I know some cows that are going to be happy tomorrow. They will start the year off with two big new fresh molasses buckets. That's hog-heaven for a cow!
Okay, we are almost through with this year, but that did not stop the sunset from being extra glorious this evening. I was busy trying to change light bulbs in a lamp that Jody uses to read (I think it is probably the lamp switch that needs to be replaced) and Jody wanted me to take a picture of the sunset for the blog. He always knows best!
Jody and I went into Austin and ran a couple errands. It is getting cold (bitingly cold) outside. The winds have shifted and are out of the north right now. I stopped at Wal-Mart on the way home and got gas in the car, and the woman there said it was supposed to go down to 24 degrees tomorrow night. I think she has been sniffing too many fumes. The weather prognosticator did not show anything much worse than 30 degrees in the long range forecast. I will take it.
HOWEVER, we did go to Marble Falls late this afternoon. I had been looking forward to the Bluebonnet Café and a piece of Key Lime Pie, and when we got there they were closed for the Holidays. I think that is an interesting business model, but, okay, as long as it works for them. We ended up having dinner at a local fish shack type restaurant, not bad at all, but we passed on the desserts. They did have a pumpkin cheesecake that sounded interesting though. And then it was off to see the Christmas lights on the lake. Very nice. (See Selfie). Not sure how long it has been since we have seen these, but it was more extensive this year. We are planning (already) to go see the trail of lights in Austin next year.
What a really good, busy, hyper and yet very productive day this was. I got a lot of things done, and that is all very positive. I have not had any cloud pictures lately, so I hope you like this one. It actually took me by surprise, I was not expecting any clouds this afternoon, it seems we have been plagued with overcast cloud offerings (the grey dreary kind that, try as I might I cannot seem to see any beauty there, I guess I should try harder).
Thursday, five days left of this year. I took the truck in to the office today, it is time to get rid of all files older than four years. Everything from 2009 back is going to be gone on Monday morning. We have a date with a mobile shredder. Fifty-Two Boxes of files and counting. Incredible. It is crazy how much paper we have. Now we need to delete the electronic files as well. Holy Dust Bowl!
As you can see, the dog boy is less than impressed with the reptilian footwear that I was given for Christmas. In fact, he thinks the whole thing was pretty much just a big yawn! I think someone missed one of his naps today.
Okay, I am waking again. Okay, really I am gimping along, but I have been able to forgo crutches and canes for stumbling and gimping. It is hard to believe that yesterday morning I was in the Emergency Room, but I am here to tell you, when you cannot walk you life changes. Crutches are okay, but you cannot carry stuff while keeping a firm grip on a crutch. Life a coffee mug. Or a brief case. Suddenly you are looking for wheeled transportation. And who put all those rugs there, I am trying to roll through here. I may have been non-ambulatory, but I did figure out a way to carry some things around with me, but not coffee. It worked for newspapers and magazines and prescription bottles, but not coffee. I have even been able to cross my leg today, which is a big improvement. I am going to try sleeping in the bed tonight, but I am NOT CONVINCED that I will be able to lay flat on my back with no discomfort. I may need ONE MORE NIGHT in the big blue chair. I will fill you all in on that tomorrow.
Well, my premonition of plague and viral chaos as a result of my flu shot and Shingles Vaccination have not developed into actuality, but I have been shot down in my prime with a nasty case of Sciatica. According to the Internet (purveyor of all truths and accuracies medical and otherwise) it was either Sciatica, a side effect of Type II Diabetes or a cancerous tumor that would require a leectomy. The people in the ER are going with Sciatica. I have had milder cases of this before, but this time around I can't walk. I am NOT AMBULATORY. I started noticing this on Saturday morning while I was riding with Jody, and it got progressively worse. Yesterday at lunch with Lynda and Michal I was having a good bit of pain, but I faked it through dinner. When we got home, I had a couple chores to complete and then it was all over. I slept in the big blue chair, and this morning it was off to the emergency room.
I got up really kind of early this morning, made coffee, read the paper, made a pile of eggs for me and Jody. Then it was time to feed the chickens and the cattle. In the past two days, we have received almost an inch of rain, and that, coupled with what we already had, leaves the ground pretty well saturated and muddy. The feeding area back by the big barn was (and generally stays) pretty muddy, but that does not dampen the Pavlov's Cow effect that is ever present. You name it; Pavlov's Dog, Pavlov's Cat, Pavlov's Chickens, Pavlov's Cattle...we got 'em all!
I am posting this photo because it is the cheapest gasoline we have found lately...HEB in Taylor. Seen any less expensive near here? A couple miles north it was $3.09.
$762.08.
Before I get into this entry, I want to talk about this photo. The Austin Board of REALTORS® made an investment in our community recently. There are many ways we can invest the assets of our colleagues, and one way is to help others. The Board donated $50,000 to the Red Cross of Central Texas and earmarked the monies to be used to help folks who were flooded out of their homes in the Halloween Floods...about 1,200 folks were forced out of their homes. This is what REALTORS® are all about; helping folks buy, sell, maintain and reinforce the dream of Home Ownership. How many of you have ever heard a little kid say that they dreamed of growing up to be a renter? Really? Okay, enough of this soap box...it is all about the good we can do individually and collectively.
As all of you (my loyal and trusted followers know) I got home about mid-night last night, and was back up and at 'em early this morning. The final event of this season was checked off the list with our office party this evening. It was a tremendous, rousing success planned and executed exclusively and single handily by my business partner and very good friend Carrie, It was a wonderful time, and a wonderful time was had by all as well, The band was great, the wine was great and the camaraderie was excellent. Putting a little bit of more effort into it, I kind of have to consider the alternative of the actions that certain people will be taking here we go again, we will awake from our individual slumbers in the morning and be very surprised that it took this log into some semblance of reality 
This morning at breakfast, Claire Shipman from ABC News was our speaker, and it was a pretty darned interesting speech. Lots of interesting insider tidbits about the administrations from Bill Clinton to George W to Barak. Fun stuff. Then at lunch, there was commentary by Professor Joseph J Ellis, whom I had never heard of before, but that is not saying anything. His Wikipedia entry says he is an American historian and professor whose work focuses on the lives and times of the founders of the United States of America and he is a best selling author. He was a very interesting person, and was spot-on with many of his remarks (in my opinion). He was in great demand for comments after the lunch. I ran into him sitting alone at a table in the airport and we had a nice chat, and I was allowed this 'selfie'. So there!
It is 11 o'clock Monday evening and I am in Williamsburg, Virginia. It is cold outside, I just got here, there was a cab fiasco and I am hungry. It will get better from here. From what I could see in the dark during the drive here from the airport, it is a beautiful historic town, and I will try to get to see a quick bit of it tomorrow between meetings. In the meantime, this is the best photo I have. Maybe I will have a better one when the room service burger gets here, but for now, this one will have to do...I fear this is a quiet, tasteful little hotel. CRAP!
Miguel came out today, and we got all the chores done without too much trouble. Then it was time for a nap, which was very welcome. Jody and I went into Georgetown for dinner tonight, and it was Souper Salad. Pretty good, a nice variety, but I do not recommend the baked sweet potatoes. Baked way too long!
Things went pretty much as planned today, except for the parts where I was working around the house. I stayed in bed until after 7 o'clock this morning. When I finally got up, I read the paper, drank volumes of coffee and made Jody and me a lovely pile of eggs. I did a little bit of work in the office, and then I went out and hooked the trailer up to the truck for the trip into Georgetown to pick up the Polaris. That all went well, and we got home, got the Polaris off the trailer, unhitched the trailer and then went into Taylor to get some cattle feed. I like the Taylor Feed Store, but it is not that convenient...the Bartlett Feed Store is much more convenient, but they do not stock a particular cattle feed that I like in the winter time. SO, it is off to Taylor in the colder months.
After that it was off to the office, there were three meetings spread out between 11 and 4, and in the middle of those I made it to the Capitol for some stuff. I love everything Texas, I just cannot get enough of it.
After the breakfast, I headed to the office and did some power real estate, and then I was off to Round Rock to attend the Williamson County Association of REALTORS® installation. It was a very nice event; I would never say anything negative about any place that was serving wine at lunch! The Officers for 2014 were installed and everything points to another successful year for their Association.
Okay, well this might make for an interesting discussion topic. If I am so totally dis-interested in trying to take an interesting photo for an otherwise totally dis-interesting journal entry, BUT I go onto the dis-interestnet and find something that is a little bit interesting and take a photo of that so there will be at least a little bit of interest in the entry, I understand that I will own the copyright (my intellectual property) to that particularly un-ininteresting (or maybe slightly interesting) photograph. But where does that leave the original (perhaps interesting) owner of the original photograph that I found interesting enough (in an un-interesting sort of way) to take my own photo of, and post to try and garner interesting discussion comments to an otherwise uninteresting day and journal post. Does any of this make sense to you? Have I violated some sort of (now this is REALLY un-interesting) vague and (more un-interesting) copyright law? Can I be sued for that action and thrown into a (un-interesting) jail cell (perhaps made interesting if I could share the cell with a Travis County DA who will remain anonymous but HER first initial is ROSEMARY, and she is packin' some vodka) that is accessorily challenged and totally NOT INTERESTING.
This is a photo of some of the Christmas lights we have hanging on the gate up by the road. Interestingly I guess my iPhone camera cannot focus with that many points of light, but that is perfectly okay with me.
Good things still happen as a result of the Installation that was held on last Saturday night. My friend Steve (a hero to many) picked up the Christmas Trees that were used at the entrance to the tent (you should have been there) and took them for re-gifting (sort of). ANYWAY, one of the trees made its' way to the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless (see the photo) and the other is now happily brightening the lives of economically disadvantaged single mom in East Austin. Hopefully, when they reach the end of this incarnation, they will be further re-gifted and taken to the mulching site in Zilker Park after the Holidays and have another benefit to someone. Good job from my great and totally unselfish friend Steve!
The Installation Event was wonderful, and there were lots of people involved with it. I refuse to mention names (still) because I am basically petrified that I will inadvertently omit someone, and that would not be intentional, so I just want to tell everyone involved that I appreciate all your hard work more that words could ever say.
I don't care what anybody says, today was a great day! 
What do you call someone who is afraid of Santa Claus? Claus-trophobic! HAHAHA.
Got into the office about as usual this morning, we had our PM meeting in the AM and all was good with that. I left the office about 10:40 to head to the Austin Country Club for the Women's Council of REALTORS® Austin Chapter Installation luncheon. It was a very nice ceremony (always is) and it is always a pleasure to get together with these folks. This is a photo of me and my friend Laura getting ready for lunch. Laura has been a trend setter MUCH longer than me, I am a new devotee to the bow cravat!
I made it to work at about the usual time this morning, lots of things to get (and try to stay) caught up on. Then it was off to the Austin Area CRS Chapter Installation luncheon. It was a great luncheon and Installation meeting, and this is a picture of Cathy and me taken by Carrie (one of the other Carrie's). It was a great fun meeting.
I had to have Jody to the dentists office this morning by 9:15. That was kind of tricky because I was also supposed to be in a class at 9 o'clock. SO...I got Jody to the dentist by about 8:20 and abandoned him so I could make it to the class by 9 o'clock. I got there, and Lynda came to the dentists office and fetched Jody home. He had an implant implanted and he is acting pretty much like nothing at all happened to him. If that was me, I would want to see the list of available drugs BEFORE I confirmed the appointment AND they would have to roll me into the office. I am not going to show up for that under my own power!
Okay, so today's temperature in Austin was a record high. This weekend we are expecting record LOWS and I will be in a tent for a good part of that. I'm just sayin'...
On the way in to Austin, they were having an old car meeting at the Walburg Restaurant. They do that every now and then. I am not very good at distinguishing cars before about 1946 or 1947, so about all I know about this car (other than it looks really cool) is that Jody says he thinks it is a Ford. Who am I do challenge that?
This was an absolutely GREAT DAY, except for the overcast parts and the 'I'm cold' parts and the other parts that I did not care for very much. Otherwise, it was GREAT! I did remember that I had an appointment at Berry Springs Park to get some firewood. I love their firewood; a mix of hickory and pecan wood, lovely. It burns beautifully. This is the second year that we have gone there for our firewood. Very nice folks, and not as expensive as you would think. $10 for a wheel barrel full, and we got thirteen wheel barrels full in the truck. I think that is at least a cord of wood, and for $130 I think it is a great bargain.
Yep, please meet Violet's newest calf, born yesterday (or really early today, but I am calling it yesterday). Looks like a heifer calf, but again, I never really call them til I see them pee. Names under consideration right now are; Turducken, Giblets, Pilgrim, Casserole and Dark Meat. Let me know which one you prefer.
It is about 9:30 at night, Jody and I just got home from having a wonderful Thanksgiving Dinner with Michael, Lynda, Josh and Mary Ann. We have plenty to be thankful for.
Jody had a hankering for Frito Pie tonight, so instead of making it in the bag, he made a Frito Pie Casserole, Very good! Tomorrow evening we will go to our friends Lynda and Michael's for Thanksgiving Dinner. Friday I have to go back into Austin to pick up some stuff for next week, and I need to go into Taylor to get some cattle feed. I have been getting the feed in Bartlett, but Taylor has a feed that is good for cattle in the winter, helps them stay warmer.
Yesterday afternoon, Hubert brought over some of Pauline's cookies and a loaf of banana bread. I have only tried one of the chocolate cookies so far, and it is delicious. I do not think Pauline has ever made (or at least I don't remember) these cookies with chocolate in the, but they sure are good. I will give the banana bread a try in just a little while.
Righty-tighty, Lefty-Lucy. Even though I do not expect it to freeze overnight, there is a chance that we could see some freezing temperatures overnight on Tuesday night. We had more rain today, the long, steady drizzling FREEZING COLD kind of rain. In the last five days, we have had almost two inches of rain, but that is supposed to be over with tomorrow, and the sun is expected to make an appearance early in the New Year. This is what it is like to live in Cleveland, as best I can imagine. ANYWAY, the whole reason for the righty-tighty thing is because I went out and shut off the water to the cattle troughs earlier this evening. Just in case...and it is better to do it today than it would be tomorrow.
Oh yeah, I am the trash-man (no liquids please)! By the end of my volunteer shift, my standards were reduced and I was accepting liquids and trash of all sorts. The Austin Empty Bowl Project today was another great success...maybe just the best ever! Although it was rainy and cold, the quick thinking on the part of Hester and Kris (and most likely the venue management) meant that folks did not really have to endure the bad weather, but were, for the most part, sheltered and kept warm. It was a really tremendous event, and next year (the 18th) will be even better. Onward and Upward! It was especially nice to re-connect with someone I like VERY MUCH, Kelly. I need to see if I can find her on FaceBook. AND, it was great to see my colleagues volunteering their time; Kerry, Ruby and Chris. Thanks guys!
Though the weather outside may be frightful, the spirit INSIDE tomorrow at the Empty Bowl Project will be DELIGHTFUL. This just in from Empty Bowl HQ: , The 17th Annual Empty Bowl Project will take place, rain or shine. Much of the event will be moved indoors to accommodate our guests and volunteers. Please dress appropriately for the weather. We have lots of hot soup, a great music lineup, and plenty of bowls. We look forward to seeing you all! Jody and I actually just got home from the Preview Party and it was very nice and very well attended. If you have even half a chance, please go out and support this great effort that benefits The Capital Area Food Bank and Meals-On-Wheels. If you need more information just click on this link: http://www/austinemptybowl.org. Thanks!
Most of the night last night was spent trying to soothe the Boy Dog. Neither Jody or I remember any mention of lightning and thunder, so we did not put his ThunderShirt on him until after the noise started. We tried sleeping with the lights on in the bedroom, so he really could not pay attention to the flashes of lightning, and with the tv on so he (maybe) would not hear the thunder. Didn't work. I took him to the closet, and that did not do any good. Jody took him into the den and fell asleep in his chair. Overall, it was just a long, sleep deprived night. I am certain I slept more than it feels like I did, but it does not feel like I got much sleep at all. This photo was actually taken yesterday before the rains started. The weather prognosticators say we may not see the sun again until next Thursday. I am already grumpy.
I guess this guy is pretty used to me checking the meter. This is not the first time this guy has been featured on the journal, it is however, the first time that he was enjoying the shelter on top of the meter. It was not really a problem, I could see the numbers I needed so there was no need to really disturb him. It always does surprise me when I see him in the enclosure, sort of like when you run your hand up under a rat snake in one of the nesting boxes in the chicken coop. With a frog, however, I HARDLY ever run screaming like a girl. Hardly ever...
There is not much about me that I think is special, but there is one thing (I think) that stands out above the others. I am the luckiest man on earth. I know, I know, many folks stake a claim to that, but really, I AM the luckiest man on earth. One of my lucky attributes is that, every now and then, I see something beautiful where other people just take something for granted. Quite often it is in the shape and grandeur of clouds, much to the chagrin of many of you that follow this journal on a regular basis. Today, I saw these lovely blooms, hundreds of them, climbing a wall on the corner of South Congress and Riverside Drive. There they were, minding their own business, just BEGGING for someone to pay attention to them. The other folks that were putting gasoline in their cars looked at me like I was crazy (honest they were, I know what that look looks like) when I left the nozzle in my car and walked 75 feet away to take this photo. And once I took a minute to take a look at the picture, they are even more beautiful than I remembered them to be, and that is generally not something that happens with a digital photograph. You are welcome!
It was a full house today at the Austin Board, and the overflow was in a separate auditorium with live AV feed. Great discussion with the Association members about listing syndication. It is all about education, and giving the Brokers the authority to make the decision about what is best for their listings. Nothing will really change if the Brokers don't want change, it is just their decision to make. Nothing more, nothing less.
This photo became much more interesting because my friend Steve taught me how to crop photos a couple weeks ago. Easy schmeezy! I am glad I got to see this sunrise because it was WAY DARK by the time I got home tonight.
I got to sleep in a little bit late this morning. Got some grass cut at, and between me and Miguel we managed to get the chicken coop cleaned out, the cattle fed, the grass cut from the fence line at the back pasture, the electric fence fixed (these electric fences are tricky) and some weeds pulled up in the front. The stove also got cleaned out so I am ready for the next time we need to build a fire.
Last night as we were leaving for Steve's Birthday party, we noticed a box lodged under the gate up by the road, and a sticky note stuck to the gate. It turned out to be a UPS box that was left up by the road and not brought up to the house. We must have a new driver in the area, because usually the boxes are left on the porch or by the garage. Is this a sign of the times? Has UPS been taken over by the USPS? Anyway...
This particular art installation is kind of a work in progress, and it has been progressing for about the last 90 days or so. First there was the covered wagon. Then they added the plastic longhorns. I am not sure what that says about historical (or hysterical) accuracy, but I am just calling it as I see it. Today they added the windmill and the water tank. And this is all on a berm at the Crestview RV Center near Walburg. Interesting.
There have only been a few occasions in the (almost) five years that I have been doing this journal, that I have not posted a photo that was taken ON THE DAY of the posting. I took a couple absolutely adequate photos this morning or an absolutely adequate sunrise, but it seems I deleted all of the photos not just the one that was all black (obviously badly aimed). AND, since it was WELL beyond dark when I got home, there was not too much photo-worthy. SO, the photo of the day is one that I took last Sunday in San Francisco at the Foreigner concert. Pretty cool, front row seats, wormed my way up to the stage (just one woman was between me and the stage and the last time I saw legs like that they were firmly attached to a grand piano). Needless to say, she was not willing to cooperate and I thought I had made her an offer she could not refuse, but she did. ANYWAY, I hope you enjoy this photo.
The freeze was much lighter than it was predicted, and that is a good thing. We had a fire in the stove last night, first one of the season, and it was a big chore to a) get it started and b) keep it going. It was still burning this morning when I got up and I added some firewood to it, and there were still some embers burning when I got home this afternoon. I added some more wood to it, babied and pampered it, and it is going again very nicely. It is not supposed to be as chilly tonight (depending upon whom you listen to), and then there will be a warming trend. The morning glories took a little hit; there are some freeze marks on them but they are still going to survive for the most part.
There is a lovely Iris blooming out by the circle, and a few others here and there. I noticed it as I was all bundled up after having turned the water off to the troughs in the back pastures, in preparation of the light freeze we are expecting tonight and the next couple days. This is not a good sign. This is a bad sign. This is not going to be helpful to the morning glories. By the morning, there is a good chance they will all be nothing more than a mushy mass of deadness. I am not really happy about that. It is not supposed to be this cold this early. Does not bode well.