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| Each year our church has a day for the people in the community to come out and enjoy games/prizes, petting zoo, lots of free food, and a candy drop. Some pics. 
Some of the animals....I would love to have one of these, but hubby says one cat is enough. 
The highlight is the candy that falls from the sky. 
My brother Ray, accompanied the pilot and threw the candy out of the helicopter. | | |
| Yesterday (Good Friday) our daughter, Jalene and I were going some place in her little Jetta and as we were heading around the curve close to Indiantown Mennonite Church we heard a popping sound and than that all too familiar, hissing sound, like air escaping from a tire….rapidly !!! We glided in at the Church to survey the damage. Sure enough the back tire was flat. No problem, I have changed tires before. So we opened the trunk and got everything out that was needed for the job, all except where was the jack ?? No jack, you mean there is NO jack !!! I felt my frustration rising. What to do? Raymond was working on a job up state and Merlin was at the mountains. So I went to the nearest neighbor hoping they would have a jack to borrow or could give us a lift home. But no one was home. I went back to the car and told Jalene, we will just need to walk home. She said that would take to long: to which I replied, “We have no other option”. At least that is what I thought, but she had other ideas. As I started collecting my purse and coat from the car, I looked up, and much to my chagrin I saw her out by the road with her thumb out!!! She sure wasn’t going to walk home! I was mortified that she even thought of hitchhiking. Before I had a chance to yell at her, to stop this instant, it isn’t safe, and give many more motherly admonitions, etc…….a car stopped. It was with great reluctance that I went over to the car, but the elderly driver looked decent with a suit, tie and briefcase in the back seat. He offered to take us home and seemed nice enough, which he turned out to be. Interestingly he was very succinct in his little speech about “women” hitchhikers and the dangers involved. What was I to say? I agreed with him, than blamed the “hitchhiking” thing on Jalene. Needless to say I was thankful for his graciousness and the ride home. That was the first time I participated in any kind of hitchhiking and I hope the last !!!! | | |
| I suppose an update is way overdue. We haven’t had any or been involved with any equipment mishaps lately, mostly due to the fact hubby has very little work. Winters are always slow, compounded with the recession, work is practically nil. We had no work for Merlin so he decided this would be a good time to take in a term at Elnora Bible Institute (BMA) in Indiana. We will miss him (except for all the laundry) especially his strong back for carrying wood in for our woodstove. That is the least favorite job, but we are so-o-o thankful for the savings it generates on our fuel bill. We are especially grateful this winter with so many cold days in succession. Early one morning in Mid-January I trotted out our concrete driveway for the newspaper. It is early and still dark, so no one can see what I am wearing when I make my little trip out to get the ticket that keeps us informed of the world outside the little metropolis of Clay, PA. I usually am still in my nightie and my hair uncombed when I make this trek. This particular morning I didn’t think there was ice on the drive, but much to my surprise there was!! I flipped backwards and cracked my head on the concrete and twisted my left knee, and unable to get up. Hubby was oblivious to what happened, but Merlin thought he heard me crying in his front bedroom. I lady happened to be passing by, and came to a screeching halt, when she saw this chubby nightie clad woman lying by the side of the road crying! I was half knocked out, but thankfully I had enough presence of mind to refuse her insistence to call an ambulance. As if this wasn’t embarrassing enough, calling an ambulance would have been worse. I think I would have passed out just from embarrassment if she would have. She managed to get me in the house, where I did pass out completely for a period of time. Needless to say I hobbled around with a cane for a few days, because of my knee and I had a headache for a few days, but all is well. I suppose I had a small concussion, but never saw a doctor. About a month later my brother jumped off a tow motor, slipped and tore a leg muscle. And one of his pastors slipped in the garage and injured himself. Merlin’s solution to this phenomenon of “old” people falling is that it should be mandatory that every one over age 45 walks with a walker!!! | | |
| Time for an update. It seems like all my updates are about mishaps with equipment, trucks, etc. Yesterday was another one. When us ladies have a mishap, it may be burned food or maybe having to do some major ripping on an article of clothing we sewed wrong. But when the men have mishaps it is major, or so it seems to me. Yesterday I had a call from a farmer whose barn floor collpased under the weight of a truck. (The farm just so happens to be the farm I grew up on.) They called Hagy towing service since they have trucks with the capacity to tow large trucks. But he said he didn't have enough leverage and power to pull it out on his own. So they called to see if hubby could help with the track-hoe.  
I asked the driver of the truck if he ever backed into this barn before and he said he did, many times. I also asked him if it didn't scare him when the floor went down. No, of course not. I thought to myself, yeah right, you are sitting in your truck and the barn floor collapses and you weren't the the least bit scared. The driver was a 22 year old. I suppose nothing scares 22 year old guys, or either they won't admit it. 
Truck is out and no one was hurt. One little girl who was watching, exclaimed, "That made me tense!" | | |
| Some days things just don't go as you planned, but we are so thankful no one was hurt or that it wasn't worse. The guys are puting in a sewer system and Raymond was on a mound of dirt, when he got to close to the edge. 
A crane had to be called to put the backhoe right side up again. You can see the crane rope on this picture. 
All seems okay, when he started it again. 
Back to work. 
Merlin seemed more worked up other this than Raymond. | | |
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