Quiet Week

It was a quiet week at the ranch. Alarmingly so. It was so quiet it made me think about when Elaine and I were both retired. We spent a lot of time this past week with not much to do. The weather was nice enough for some outdoor projects, but it was still January, therefore working outside didn't always work.

I was able to take down all the exterior Christmas lights and put them away for the year. In previous years that task would take about an hour. This year with me being retired, we decided to go for it. We put lights in the trees, lights on the house, and lights on the barn. When I say we, I'm not sure that is accurate. Elaine ordered the lights from internet sites and told me where they go. I put them up. I feel safe stating that because I don't recall anyone climbing the biggest tree with me, and handing me strings of lights. In fairness, Elaine tells me she looked out the window occasionally, to make sure I was okay.

Knowing that if the lights went up, someday the lights would need to come back down. The Christmas lights (I refuse to call them holiday lights) on the state capitol building are taken down at the end of the National Western Stock Show. Elaine and I decided to follow that schedule and leave the lights up until the end of the stock show.

Here comes the quiet week part of the story. I took the entire week to take down and store the lights. Here comes the alarming part of the story that even scares me a little. I climbed the same tree to take down the lights. Elaine looked out of the same window to make sure I was okay. I was okay, I know this because Elaine told me again she was watching me.

What makes this story a little weird, is Elaine is only working part-time. Oh, she wants to work full-time, but there is simply not enough work for her to do. Do you remember a couple of presidents ago, the guy in charge was talking about putting people to work on "shovel-ready" jobs? Well, he was lying, there were no "shovel-ready" jobs. So here we are a decade or so later and the industry is still planning, designing, and permitting these jobs. Elaine doesn't have enough to do right now.

Elaine has never had a problem keeping herself busy, especially at home. She can play with her fiber projects, purge the house, move furniture, and look at me out the window. And then go draw a power pole

This past week might have been a taste of what is to come when she decides she has drawn her last power pole. When that day happens, I just don't see myself watching Westerns on the TV while she knits. I just don't think that describes the quiet weeks I'm going to look forward to.

I had better buy a yak or two quickly, or I am going to find myself outside hiding in a tree.

Love ya, God Bless, Buy yarn

Our crazy lives!

Mpnner