BARNEY AND THELMA LOU

After a try with Kindle, I was totally dissatisfied - quality plus constant disconnect from wifi. So I "extended" my ATT plan for another two years (we've always had ATT) and got a little discount on an iPad. Just arrived Tuesday and I've been playing with it, downloading some of the apps I have on my iPhone. I've discovered that iMessage on it isn't the same as Message on the iPhone. It's like text mobile to mobile (and no data charge, but we have unlimited texting on our phones), but the receiver must also have iMessage turned on. I can send iMessages to a few people, but they either have iPhones and/or iMessage activated. This I learned after surfing and letting this thought process seep in for a while. Overnight. A while is what it takes sometimes for Brain to Kick In, as Mr. C used to say. "Come on Brain..." 

Kitties linger around the back door in this rainy weather and I give them a treat of canned food just about every day. They have food and water in the garage and their own private entrance. Paul said Barney runs full speed and zooms through the pet door like it wasn't even there - he was slowest learning how to use it, too. So glad we decided to keep Thelma - she's a sweetheart and I'm so sorry for someone else's loss, or the fact they just couldn't keep her. She found a good home here. She's gained weight and is so loving - loves to have her stomach rubbed which is not usual for a cat. Barney's just a big ol' yellow fluff ball.

Monday Paul and I put blinds up in our bedroom and the office. I've shortened the ones in the bedroom - that's a job - I'm always afraid I'll cut off too much, shorten them too much. I take out one slat at a time - twelve in each set of blinds. Enough to make another entire set... Surely there's a use for slats. An app for that...

Went to book club - The Glass Menagerie. As Betty says, "We're here to learn something every time." And I do, every time. I enjoyed the play - not always my favorite genre to read, but there were only four characters so it wasn't hard to keep them straight. 

When I got home, I asked Paul if he'd eaten - he had - some BBQ left from last night. "But I couldn't find the slaw!" Well, I had to confess - there was an old container and the new one sitting out (that he'd made a special trip to town to buy!) and about the time I dumped the contents into the compost bucket, I realized it wasn't the old, but the new... I didn't say anything, just went by the grocery today and got some more. I figured he'd have BBQ while I was gone, but I was hoping I'd get home with it before I had to fess up. He usually can't find anything in the fridge anyway, but it really wasn't there this time.

Barney and Thelma really get along so well. They cuddle, groom and play together. These were made outside the kitchen window this week. You can hardly see Thelma, lower left - very good camouflage. Same for Barney when he's on the ground especially last fall when the leaves were falling gold.

 My good strawberries I got Monday.

 Grilled cheese and turkey, walnuts, strawberries.

Our bedroom blinds. Makes the room look more finished.

Also the office. These still need to be shortened. Now I'm ready to do the other seven windows. The double windows by the dining table will be replaced by French doors once the patio is built. I plan to have doors with blinds between glass, like the back door.

My new techy toy. So great for old eyes! I downloaded our February book club book on iBooks (The Virginian by Owen Wister - a free book). It'll be nice to see it on here. I also requested and got an old book from another of the regional libraries Miss Buncle's Book by D. A. Stevenson. Didn't know it was such an old book - cloth bound, yellowed to the point of near brittleness. I still love books in my hands.

Thelma has found the top of my truck. She's such a pretty baby, so fluffy. I remember Bitty's fur as impossibly hard to keep brushed, but Bitty didn't like being handled. Thelma has no problem with that.

Tonight is Twentieth Century Club meeting at Fredda's - it's about 10 miles from here, past Bren's, past Spring Hill Church a bit. She's our librarian and is retiring January 23, and a few days after that is having knee surgery. Great way to start retirement. She's been at Iuka Library 34 years. I always enjoyed seeing articles in the Vidette we got while living in Wynne. She always had something educational and/or fun going on. I told Jo I'd like to have the meeting at my house next month. I'm the hostess - providing food and door prize - and would like to share our house and fruits of our labors with others! I have to clean house eventually (ha) and it would be easier than taking my planned taco soup in a Crock Pot to the library! We meet next month on Valentine's Day, so the "decor" should be easy. Dollar Tree visit coming soon.

I took these from my truck window when I pulled into the carport. Pretty evident that Barney and Thelma love each other. (Now, I'm calling Thelma a she - I have no idea. I guess it's the long hair. If she isn't a Thelma, then it just is what it is.  If Thelma is a tom, then he's been de-tommed.)