A Muddy Duck : Named Chuck......

Last time you saw Chuck, he was a sweet little baby duck, now he thinks he is a pig..... The ducks have a little mud pit that they run thru... They don't like the pond (Evan is working to change this)...
Evan took the watering pan out of the pen and said if they want water they have to go to the pond, but he keeps taking water over in the 5 gallon pails to water the chickens and when he turns his back the ducks high tail it from the pond and jump in his 5 gallon pails....and muddy his chicken water....sorry I have to laugh....when I hear "Gawd darn it, stupid ducks!"

I have to say it is so much nicer to have someone to share the everyday small farm antic's with.

Chuck the Duck was named after my best friend and schoolmate Chuck who lives out in Montana... Who would prefer to see Chuck the Duck in a Chinese Restaurant covered with sweet and sour sauce.... So Chuckles this photo is for you, your muddy, smelly, cranky, ornery namesake... Wait....sounds like I described you, huh....

Teetering on my Soapbox.....

I had a situation at work happen that I just have to share... As I am in administration a lot of budgetary issues fall on my shoulders... One is what publications we subscribe to keep employees informed and educated on issues that effect their jobs. Well like everywhere that budget has been reduced so I have to be selective...

I receive a call from a gentlemen with a very heavy foreign accent wanting to know why I have not renewed this particular publication... So this is how it went.....

PIA Salesman: This is Peter from BLANK, BLANK....

Willow: What can I do for you today?

PIA Salesman: I am calling to see why you have not renewed your BLANK BLANK...

Willow: Well, I have not decided if I want to renew your publication, my budget is limited.

PIA Salesman: So this is a budget issue... What can you afford?

Willow: I can afford, fifty bucks, can you give it to me for fifty bucks....

PIA Salesman: NO, I am sorry, we could not possibly give it to you for that, would you....

Willow: (I cut him off here) That is what I can afford, I don't have time to dicker with you today, have a nice day... (and I hang up)

My intercom rings, it is the receptionist, she is laughing.... "Did you intentionally hang up on Peter? because he is back on line 3, do you want me to get rid of him?

Willow: NOPE.....

PICKS up line 3.......

Willow: Peter, let me ask you a question... What country are you calling me from?????

PIA Salesman: I am calling from India.....

Willow: Well, Peter let me tell you something, if you were calling from some where inside America and an American was doing your job I could afford to buy your publication.... But since you are calling me from India and you are doing an Americans job, I cant afford your publication, Good Day, click...............

So, this message is for Corporate America...... You want me to spend my hard earned money, I will, but you have to quit giving American jobs to the people of India and Mexico....Cut your big ass bonuses and give them to the employees who earned you those big ass bonuses, NO ONE can tell me you earned them all on your own... It was the little people, pushing the buttons, putting the parts together, moving the merchandise, spending their time at WORK, not on the GOLF course, that earned the big ass bonuses..... Stick that in your corporate pipe and smoke it.......

The name of this company is : The Coding Institute, P.O. Box 933729, Atlanta, GA 31193-3729
email: service@medville.com

I will be forwarding this message on to the big guys at this publication.... Enough is Enough... You want America back... well then fight for it... the CEO's in this country only respond to one thing a PISSED OFF BOARD OF DIRECTORS, that see their stocks falling.... I've got my ax ready... who's next on the chopping block....

Hi, We are Home....

Sorry, no pictures, yet.... I know, I know....me and my 35mm camera...geeze...

I spent a few wonderful day's with Evan's family, getting to know his mom and dad, his sisters, their families and pooches.... His family made me feel welcome and right at home, his nieces and nephew are cute as buttons and stole my heart... His parents took the time to show me their beautiful part of the country and it is.... all the mountains, canyons, just took my breath away...

Everywhere I looked I saw something wonderful... They kept picking on me about my tree's here in the North East and how you cant see anything on the horizon including the sunset and sunrises... and they were right... out west you could see forever, very vast and lovely country. Back home seems much smaller, today...

Lucky, our trip home was uneventful, except for 2009 miles of driving, we left in the nick of time and missed the snow that blanketed Colorado and arrived home Friday. The hardest part of the trip was leaving, I really like Evan's family and I wish we were not so far away...

Everything has kind of fallen in place, my ducks, like Evan's ducks, my dogs, like Evan's tiny pooch Zooker, for that matter everyone likes Zooker....

Nate was glad to be able to get life back to normal at home, Samantha came home for the weekend with two friends from College for Halloween. We had a record number of trick-o-treaters this year a whole 9 of them, I was excited ... the cutest one was in a chicken outfit....

So its back to work for me today...

This is how it is going....

On the way to my parents the other night I hit a speed bump. I guess its that time of year racing to get their nuts off the road. I did feel bad... I always do, but the stupid squirrel was still booking after I nailed him, dragging his behind but he never dropped the nut.

Last night I headed up on the mountain again to my parents to get horse hay. My mom had already informed me I was staying for dinner... So I walk in the kitchen and there are frosted sugar cookies, one of my favorite meal's in the oven and cherry cobbler on the other counter... I look at my mom and say..."Are you afraid I'm not coming back or are you trying to make sure I don't fit in the plane seat?" She just smacked me.... who does she think she is Coffee Man? Yes, you... You smacked me just this morning over at your blog.... BULLY.....Blog abuse, I tell ya... Ok in his defense, I did sass him and he IS OLDER....so.....

So, back to my story... I ate dinner... luckily Pops and I had loaded the hay before dinner, I could barley move.... UGGGG...then I had to go home and unload the hay....*smacks, myself in the forehead*...

But the best part was Mom telling me that my favorite dinner might taste like plastic, huh????? I guess my mom had left my Pops a note to preheat the oven and put the meatloaf and scalloped potato's in the oven at 5:00pm... So he did, but he didn't remove the plastic wrap first! His reply..."It didn't say that on the note!" Geeze....Pops... So I told him we were even... he had to stop picking on me forgetting to remove the gizzards from the turkey before I cooked it (a million years ago, now) and I wouldn't pick on him about this....He said "Deal!" It all tasted yummy to me, all the same.....

My brother Chip was being a turd, yes a TURD...to his lovely wife the other day... She is in her sisters wedding this weekend and its a high end affair and Chip well, he doesn't handle these occasions with grace, he is out of his element... So I told him he needed to give her some support during this and KNOCK it OFF... His reply "What more support does she need? I bought her a new Bra?" TURD, I tell ya.... but dang it, I still had to laugh.... I can't believe Michelle puts up with him...

Well, this will be it for a week or so....as I head out west....but I will be back...with a hunk, a tiny pooch and two ducks? Ducks? More Ducks.....did he just say ducks????? and they run???? from what????? Good Grief.......

There are not...

very many moments in life that you await so excitedly that you can't sleep, can't eat and at moments can't even see straight and I am in the middle of one. I am busily preparing for my trip out west, finally...In the beginning it seemed like it would take forever to get here, now its only days away...

Sometimes it seems impossible to be so happy...

But then I look at Payton (Boo Boo). He is such a happy guy all the time. He is happy to eat, to get his butt thrown outside, to come inside, to get a treat and his new trick is to steal the cup I use to feed the chickens and ducks. When I set it down he steals it and runs... "Come on', momma chase me"... Even when I yell at him, he has this sloppy happy grin on his face... He is a 100#'s of happy..... he knows he is loved...
and I have finally learned to take my own words to heart, I am always telling the kids, just be happy we are here together, on this earth at the same time in each others lives that's what its all about, not what you have, what you don't have, its about who your with....about people simply loving you for who you are.... that is true happiness... my wish...is for everyone I know to find it, where ever you are, with what ever you have or don't, with who ever your with...and if at the moment your alone, never stop believing....its just around the corner...pick up the pace....

Do you have ice cubes in your underwear?

You do if you live in central New York this morning and you left your laundry on the line last night! As a matter a fact you got a block of ice not just a cube..... So this was the view out of the bedroom window this morning... I did a double take and turned around and got on the long underwear to go do chores this morning... GRRRRRRR.... to early for this stuff..... Then I cut up a zucchini to take to the chickens this morning. Put on my rubber boots and its still twilight as I head out the door, and in the back yard, I see this large animal and think, "Wow, that is one big ass deer..." But, then I realize it's one of the horses! "CRAP", turn around and yell in the house for Nate to get his boots on and butt out the door, the horses are out...



Pretty boy Pete is already across the field and headed for the road, and I really did not want to have to run so I took a shot in the dark and just yelled... "Hey, Petey...want your breakfast?" Next, thing I know I have this Draft horse barrelling down the field headed right for me.. I mean I could hear the thundering of his hooves and the tremors in the ground...I just stood there and said if he runs me down that's that, I'm toast.... But he swerved and couldn't wait to get in the gate for his sweet feed....Thank you, lord....(really) It could have been a mess... The fence is down, but I can fix that easy enough. So the horses are locked in the barn till Saturday, when I can work on the fence.



And this was in the front yard to greet me..... One huge branch in one of my willow's broke under the weight of the snow....


So I get to work, I am already tired, thinking about what I now have to do at home...my phone rings, its Evan, "Hi, darlin' are you make'n snow angels?" I had to laugh..."No, honey... I wish I had thought of that!" I'm still smiling.....

Dear Mom and Dad,

You ever get those never ending email questioners that ask you all sorts of crazy questions in an effort to "get" to know you better? Well I got one that I thought was blog worthy... Here are five statements that you answer and pass on so I am passing it on to you, they make you think and made me think hard.... OUCH.....

Dear Mom and Dad,

I am glad.....

I wish growing up I had known.....

I wouldn't have...

If I could change...

I really appreciate....

So here goes....

I am glad that you spanked me... Really, I am serious... I knew when I had done something wrong that warranted getting spanked... I always started crying before hand so you would take it easy on my behind (secretly I think you did, though you never let on). Sometimes I think because of it I have a better sense of right and wrong, consequences of my actions, repercussions to my spoken word, than some of my peers.

I wish growing up I had known how hurt you were by your own childhood, mom. You never let on... and like a jerk, I didn't catch on till I had my own kids. This is the one time I would want to go back and maybe do some of those mother/daughter moments that you never got to do with your own mom.

I wouldn't have... (this one is really hard) Sorry, mom and dad there isn't anything that I did that I would not do again,(even the bad stuff) I mean... it all made me the woman, mother, daughter, sister and auntie that I am today...

If I could change it would be that I kept singing publicly, I know you both feel I let my god given gift go... But that is not entirely true, there are two babies that listened to lullabies day and night and have grown up in a house so full of music that they both play several instruments and sing at the drop of a hat. So I never stopped singing, my audience changed that's all...still I wonder...

I really appreciate the grandparents you have become. Mom you said just the other day that you wish you could have given the kids more or financially help me put them through college. I wouldn't change one thing, you gave them the gift of your time. You have been the best hands on grandparents I could have ever hoped for. You taught them how to ride a horse, work with you at the farmers market, work on the farm, they have learned more from the two of you and have more wonderful memories that any amount of money could NEVER buy.... every child should be as lucky as my two...

I love you both,

Your daughter (only daughter) remember me?????? Your first born, the cute one.... The one that made you bald, dad.... ya, it's me... the one that just made your zucchini relish.... The one that gave you your "first" grandchild...(knew that one would get ya!)