Friends of the Week!
Diane Byler
Of the World
Luther Kleindinst
Bushnell, IL
Buddy McFaul
Jacksonville, FL
Luther was cleaning eaves, gardening, and building things into his 90s. He's a jack-of-all handyman trades, and he loves strawberry-rhubarb pie, as he told me when he gave me fresh rhubarb! Luther also gave me some cooking tips I still use. He's interesting and interested, which makes him a great friend.
Diane is a true wanderer, not really citing anywhere as her home these days as she travels the WORLD, always on an adventure and largely trusting that the world will provide whatever she needs -- and it largely does. We catch her when she passes through, and it's always worth the wait.
Buddy is our rainbow unicorn friend, almost too good to be true. He's that one-in-a-million who really would do anything for a family member or friend, and he's helped us with surprise parties, with concert tickets, with whatever. He's a fantastic card player, and a lifelong dependable and caring friend.
Grandchildren's Corner:
Need a Guard Llama?
Llamas are the camel’s hippie cousins. They belong to a group of animals called camelids that also includes alpacas. All camelids spit or stick out their tongue when they are annoyed. One of the ways llamas talk between each other is by humming.
Llamas make excellent guards for herds of small animals. They are very social and will ‘adopt’ a group of sheep or goats as their own herd. Then they will protect the herd by chasing off coyotes and other predators. And yep, they can recognize the difference between a neighbor's dog and a coyote. They are really smart animals.
This site is updated weekly.
This week in pictures: Jan 17-23: Click picture frame for full-size pop-up image!
Jan 17 – 23: JAX news watchers now know I was vaccinated this week (with Kev) at Regency, where the line wrapped around the mall (and yes, we had set appointments but waited for 3-plus hours). Still, we got the CoronaVirus vaccine. We took Gene hiking in our usual spots, staying til sundown, when shadows lengthened on the beach at the ocean, and the birds flew home to roost at Hanna. Date night: We watched new taped episodes of The Hustler and The Chase game shows. Wow, huh? Fun to us.
Husband of the Week:
Dr. Doolittle
He's the deer whisperer (and helper, since he feeds these fellows his oat crackers). KXP recognizes animal souls and they are attracted to his.
Husband of the Week Archive
Book
Recommendation:
The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson: A man crashes his car. As he recovers in a burn ward, undergoing the tortures of the damned, he looks forward only to the day when he can leave the hospital and commit a carefully planned suicide — for he now is a monster in appearance as well as morally bankrupt. But while in the hospital, he meets the mysterious sculptress Marianne Engel, who insists they were lovers in medieval Germany, when he was a mercenary and she was a monastery scribe. As she spins the story of their past lives, his disbelief turns to wonder. I really became upset the closer I got to the last chapter because I didn't want the book to end. It's fascinating, mind-expanding, and a literary achievement. One of my very favorite books.