How to shorten a rope

Okay, so most people purchase a rope based on the size they need. Right? Right. We, on the other hand, buy a long rope and shorten it by pulling out tree stumps. It works every time. You see, we have a yard full of trees and a LOT of hard pan. That means that most of the tree roots spread out near the surface rather than digging deep into the ground. It also means a heavy wind can knock over a tree every now and then. I'm not sure why they always tend to fall across our driveway or into some other position that is nearly as big of a nuisance , but they do. In this case, however, we elected to cut down a tree that sheds leaves down our chimney, even though, technically, it isn't that close to the chimney. It is close to the house, however. So, this particular tree, a Japanese Elm that I liked very much - until it became a problem, lives in a soft spot, ground wise. Its roots go all the way to Japan, as a matter of fact. We begin by cutting off its limbs, its trunk, and then digging up the roots. Now, I don't usually mind digging in the dirt, but this tree happens to be particularly stubborn. Its roots are tangled and twisted. It seems that no amount of artfully revealing its lifeline is going to release the stump. And so, after hacking away at the mass of large and small roots, our only option was to get the rope and yank it out. Let me say that the stump not only stopped the car dead, it also shortened the rope by a good 4 feet. The snap probably resulted in a few calls to the sheriff too, because it was quite a loud Snap! We have found this an effective way to shorten rope on several occasions actually. While I don't recommend it, I know that it works.

Ah, how nice it is to have a gardener.

The temperature reads 107 outside, and the grass is waving in the breeze. It needs cutting. Usually, that means we will dampen our clothes enough to be outside and remain comfortable while we do the job. Today, though, we have a gardener. What bliss. I'm not riding the lawnmower, and Angela isn't doing the edging. I'm not picking up twigs, and Angela isn't trimming the hedge. The broken tree limb is not calling us to care for it immediately. We have a gardener. Angela and I are free to read, write, nap or play with the dogs. Are we? No, we're watching the gardener. Will he do as good a job as we do? Will he be faster than we usually are? Probably. Yes, in fact, when all is said and done. He, after all, has the fancy equipment we don't own. He also does the job for a living and has figured out all the little tricks of the trade. So, by watching, we hope to do better when we are doing it again in a few weeks. We also hired a professional tree trimming service. Guess what, not a single person fell out of a tree or off a ladder. You know, this could become a habit. Now, all we have to do is get a summer job to pay for our professional lawn care. Maybe we could hire out as gardeners.

Caught by an advertiser

We fell for the legendary John Deere myth that their lawn tractors are better than all the others. It cost us $2,000 more to buy a JD rather than the Sears version we were considering. Now that we have it, the JD is just not measuring up. The fabric grass-catchers get the machine and me filthy, are difficult to lift off their frames because I'm too short to get enough purchase on the darn things, and they're hard to empty when full.

Today, it stopped mowing when I ran over a gopher hole! This is a lawn tractor, folks, have you ever heard of such a thing? The machinery couldn't handle the loose dirt, I guess!

Thank goodness Angela has the "Miss Fix-it" gene, because taking this thing apart was no picnic. (Our old Sears version had much easier access to problem areas.) However, she had me up and running again after about 45 minutes. That gene is a Best Thing About Being Married to a Transsexual!

Work, Work, Work

It has been a good time to have an RV, but THIS week did NOT turn out to be all we had hoped. It has been raining, you see. It has been raining a LOT, particularly in the area where we had planned to spend a nice, relaxing weekend with friends, walking the dogs, catching up on our magazine reading, and generally taking it easy. It didn't turn out that way though. We arrived at the chosen RV park and found it soggy, to say the least. RVs were getting bogged down left and right. Even the van conversions had to be pulled out of mud holes. We quickly decided that at 27,000 lbs, and 39' there was no chance we were going to escape sinking to our wheel hubs. So, we opted out of our 4-day weekend plans and headed back home. At least it was a lovely day for a drive. We had left at 9 a.m. and arrived back home at 4:45. Yes, we may have to forfeit our prepaid dollars, and yes, we still used up the diesel, and yes we will miss all the camaraderie with friends. But, we won't have all the muddy cleanup we would have had, not to mention possible repair costs if we'd had to have been pulled out of a bog by a tractor. Anyway, not going on an outing means Work, Work, Work.

It's spring. There are weeds to pull, gardens to prepare, and lawns to mow. All of it needs to be done RIGHT NOW, of course. So, one must prioritize, right? One should also do the hardest jobs first, I suppose - darn. Well, I chose to combine both an easy and a hard job. I began with spraying for weeds. With 2.8 acres, there are a lot of areas that need to be sprayed with "kill everything in sight - forever" stuff. That was the easy job. It only took a couple of hours. Next came the hard job: digging out weeds that may overtake trees and plants. There were more than plenty of those, I'm sorry to say. After all of that, I got out the weed and feed fertilizer. Needless to say, I was glad to see Thursday's List done.

Friday's list is short: dig-the-trench. Since we doubled the size of our vegetable garden area, additional watering systems must be installed. Its my garden, so its my trench to dig. The good news is the ground is wet.

Today is install the new watering system and finish the roto-tilling. I'll just have to ignore sore muscles over the next few days.

Angela fixed and shade in the RV that fell down, on Thursday. It was a big project because the plastic casing broke. She also did all the design for the new water system on Friday and made all the purchases. Today we'll install the watering system together, and we'll have a lot of fun doing it, mud and all.

Tomorrow will be mow, mow, mow for me while Angela cleans house and does the laundry. I love having a wife that is a handy person and a good housekeeper too! It's just one of those Best Things about being Married to a Transsexual again!

It's a Gloomy, Glorious Day!

Rain! Gads how I love it, even if it leaves the skies overcast and gloomy. Angela and I have been out cutting shoots around the olive trees that line the western side of our yard between rain showers. There are five of them. We got the largest done a couple of weeks ago; three done today, and the last will have to wait until our big dumpster is emptied. Damp weather and hard work may not be the picture most folks see for a glorious day, but I do. I do because Angela have fun when we work together. There's a bit of kibitzing going on, along with a fair amount of "let me help with that," happening too. After all these years, we've got this job down to something of a science, so we work well as a team. These lovely trees are great shade trees, even though they are messy. They send up loads of shoots, and they drop olives for half the year. Yet I love them almost as much as I love gloomy, glorious days like today.

I also love working in my garden when it's damp out. I like the smell of the earth, and I like knowing I'm helping a plant grow better when I yank out a weed. It's nice to hear, "that' lettuce is really doing pretty well," from Angela too. This is the first year I've tried lettuce. We don't get much time for "cool weather crops" around here. Besides that, the rabbits, moles, gophers, and birds have a heyday in the garden too - not to mention ants and insects.

I guess I like being outside in general, unless it is way too cold or hot. We don't get many of the way too cold days, but we do get the hot ones. So, today was a perfect day. We got some of the rain we needed. We got another portion of a big job, the trees, done, and my small lettuce patch is weeded. I'm tired and happy. Now I must hit the grocery store before the kids come over for dinner. We'll have a nice steak, and we'll play with Brooke, and we'll catch up on what Aud and Daniel have been up to for the last week.

What more could someone ask from a gloomy, glorious day?

Things that I love

This is could be a long list, but I'll keep it reasonable.:
1. Angela, especially since she transitioned
2. Our daughter, what a delight she has always been; yes, even as a teen
3. Our granddaughter, what joy she has brought to our lives as we rediscover the world through her little eyes
4. Our extended family, what a blessing they are for who they are, and for their unquestioning support of unusual life - We are blessed
5. Friends that are true in every way; what an honor to know them all
6. All dogs - our own especially. They bring us comfort and love 24/7/365
7. Trees dancing in the breeze
8. Making new friends
9. Weather - good and bad, it's amazing, isn't it?
10. Good food, particularly those meals that are shared with those we love.
11. Laughing - out loud more than that hidden chuckle. It's always best when shared.
12. Seeing growth - the kind when one's ideas are stretched to include things never thought of before
13. Trying new things - especially things that are challenging to us
14. Seeing new sights
15. Seeing success happen to our family, friends, acquaintances, and ourselves
16. Hearing music in all its many forms
17. Listening to a contented sigh of happiness.
18. Seeing love reflected back from another's eyes
19. Watching my garden grow
20. Watching life happen all around us

Who said one had time to relax when one retires?

Okay, I'll be back at the computer for a fair while again. Who said one had time to relax when one retires? RVing, gardening and grandparenting have just had to take precedence for a few days - weeks, okay, a couple months. It's amazing how quickly the days pass when one is out enjoying the sites to see while RVing, getting all the spring gardening tasks! We have 2+ acres, so there are trees to trim before they invade each other, a neighbor's yard, or otherwise cause problems. Then there is just preparing the actual garden for planting - and then planting of course. There are new trees to transplant, loads of weeding - of course - in flower beds and yard too. Then, well, THEN comes grandparenting. We once had a BABY girl, NOW, we have a VERY mobile baby girl. We spent nearly a week transplanting bad stuff and otherwise baby proofing. We don't have that big a house, but it's plenty big enough for all the things that have to have latches, door covers, stops, electric plugs, wire and drapery/blind wind-ups - you name it. AND, trust me when I say you can't be out of the room with a kid that is starting to walk and crawling everywhere! She can disappear from one spot and appear in another fast than any magician I've every heard about! She's a big help when it comes to sorting laundry too. Guess what, dog toys are far more attractive than any expensive kid toy she has. She'll go after a bone on the floor long before any of the many toys Parents and other magazines report as top enticers for little minds. She has recently learned how to crawl OUT of things. You know, all those things that were great for sleeping in when she was a BABY! - like her swing, for instance. Not even the tray can keep her in there when she wakes! That'll be in the next garage sale - or put away for the next grandkid. Anyway, don't get me wrong - this is the BEST of stages. Every day is a day for exploring and excitement like never before. There's about 5 years of this, and we look forward to every minute. We also look forward to holding her in our arms as she falls asleep!

Best things about being married to a transsexual

It's a gorgeous fall day, perfect for using the rototiller on the compost pile, but the baby is here. No problem - Grammy Angela is on the job. She's the designated babysitter, you know that, of course; but, the reality is, when we have a fussy baby, I'm usually the one on duty. Not today. She volunteered. So, that's just another example of a "Best Thing." Those motherly instincts are right up there at the surface now. All it took was a little less (okay, a lot less) testosterone, and she's all cuddly and there-there-ish. I was soon up to my ankles in chunky compost while Miss Brooke was fussing at Angela. I also got all the bird feeders filled, including those for the humming birds. Yes, in California, they are still humming around. We all love being outside where we get to watch the squirrels and birds. Keeping the feeders full means we maintain the supply of tweeters, hummers and chirpers to entertained us and the dogs. Now, I can enjoy the rest of the day reading up on my writing magazines while we take turns tending to Miss Brooke.