to get all of my scanning done—Maury and Cindy had become best friends. So while we were visiting, in the shade, with Maury and talking about what a great dog Cindy was to our surprise, Maury asked us, "Could I take Cindy home with me for a few days to get to know her?" I looked at Ellen and she shot us a wink.

As soon as Tony and I got back home minus one, small, adorable dog, we told Chet, who was catching up on watching episodes of Season 5 of Longmire, "We think Cindy has been adopted! The nice woman is giving her a try, but we're pretty sure she'll keep her...." 

Then I picked up the phone and punched in Sara's phone number, but got her machine, so I left her a brief message about Cindy getting adopted and asked her to please call me about possibly meeting us, in Medina, to pick up Misty. And five minutes later—when Longmire was having a big fist fight with Henry Standing Bear, inside the Red Pony, the phone rang—it was Sara.

Forty-minutes later, in the Old Timer's parking lot, Chet, Tony, Misty and I were sitting inside Buttermilk, talking about Longmire, when Sara arrived with her sweet sister Kay. And please make note that Misty didn't join in on our Longmire conversation.

Today has been great. Chet ate breakfast with us and then he packed and took off, because he was anxious to get back home, in Terlingua.

This afternoon we had to go back to Kerrville, to get Henry's ears flushed out, at Hoegemeyer Animal Clinic, while Tony and I went, to Pets Plus Supply, to buy Big Al(ice) a ThunderShirt, because last night Big Al was very frightened by the thunderstorms. 

Unfortunately, the store was out of pink, but I am sure Big Al won't mind what color it is if it can help keep her anxiety level down.

When we went to pick up Henry Standing Bear we told Susan and Kathy about Big Al's anxiety attack last night and us buying a ThunderShirt for her. Then Tony asked them if Dr. Janssen had a pill we could give her during thunderstorms. So when we left the clinic with Henry today, I carried a small bottle of tiny, quartered-pills to also help Big Al(ice) in her time of need. And that is about it for tonight.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

Tomorrow Night!

The past few days have been fun. Yesterday our dear friend, Chet O'Keefe, came to visit us and we've been enjoying catching up with him, before he leaves tomorrow for Terlingua.

Today has been incredibly great, too. We had two fabulous adoptions late this afternoon and I will write more about all of this tomorrow evening.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

I Am So Glad!

Today has been great just like yesterday was. Early this afternoon Tony and I went to Kerrville to eat lunch with our good friends.

Last month the six of us had decided to eat, at Hippie Chicks Bakery & Bistro, because we had heard rave reviews about their delicious food, so we decided that we wanted to give it a try and find out for ourselves. And I am so glad that we did.

When Tony and I arrived, at this super cool bakery and bistro with really great vibes, our friends Les & Denise were already there and they were visiting with their good friend, Lorraine LeMon, so they immediately introduced us to Lorraine. And I am so glad they did.

Lorraine had already eaten and she was on her way out when we met her, so we only got to visit with her for just a few minutes. I was immediately impressed with Lorraine LeMon and I knew that I wanted to get to know her better, because she is such a great woman doing great work with her Art2Heart organization—"Using arts to reach the hearts..." And before we adios-ed Lorraine I asked her to please give me a business card. And she handed these two cards to me.

After Lorraine had left the building and before Kris & Jim had arrived, Les handed me a copy of his Hill Country CHARM magazine, with it already opened up to the page with the story about Lorraine LeMon and her great work that she is doing.

While I was finishing reading this very interesting article about Lorraine LeMon, Kris & The Mineral Man arrived. And after handshakes and hugs we went up to the counter to place our orders.

Tony and I ordered the exact same thing, of course—Italian Meatball Subs and iced tea and I am so glad, because they were totally delicious. But when it came down to our dessert choices Tony chose their Apple Turnover and I chose their Chocolate Mousse with Strawberries and so did Kris & Jim and Denise. We had outnumbered him four to one.

And to say the least—we loved their delicious, award-winning Chocolate Mousse and Tony thought their Apple Turnover was so tasty he was actually tempted to order another one. And I am so glad that he didn't, because he and I are doing our Semi-Diet plan that we came up with a while back. 

Our Semi-Diet plan is very simple to follow. Our motto is: out of site—out of mind, but if we see it—we get to eat it. And yes, I know that it is a weird diet that we came up with, but for us it works most of the time. And that's why we named it the Semi-Diet.

Anyway, before I finish writing this tonight I want to get the word out and spread the good news about how great Hippie Chicks Bakery & Bistro is. I highly recommend that y'all give it a try and eat there, because I promise that you'll love it, too. 

In fact, before we adios-ed our friends and left this super-cool eating establishment, this afternoon, we decided that next month we will eat there again. And I am so glad.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing!

Wrong Number!

Last night I stayed up late, because I could not quit reading Marie Bostwick's book From Here to Home. I love this book so much and I did not want it to end, but I kept reading it, because I had to know how it ended.

I absolutely loved the ending, but I was sad that I had finished the book, because I love all of the characters and felt like I knew them. So before going to bed I went and purchased a Kindle version of Marie Bostwick's book Between Heaven and Texas (Another Too Much Texas novel.) So I could start reading it tonight.

Too Much is the name of Marie Bostwick's imaginary, little town, in Texas and Between Heaven and Texas is a novel that first introduces the main characters Mary Dell and her son, Howard, that grew up and lived in, Too Much.

When I went to bed I could not quit thinking about this fabulous book and one thing led to another. And the last thing that I remember before falling asleep was wanting to make a quilt, because throughout this book Mary Dell is the expert quilter and she has a very popular, cable TV show about quilting.

Today has been great. This morning Tony did his chores early, so we could go early to the Wild Birds Unlimited store, in Kerrville, so we could meet Jim Carpenter, the founder of Wild Birds Unlimited. He is also the author of The Joy Of Bird Feeding: The Essential Guide To Attracting And Feeding Our Backyard Birds and we wanted to get him to sign our copy of his awesome book.

Omg! We arrived around 9:15 and the parking lot was full and the inside of Kevin & Linda Pillow's Wild Birds Unlimited store was packed with smiling customers, waiting in line, to get their books signed by Jim. So we got in the line.

It was so cool, because everyone there seemed to be so happy including us, because this store has some of the best vibes, in Kerrville. When it was Tony's and my turn to meet Jim Carpenter, I took this picture of him, before we shook hands with him.

When Jim asked us our names, I said, "Tony and Nancy." Then Kevin, wearing a big grin on his face, steps up to the table, and says, "Tell him your real name."

"Cousin Nancy," I said. Then Kevin tells Jim about us being the people who run the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch with Kinky. And then Jim starts visiting with us and talking about animal rescue and their rescued dog while signing our book for us.

After we thanked Mr. Carpenter for signing our book I see Tricia and Jason, by the checkout counter and she was pointing her camera directly at us. So I quickly aimed my trusty iPhone camera at her and "shot" her while she "shot" us. And then we all started laughing just about the same time that our good friends Kris & Jim arrived to buy his book and get it signed.

While Kris was standing in line to get Jim Carpenter's autograph Tony and I stood around visiting with her and with Marguerite, Kevin & Linda, Jason and Tricia and Kris' husband, "The Mineral Man." And before we adios-ed everyone Tricia asked me for my phone number so she could send me the picture that she took of us. 

Then Tony and I went to the Save Inn Restaurant, which was packed with happy customers too, so we could eat breakfast. And to no one's surprise we ordered the exact same thing: Lisa's Sinker Taco Omelet, hash browns, biscuits & gravy and iced tea. And needless to say, "Our breakfast was totally delicious as it always is."

Then we made a quick stop, at the big H-E-B, on Main Street and came back home.

When we got home, I told Tony, "Since the rescue ranch is officially closed today I am going to go to that quilt shop, in Medina, because after reading that great book I want to make a quilt. I might be in there for thirty or forty minutes or so. Do you want to go with me?"

Five minutes later, we were headed to Medina. And on our way there, Tony asked, "What kind of quilt are you going to make?"

"I'm want to make one for Little Debbie." 

After Tony had chuckled, he said, "So you need two squares." Then he really started laughing and so did I. 

"I want to make a little one first to see if I can do it, because it actually is very hard to do."

"What if Little Debbie doesn't like it?"

"Then I'll make another one and we'll use them for place mats."

"You ought to call Carol and  ask her to meet you there."

"That's what I'm fixin' to do right now." Then I called Carol and left her a message about meeting me at the quilt store and us checking out the tiny house. 

Then Tony slowed down. "You can let me out right here and I'll walk down to the Old Timer when I am finished shopping." Then I more or less fell out of Trigger, but I didn't completely fall down, on the pavement, because I was still hanging onto Trigger's door. "Lucky me. I'll see you in a little bit."

Then I walked across the highway and went inside the Little Cottage Quilt Shop and was immediately greeted by the friendly owner, Donette Backlund. And while she and I were looking at her huge assortment of beautiful fabrics Carol called. "Nancy, it sounds fun. I'm leaving Bandera right now and will be there in just a few minutes."

About twelve minutes later, while I was talking to Donette about what I needed to get started quilting and the times of their quilting classes Carol arrived. And after I introduced Carol to Donette, Carol and I walked around admiring the beautiful fabrics while Donette talked to us about the art of quilting.

We stayed in this charming quilt shop for about twenty minutes, before I purchased a few necessary quilting supplies: a rotary wheel cutter, a cutting board and a giant plastic ruler. And before we left Donette gave me her business card.

Then Carol and I walked down Main Street aka Highway 16 to go check out that awesome Tiny House that was for sale. 

Then Carol and I walked back to her car and then she drove me down, to the Old Timer, so I could ride home with Tony.

On our way home I checked my phone, and said, "Hmm, I wonder why I haven't gotten Tricia's picture, yet?"

"What number did you give her?" Tony asked.

"Our rescue ranch number."

"That's why. Because you gave Tricia the wrong number. You should have given her your cell phone number."

"You're right. I forgot about that." 

So as soon as we got back home I called Wild Birds Unlimited and luckily Trisha answered the phone. And after I explained to her what I had done she asked me for my cell phone number and then she sent this picture to me.

And that's about it for now, because I am fixin' to start reading Between Heaven And Texas.

Y'all have a great evening and keep on laughing.