Movin' Out

No, I'm not movin' out. Shelley and I saw the Broadway musical "Movin' Out" with one of her brothers and his wife last night. His wife got us tickets for the show (she works in radio), and we just couldn't turn it down.

The show was amazing! Many of the songs they did sounded just like Billy Joel. All were extremely well done. The choreography was what you would expect from a show of this caliber.

Movin' Out is a story of high school love - and separation, of war, of rejection, of self-destructiveness, of reunions and reconstruction of lives. Songs included "Still Rock and Roll to Me", "Movin' Out", "She's Got a Way", "For the Longest Time", "We Didn't Start the Fire", "Innocent Man", "Shameless", "Captain Jack", and many others. It was great!

Next week - Carrie Underwood and Josh Turner. YYYYES!!!

Spring Is Here!

We might have another frost, but we just had one the other day. Might be our last. No biggie - the temps are higher, and it feels great today! In the mid 80's as I type, with a little breeze. Might be 50% cloud cover, but pleasant clouds.

Spring means work - fixing up the yard and house after winter. In celebration of Spring's arrival, I already completed a couple jobs this weekend. A badly needed wax seal got replaced on our toilet, and I put a new fart fan (pardon the expression, but it's the trade name for it) in the bathroom just about an hour ago. Since then, I've been tending to the garden and back yard, giving them a badly needed drink. Later on, I'll have to mow the yard - or maybe just use the blower/mulcher and get rid of those pesky elm seeds. There are so many of them out there that it looks like it snowed.

We've got to start cleaning out the garage this weekend, too, so we can start filling it up again. Next weekend, I plan on replacing the front porch lights with motion sensing lights - one in the alcove, and one on the outside wall above the steps.

Sounds like a lot, but not really. It's all in the interest of making our home more pleasant and secure.

Have a great Spring, everybody!

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The Cross

We took a little jaunt with Shelley's brother yesterday. We went to The Cross at Groom, TX. They say it's the largest cross in the western hemisphere. Of course we had our cameras with us. Every time we go there, I manage to see different views in the various stations around the cross, as well as the area around it. Maybe the light changes, maybe I just see things a little differently each time.

The expression on His face caught my eye this time.

The sun's sparkle at the juncture of the arms was captivating.

This one was a powerful statement that did not go unnoticed.

What can be said here? A visitor was reflecting.

This view had escaped me before.

This is one of my favorite "short jaunts" and I always look forward to visiting it. The wind was pretty brisk, but we managed to carry enough ballast with our cameras to keep us from blowing across the panhandle. We did not do the gift shop this time. That might be a good thing. ;)

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Planting Time

In recent days, I cut the sod off a 12' x 12' section of out yard (by hand) and tilled it up. Yesterday we bought some seed to begin planting and growing some fresh vegetables. We got some squash, carrots, and lettuce. Oh yeah, we got some rhubarb, too. I haven't had any good rhubarb since I was a kid. I hope we'll have lots of it next year (2009). I wish we could this year, but they have to mature for at least a year before you can start harvesting. The rhubarb I've had in my past life out East was always in a pie, and always tainted with strawberries. I like strawberries too, but not with rhubarb. Rhubarb pies and crisps are best with only rhubarb. As a matter of fact, let me pick a ripe, red stalk, and I'll eat it on the spot! Yummy! I think I might have some competition with it, though. Shelley likes 'em, too! We'll have to be sure we have enough for pies and crisps. I can hardly wait!

Nature's Candy

Anyhow, I planted one row of rhubarb (6 plants), two rows of lettuce (seed tape), and two rows of carrots (seed tape). I planted the shorter plants in the front and worked my way back, except the rhubarb. I put them in the back so that if we didn't plant anything in one year, we wouldn't have rhubarb stalks to mow around in the middle of the yard. I still have room for the squash and hopefully some tomatoes - the small, cherry-type tomatoes. They have several varieties, and I'm not sure which ones we'll get.

It's gonna be a good year! I can hardly wait for them to mature.

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Honesty Is Alive And Well

Yep, my supposition has always been that most people are honest. That belief was reaffirmed today. We had an old swivel/rocker/recliner with a "floating" footstool (it rocked like the rocker) we were trying to get rid of, so we put it out on the curb with a sign on it - "$25.00" it read. We had to step out for a few minutes, and while we were gone, someone got it. We laughed and weren't concerned that it was probably stolen. It wasn't a bid deal. We just wanted it gone. As we got up to the door, there was an envelope on it, with something written on it. "This is for the chair." and signed by "Anthony" with a phone number. Inside the envelope was $25.00 - cash! Now, I ask you, what could be more cool than that? I called the number he left, and left a message thanking him for his honesty. That was really cool! All I could think about was the honesty this young [sounding] man exhibited. Awesome!