RED, RED ROBIN

That is what I should be doing! But here I am at the computer at 1:00 am, unable to sleep. This happens almost every night, or should say, early morning. There is no staying in bed because I get restless, which makes it even worse. So I live with it and try to make good use of the time.

Most of the time I lay there with my mind going all over the place. Tonight I started thinking of some blog posts I want to write and one is about robins. And then a song gets in my mind and won't stop. Are any of you old enough to remember this song?
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When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' along, along 
There'll be no more sobbin' when he starts throbbin' his old sweet song 
Wake up, wake up you sleepy head 
Get up, get out of your bed 
Cheer up, cheer up the sun is red 
Live, love, laugh and be happy 

What if I were blue, 
Now I'm walking through, 
Walking through the fields of flowers 
Rain may glisten but still I listen for hours and hours 

I'm just a kid again doing what I did again, singing a song 
When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' along 
When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' 
When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' along 

There'll be no more sobbin' when he starts throbbin' 
There'll be no more sobbin' when he starts a throbbin' his old sweet song 

Wake up, wake up you sleepy head 
Why don't you get up, get up, get out of bed, cheer up 
Live, love, laugh and be happy 
What if I were blue, now I'm walking through fields of flowers 

Rain may glisten but still I listen for hours and hours 
I'm just a kid again, doing what I did again, singing a song 
When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' 
When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' along 
Along, along, along, along, along.

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I hear not only the words but the melody as well, and you can check it out on Youtube if you want to hear it, but be careful, that melody will not leave you!

This song was popular in 1926 with Al Jolson singing it. Now, that is even before my time. But later it was recorded by Bing Crosby, Doris Day, and Dean Martin, and that is my time.

This is what I was planning to write about.

I happened to think awhile back that I have not seen one robin this year! I usually see the flocks of robins in early spring when they are migrating, and later a few that have taken up residence in the yards around me. I have never had a spring and summer that I never saw any. All I can think of is the very frigid and long winter we had, and a cold and very wet spring that might have affected the lack of robins. I keep thinking I need to ask other people if they have noticed this as well. It is just very odd.

I have not seen or heard the pair of purple finches that are always here every year, nor any of the other birds that would be searching for their next meal on my lawn. I do hear a few in the trees behind the house, but never see them.

HOW MOM USED TO COOK AND MORE

My mom used to cook with an old coal burning cook stove, except she used corn cobs as they were always available and free.

The style of this one is similar to the one in our farm kitchen but not this ornate, and it was white except for the cooking surface.

The fire box was on the left side and we had a bushel basket of cobs next to it. The cobs were kept in a shed behind the house and it was often my job to fill the basket and bring it in. It wasn't my favorite job as mice loved to live in the pile and somehow would sneak into the basket without me seeing it. Eventually it would show up in the house and the hunt was on, along with mouse traps. I never learned how to start a fire.

On the right end was a reservoir for water so that there was warm water as long as the stove was hot.

This picture shows a reservoir lid open.

It didn't hold a lot of water but at least enough to wash up with warm water without having to wait to heat some in a pan. Since we did not have indoor plumbing, there was no water heater. All we had was a cistern hand pump at the end of the big sink. Thankfully there was a drain so there was no pail to empty.

Mom never taught me how to bake in the cook stove, but she made the best bread and cakes, even angel food cakes. I don't know how she knew how to regulate the temperature for baking, but I am sure her mom taught her as well as many years of practice.

Mom would fire up the stove early in the morning during the winter as that was the only heat there was in the kitchen. We did not have a ducted furnace or thermostat. There were kerosene heaters in both dining room and living room. Heat from the chimney is all the heat that reached each bedroom upstairs. Brrrr!

But, that heat was not welcome in the hot and humid summers so most cooking and baking was done early in the morning. Air conditioning was unheard of in those days. Some old houses had a small building apart from the house that was called the summer kitchen which helped keep the main house a little cooler. 

Once the stove was hot, she made breakfast and started any baking needed for the day. By the time I was old enough to remember, we also got a propane gas stove on the other side of the kitchen and that is what I used. I loved to bake so was always making sweet things as I was born with a huge sweet tooth. I rarely cooked anything for a meal. I guess Mom always wanted to do it herself so never made a point to teach me. The only thing I remember having to do was peel potatoes and to this day I don't like to do that unless absolutely necessary.

I remember the time when Mom flew to California with her sister from Illinois to see their mother for the last time as she was in a nursing home. So Dad and I were left to do all the cooking. I tried making bacon and eggs. Well, the eggs were crispy and the bacon limp. Dad tried his hand at pancakes and he called them blow - out patches (for tires) because they were pretty rubbery. But we managed to live until she came home. Dad did not like to eat out so we ate at home for every meal. I cannot remember what else we ate, but it was possibly home canned beef on potatoes. That meat was so tender and delicious. It was very handy for a quick meal, especially if unplanned company showed up at mealtime. I miss that.

Some people had a separate building to do laundry called the wash house. Water had to be heated for washing and that was done in the wash house as well. 

We had an enclosed back porch that was just outside the kitchen
and that is where the old Maytag wringer washer was used. The water was heated in an old copper boiler (wish I still had it) on the cook stove, then carried to the  porch. Most people had wringer washers back then and I heard many stories of people getting their hand and arm caught in the wringer before they were able to disengage the rollers. That was painful! I was always very careful when I used the wringer so never got caught. After I was married I also had the Maytag wringer washer for many years. A lot of diapers were washed in it.

There were no clothes dryers in those days either. Clotheslines were strung from pole to pole in the yard and the wash was hung on them with wooden clothespins like these:

         I prefer the spring type as they are easier to use.                      
 We always had to pray it didn't rain until the wash was dry. A windy day was appreciated as the clothes were much softer after flapping in the wind. Sometimes the wind was a bit too strong and a sheet could come loose and sail away.  If it started to sprinkle there was a mad dash to get it all off the line. If it wasn't completely dry, Mom strung several lines of rope clothesline from one end of the dining room to the other, tied to large nails in the wood door trim. It was a maze getting from the kitchen to the living room, walking between the wet clothes.

The wash was even hung outside in the winter where it freeze-dried as much as possible, and fingers were frozen, as well, trying to hang the wet clothes. Again, the clothes were hung in the dining room to thaw and finish drying. At least it created a lot of humidity in the house.

These are some of "the good old days" that I don't care to see again! Laundry was very intensive labor back in the day.

SEW-SEW

It has been a long time since I had my sewing machine in use. I have a clothes basket sitting here with several things that needed a seam sewn up, some altering or repair. Plus I have a few tops hanging on the hall tree that are too big and I want to take them in. They are so stretchy that I should have gotten a size smaller to begin with, but wasn't able to return them.

So far I have fixed a pair of slacks, tightened the elastic in another pair, and shortened a new pair of slacks that I have never worn. I got it maybe two or three years ago, ordering it online. It fit fine except it was way too long. I didn't have time to mess with it at the time so hung it in the closet and proceeded to forget about it, until I unearthed it recently. I had to shorten it 4 1/2 inches! Now I am not petite, but am 5'8". I know some pants are longer so one can wear high heels with them, but I would need high platform with 4" heels! I could never have worn those even when I was young and able, and now need shoes that are flat. These slacks are rather flowing and sort of look like a long skirt, so now I need a special occasion to wear them.

I will get to the rest of the pile eventually but with the chance of thunderstorms the next few days, I have unplugged the sewing machine. These new computerized machines take extra care. I just looked out my north window and the sky is looking like there could be rain. I will have to check the radar to see if it is heading in my direction.

With that, I will sign off and shut the computer off just in case.

TIME FLIES

The saying goes, "My how time flies when you are having fun." I am afraid time flies even when not having fun, although in bad times it seems like time can go way too slow. Or if you are waiting for something or someone who is late, or waiting for water to boil, the time just drags on and on.

Here we are in the middle of July already. I almost wrote June there. Schools will be starting again in about four short weeks. No doubt the kids think they just got out of school and summer should not be over so soon. I am horrible at making any advance plans like so many of you, so I just take things day by day.

Three weeks ago I had laser done on both eyes for what is commonly called secondary cataracts, which many people get after they have cataract surgery. It just means that the membrane behind the implant becomes cloudy. The laser zaps some slits in the membrane to let the light in and vision clears up almost immediately. I could really tell the difference as I drove myself home after it was done. It took a couple of days to become totally in focus. This week I saw my regular eye doctor to see if I needed glasses after the procedure, but my vision is again 20/20 two years after the surgery. I have found that most people end up with glasses after having cataracts removed, so I am very pleased. I just need cheap readers for close up work, which I bought at Walmart for $10. I have three pair - one by my chair in the living room, one at the dining table where I work on Bible studies, and is close to kitchen if I need to read a recipe or instructions, and one by my bed for reading in bed at night. I grab the kitchen/dining pair and put in my purse when I go somewhere where I expect to have read and/or sign something.

I had to make a splurge purchase earlier this week. My laptop has been showing me a blue screen on startup saying the SMART hard disk is failing. I did keep using it for a few days, but then decided I better get it checked out before it completely dies and I lose all my files. This laptop did not cost me anything as it was gifted to me by my niece when she got a new one. At the time I really had no use for a laptop as I had a good desktop that was very handy in my tiny house. But after moving here and the only place to hook up to the internet cable was in the kitchen and there is no room for a desktop where the outlet is. So the desktop, which I am using at the moment, is in the spare bedroom far away from the tv and everything else.  I had to get a thing to plug into the computer to make it wireless as the modem and router are installed in the garage, of all places! I don't know what "brilliant" mind drew up the plans for that, which doesn't make any sense to me. Maybe they think everyone uses laptops these days.

Back to my splurge. The repairs would cost me $300-350 and I would still have an old computer and something else could quit working at any time. Or I could buy a new, basic model laptop for $495. Basic is all I need. I don't do gaming, streaming or any of the other things the young people do with their computers so having that ability would go to waste anyway. The guy called his supplier for the cheapest they had available for $495 and they had one. He said the reason it is so cheap is that it is purple. Well, that is my color! I am totally happy with that! By the time the set up fee and transfer of my data from old computer, my total cost will be close to $700. That is a lot of money for me, but right now I do have enough extra in my account to pay for it, so this is a good time to make the change. God is good!

RANDOM THOUGHTS

Have you ever noticed on tv shows, that is movies, dramas, soaps, not reality or live shows, that the dialogue is a bit disjointed? They often make a statement with a pause and inflection of the end of a sentence, and the sentence is complete as is. Oh, but wait a minute, they then continue on by either saying the name of the person they are talking to, or add a clause to expand on the thought of the beginning of the sentence. I really notice it on the two soaps I still watch. That pause does not make any sense at all. It is as if the actors forget their lines and have to find the prompter or cue in order to finish their thoughts. 

They also say the person's first and last names as if no one knows who they mean, even though they are all close friends or relatives. Who writes this stuff anyway?

There is my pet peeve.   . . . . . . . . dear readers, as I sign off for today. (notice the period and pause?)

RANDOM THOUGHTS

Part of my blog name includes 'random thoughts' and I have been having a few lately.

My procrastination has kicked into high gear this year, maybe due to the very cold and long winter, a cold and very wet spring,  jumping right into the hot and very humid days of summer.  Or could it be age?

Ever since the first of July I had intended to write about this: have you ever thought about the July 4th holiday is maybe the only one that is labeled by its date rather than the true name of the holiday? It is Independence Day. But everywhere you look, and every reporter in the papers, on tv and radio call it the 4th of July.  I did hear one tv reporter actually talk about Independence Day.

People ask, "What are you going to do on the 4th?" or "Let's plan a picnic for the 4th and watch the fireworks." By not calling it Independence Day all the time, do we even think about the true reason for the holiday, or just focus on summer activities and fireworks and nothing else other than flying the flag and everything, including clothing, and food showing the red, white and blue theme.

I have been trying to think of any other holiday that is commonly called by its date and I can't think of one. I suppose you could include May Day, naming the month, but it isn't really a holiday. Does anyone still make May Day baskets to give to friends? Did you make them in school? Or at home with parent's help? I can remember folding lace paper doilies into a cone, using a pipe cleaner as a handle and filling with small candies like jelly beans. Then you would sneak up to the door of a friend, hang the basket on the door handle, ring the bell or knock and then quick run and hide. The receiver then has to guess who delivered it.

Can any of you think of a holiday that is called by its date rather than the actual title? Please leave a comment if you have one.