Ouch

Last week my Uncle came over to help me with a house project (have I ever mentioned that I have the best Uncle in the world?). As I was working, stuff was getting in my eyes. My Uncle said that I should probably be wearing safety goggles. I agreed.

Fast forward a week. Yesterday to be exact. I was continuing work on the same project. Not wearing any safety goggles. Raise your hand if you know what happened.

Yeah. I got something in my eye and I couldn't get it out. I was in agony all day. Eyewashes didn't help. Visine didn't help. I couldn't even see anything in there that I could try and pick out. I don't know how doctors remove stuff from an eye that you can't see and I was really afraid that I was going to find out. Fortunately, whatever was in there worked it's way out overnight. My eye was pretty crusty this morning and is still sore, but at least I can see without pain. Yay!

My Dad was moved to another facility and we went yesterday to visit (driving while it's snowing is *not* fun when one of your eyeballs isn't working!). He is not a happy camper. I feel horrible that he can't be home, but there is no way he can come home until he is well. He really needs to concentrate on getting better and not being miserable because he's not home. I wish so much that I could make everything better.

Well, back to work on the house. With my safety goggles on.

Grass

So, it's a crisp mid-November day. It's 36 degrees outside. There is a little bit of snow falling from the sky. Naturally, I brought out the lawnmower and cut the grass. Actually, I've been wanting to get the grass cut one last time before winter really set in, so I took advantage of the time I had and the relatively decent weather. I didn't get it all done, but I got the parts done that really needed it. The grass should be good now until spring.

My nephew is now batting .600 in the fussy/non-fussy category. As of today, the non-fussy side is winning. The little guy is definitely getting bigger and his hair is really starting to grow in. When he isn't crying, he really is cute.

My Mom (or should I be calling her Grandma?) is really funny when it comes to the baby. The digital camera and video camera are both constantly out. And she is has taken to conveniently leaving little photo albums and envelopes of pictures lying about the house for us to 'notice'. My Dad is just happy to be holding him or having him in sight. As long as he isn't crying. :D

The Jillmobile hit 125125 miles today.

I took some pictures today after cleaning out the chicken coop. I also dug through my summer chicken pictures. Now you can see how funny my rooster looks without his manly tail feathers.

Before

(very manly)


Now
(not so much)

It will be interesting to see how long it takes for the tail to grow back in. I've noticed that some of the hens are a little scraggly looking, too. It just seems like such a weird time of year for any animal to be losing it's insulation. You'd think that the chickens would be growing extra feathers to help keep them warm in the colder weather. I dunno.

Procrastinate Now!

It seems that over the years, I've tended to procrastinate more and more. I've learned that sometimes if you you put something off long enough, a good chunk of those things come to the point that you don't have to worry about them anymore. Which is great, because then I didn't waste time doing something that I didn't have to do from the beginning. But a lot of times the things that I didn't do come back to get me. As things stand right now, I have put off quite a few projects that I wish I had taken care of. It really didn't matter before tho' - the only person that my procrastinating ever affected was me. Things are changing. I need to learn to not procrastinate so much anymore.

I know I've mentioned before that I really didn't miss going without my TV and computer for a couple of days. That was because I was otherwise occupied. I do have to say that not having an internet connections when I do want to go online is maddening beyond belief. Fortunately all is well now, but not being able to get online when I want to drives me crazy.

I had to laugh when I came across the list Popular Mechanics had published: 25 Skills Every Man Should Know. I think that it's pretty funny that I have done 19 out of the 25 things on that list. And I'm pretty confident that I could do three others if the opportunity presented itself. I wonder what kind of man that makes me?

Busy

This weekend has been a busy one at El Casa Jill. I got stuck on the big project I really wanted to get done this weekend. While I am waiting for some advice so that I can finish that job, I got around to tackling about fifty others that I have been putting off since I hurt my back. My back is definitely sore and stiff, but it's not hurting anywhere near as much as did since before I switched jobs. That is very encouraging from my point of view :)

I've discovered over the past couple of weeks that chickens must molt their feathers at this time of year. I have to laugh at my rooster because normally he is a pretty handsome bird. I'll have to post a picture when I get a chance... He's a pretty light brown color with big manly white tail feathers that show everyone he is boss of his chicken coop. About a week ago, his big manly tail feathers fell out. He looks so funny now with these little stubby feathers sticking out his backside. I wonder how long it's going to take to grow back. Anyway, when I was cleaning out the coop yesterday, I couldn't believe how many feathers there were all over the place. I'll bet I could have filled a pillow with them. OK, maybe not that many, but there was a lot. I guess that when the hens molt, it's not so noticeable as with the rooster.

And my question for the day: Has anyone ever done a serious study on the Balance of the Universe? I want to know if it is true that for every good thing that happens, a bad one has to occur to even things out. I would love to see a study that says that isn't so.