Just Stuff

I guess that I'm getting a little lax with my blogging. It just seems like time is zooming by lately. The sad part is that I'm not keeping very busy although I don't seem to have time for much stuff.
Because of a extremely fertile growing season the yard is in constant need of attention. I've done a little (very little) of the yard work but kept things pretty well under control by supervising the highly skilled "Yard Maintenance Crew" (Jo). Unlike so many of the surrounding areas, we do need to water the flower garden regularly. It's a small price to pay to have a yard filled with lovely flowers verses the devastation of the recent flooding. I did join a group from our church a few weekends ago to assist members of a church, St Johns in Avoca, clean up (rip out) their basement which had, at one point, contained almost six feet of water. (At one point the entire town was under about two feet of flood water) It was really refreshing to see a group of strangers pitching in to help those in need. Almost without a word, everyone took a position, cheerfully dug (literally) in and went about their tasks. In about four hours the basement was stripped, the remaining water and sludge was being pumped out and the workers, many were strangers earlier but had become friends by noon, joined each other in a different kind of digging. Digging into a "pot luck" lunch provided by church members as well as by some of the volunteers. For a short time that Saturday morning the joy of fellowship overshadowed the sadness of the situation. After that experience, I find myself feeling thankful that I'm part of this caring community and a little more secure knowing I'm part of that same community.
On a lighter note, last Sunday we joined in a completely different kind of fellowship. JoAnne and I joined Sally and Uncas as their new dachshund puppy, Sammy, met, for the first time, his "cousins" Tina and Snoopy, Derek and Jeanna's dachshunds. We picked a neutral site at a State Park in Minnesota for the meeting. The older dogs accepted Sammy and tolerated his constant nagging to play a little more. All went well as the exuberant puppy wore himself out while the humans just relaxed watching (and photographing) the animal antics. I took some videos that will probably only be shared with close relatives (Grandmas). After the pixels settle I'll swipe a pic or two from Jo or Sally to post here.
Today I want to include a couple of random photos from the past week.

The Fertile Ground.
Top Left: Yard Maintenance Crew at work.
Top Right: Plants are so eager to take root that they can't wait for soil bags to be opened.
Bottom Left: Area is so fertile that flowers even grow out of concrete.
Bottom Right: Even our neighbors have a dog growing out of their driveway.

Work Day at St Johns, Avoca, Wisconsin.

View from Bluffs State Park where doggie play date took place.

One of those scenes that I usually pass up and regret later.
This time, I turned around, went back and shot a few photos
of these two couples fishing on the Mississippi backwaters.