Sold!

 

           This week, Mike’s tractor sold.

          We've been clearing out clutter, selling things on Facebook Marketplace instead of letting them sit around falling apart or rusting away — stuff we just don't use anymore. Mike's tractor was one of them.

          It’s funny.

          “What’s funny?” you ask.

          Facebook Marketplace. You hear people talk about the bad experiences they’ve had using that platform, but Mike and I never had any problem with the few things we’ve sold. That is, until this time.

          One guy contacted us asking if we’d take almost half of what it was listed for. “You have more money I do. I need a tractor. Give a guy a break,” he said.

          I wonder if this tactic works for him, but it didn’t work for us. We told him no.

          Then a really nice guy offered us a slightly smaller amount and we took it. Everyone likes to feel like they’re getting a deal.

          “It’s exactly what I’m looking for,” Ken said when he came to pick it up.

          Mike helped him load it and I took a few pictures.

          I was standing there taking pictures when I saw a large-ish bird glide in and land on the pond. I knew what he was, or rather, and more accurately, I suspected he was a Green Heron. These guys are skittish and it’s a matter of luck if I can get close without them taking flight. Knowing this, I went back in the house and got my camera with the zoom lens. I started taking pictures as soon as I spotted his head and long neck among the dried stalks of last year’s bulrush.

         I was right! As soon as I started to get a little close, he took off.

         We still owed a little money on the tractor. “Should I send them a check?” Mike asked. “Or do you want to drive down to Lewisburg and pay it off?”

       Can you guess what I said?

       “Road trip!”

       Here are some photos. 

       We took the dogs with us.

Bondi used to ride in a bed that strapped to the center console in the car. She’d curl into a ball and sleep. The last few times we had the girls in the car with us, Bondi wouldn’t stay in her bed.

“I don’t know what’s going on with her,” I told Mike. “She used to ride so well.”  

We decided to put her in the backseat with Raini.

There’s my little pork roll.

“She’s too fat!” you exclaim.

I know, right! Mike tells me that all the time. I’m working hard to cut down on treats and table food but it’s hard! You know what I mean?

Something we didn’t know was going to happen is now Raini no longer whines the whole trip like she used to. I had thought that riding in the car just made her feel bad, but I was rethinking that. “Do you think she was just upset because Bondi was in the front with us?”

“I don’t know,” Mike replied. “Maybe.”

When I download photos from my camera, my computer puts all the photos from one camera first, then all the photos from the other camera. I’m a two-fisted picture-taker. I’ll use one camera for distant shots, the other for closer up shots. Trying then to put them in order in the blog is a lot of work for little payoff. There aren’t many people who’re going to know they’re out of order.

Having said that, these are from when we first started our trip and the fog was lifting from the trees in a straight line. I thought it was interesting.

We get into the little town of New Albany and stop at the stop sign. “Clear right,” I call out when it’s clear. In this case, there was a semi just coming into sight and I said so. Mike had plenty of time.

Mike pulled out.

The semi driver, despite having come into the little town, sped up.

“I wish I wouldn’t’ve pulled out in front of him now,” Mike said, as the driver tried to catch our bumper.

“We’ll probably get ahead of him when we go up a hill,” I said.

“I think he might be empty.”

 “You can always pull over and let him pass you,” I said.

We get out of town and get only a little distance ahead of him as we negotiate the windy, twisty roads.

I’ve never seen Mike fuss about being in front of a vehicle before like he was doing this trip. He usually says, “They have a brake pedal.”

“You can pull over at that old gas station there before the Terrace or at the ball field if you want to,” I said as we start down the hill into Dushore.

“I’ll pull over and he’ll probably pull in right behind me,” Mike said.

I had to laugh when that’s almost exactly what happened. He pulled over in front of us. “You called that one!”

We're nearly past the worst of the winding, twisting roads when I hear Raini shift, sliding off the seat and settling onto the floor.

“She must not be feeling well,” I said. Although it’s been a long time since Raini has had to take the floor, she remembers she’s to go there when she’s gonna puke. Heelers are so smart! She stayed on the floor for a while, and when she didn’t get sick, she got back up onto the seat with Bondi.

Coming off the bridge, I get my first look at Lewisburg.

“Tell us about Lewisburg,” you say.

Okay! I will!

Lewisburg is a historic town on the banks of the Susquehanna River. It was founded in 1812, and has 871 historic buildings and sites, earning it a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.

Downtown Lewisburg is known for its tree-lined, lamp-lit streets, boutique shops, and locally owned, small businesses. Visitors can explore 18th- and 19th-century architecture, take a mural tour, or enjoy a peaceful walk along the river. The town is also home to Bucknell University.

          It seems to me like you’d be losing a lot of heat in the winter. Why wouldn’t you fix the attic window?

       We stopped at a little roadside diner for lunch.

       There was a mower repair place right across the road. Before we got out of the car, we saw them trying to drive this mower up onto the trailer and back it down twice.

       We walked in the restaurant and two guys were sitting at a window table, eating their lunch and watching.

       “Do you think they’ll get it loaded?” I asked as we were walking past.

       “I don’t know,” the one guy answered.

       “It looks like they can’t get it over the bend in the ramp,” the other guy said.

       Before we took our seat, one of the guys announced, “There! They got it!”

We’ve eaten at this place once before and Mike really liked the turkey club sandwich.

“They use real turkey, not the processed slices,” Mike told Miss Rosie about it later.

On another trip, shopping this time, I took a few pictures.

The locust trees are blooming. My locust trees have pink flowers but I haven’t seen them bloom in a few years.

          I’ve shown you this billboard before, although it might’ve had a different message on it then. We pass it every time we go to Tunkhannock.

          “Do you think anyone ever got saved by reading a billboard?” I asked Mike. As you may guess, he didn’t know.

          Speaking of signs...

          We were parked in the parking lot of the bank. Directly across the road is this sign directing you to the Catholic church.

          “Who is that sign for?” I wonder aloud. It’s not like it’s at the end of a road where a car might need directions. It faces the bank and the bank parking lot. Am I just being dense, missing something obvious?

          My Nannyberry tree is in bloom.

          Dame’s Rocket is blooming, too. It has four petals, unlike Wild Phlox that has five. In folk medicine, it was used as a diuretic and anti-inflammatory. Healers believed it could help reduce swelling, alleviate pain, and promote urine production, making it useful for conditions like arthritis, gout, and urinary tract infections.

          You can eat the young leaves, which are rich in vitamin C and were once used to prevent scurvy. Eating too much can cause vomiting, so you wanna be careful with this one. The flowers can be boiled to create a vibrant purple dye. Lastly, the flowers release their strongest scent at night. 

          I got the bright idea to trap Hatch and tame him. It took two tries but I did trap him in the cat room. I fed him yummy soft food twice a day. I cleaned his litter box. I spoke to him softly. I touched him gently — if he didn’t lay his ears back and hiss a warning. After a few days he stopped hiding from me when I entered and really seemed to enjoy the neck scratches, even leaning into them. Then he started hiding in the corner again and wouldn’t let me touch him.

          “It’s been a month and he isn’t warming up to us,” I told Mike. “I’m letting him out.” Some cats just don’t want anything to do with people, no matter how kind you are to them. The Kipps had one that was that way. He’d show up every day for food and sleep on the porch at night, but he never wanted to be handled much.

          Hatch showed up on my kitchen patio a couple of days after I turned him loose. He stayed put when the dogs went out, knowing they couldn’t get him. When I went out to talk to him, he took off and Raini chased him over the fence. I haven’t seen him since then. 

Our church is having its Vacation Bible School in early June.

Jeanette, one of the beautiful and talented church ladies, made octopuses for the underwater themed event.

Aren’t they clever!

Speaking of making things for VBS...

       They had a VBS work day at church but I didn’t stay. “Would you be willing to make some things at home if we don’t get them done?” Annette, another of my beautiful church peeps, asked.

“Sure!”

They didn’t get the sea anemones done and Annette dropped the stuff off for me. “They’re easy,” she said. “Just fold four sheets of tissue paper fan-style, attach them in the middle with a little piece of wire, and cut the ends.” She picked one up from the box. “Like this. We’ll fluff them out when we’re ready to hang them but they're easier to store if you leave them flat.”

I laid out the tissue paper on the table, running my hands over it to smooth it out. I got up to get the wire cutters and this is what I came back to. Tiger wanted to help.

I did the fan-folding and keeping them even was a bit of a challenge. But the bigger challenge was cutting the ends into points. Opening each end up and snipping them into Vs. I did one and was starting on the second one when I realized the V I was cutting was along the fold lines.

What if I cut them all at once? I wondered. I decided to give it a try. The worst that would happen is I’d mess one up.

The results were so-so. The creases didn’t all line up so I missed a couple but all in all, it made the job faster and easier!

Speaking of faster and easier...

I’ve been using two computers on my desk. My new one, and the old one until the screen fails.

“Peg, what are you using two computers for?” you wanna know.

Having two computers and two screens is actually quite handy. I can be working on one while doing research on the other. If I only had one computer, I’d have to use a split screen or constantly switch between pages, which, depending on my memory, can be time consuming.

The real convenience of two screens is undeniable — except for one little problem. I’d be working away on one screen, pull up a page on the other computer, and start typing only to realize I was using the wrong keyboard! Then I’d have to fix the mistake, shove one keyboard out of the way, and reposition the other so I could actually type. Let’s just say that switching between keyboards was a pain in the patootie.

Mike is such a good husband. Finding out my problem, he got online and ordered a switch. You can use this to operate two computers with one screen, one keyboard and one mouse. In my case, I only wanted to use it for the keyboard, so I didn’t plug the other stuff in. I love this thing! It works great! The light in the center is either green or blue, depending on which computer I’m using. Blue is four letters so that’s the computer on the left. Green is five letters so it’s the one on the right! Makes sense, don’cha think?

Speaking of new things...

Look what the Kipps got! A brand spankin-new Nissan Altima! They traded in an Altima and liked it so well they got the same thing in a 2025 model. The only thing missing is a CD player. Lamar does love his CDs.

“He could use his smart phone,” you say.

He doesn’t have one of those and he doesn’t want one. We’ll try to find an external one he can use when he’s in the car. 

          Let’s call this one done!

          Done!