The beauty of it all

The first picture was a couple of nights ago, the second being early this morning.  The sunsets and sunrises have really been neat this winter.  They seem to be more so this year, or else I just have my head up on top where it should be.  Things look different up there!
On the serious side, there is so much of God's beauty to see and we don't always take advantage of it.  Carol and I like to take little side tours in the country (not so much now with the gas prices).  It is amazing what can be found if a person will just get off the interstate and take the 2- lanes.  I have heard people say that traveling across the state is really boring, not just Kansas, but other states.   The Interstates in this part of the country are boring to drive.  Flat and miles of not a whole lot of anything.  You can take some of the State or Federal highways that run parallel to I-state and see some neat things.  Still a lot of flat country,  but the small towns have some history, dreams, and a lot of Americana.  In the very NW corner of Kansas there is a area called the breaks.  Very rough country.  It is said horse thieves used to hide in the area. You can see why by looking at the pics.

You can go a few miles in any direction and it is as flat as a table-top.  30-some miles NE of this in SE Nebraska there is a place the locals call the Little Grand Canyon.  Very deep canyons and rough country.  You have got to get lost to find it, but it is there.  Some people may think I'm crazy for thinking there is beauty in this, but there is.  You know, God even put thorns on roses!  There is beauty wherever you look.

God Bless--johnnyb

Why?

Why, Why, Why do we press harder on a remote control when we know the batteries are getting weak?

Why do banks charge a fee due to insufficient funds when they already know you're broke?

Why is it that when someone tells you that there are one billion stars in the universe, you believe them but, if they tell you there is wet paint, you have to touch it to check?

Why do they use sterilized needles for lethal injections?

Why doesn't Tarzan have a beard?

Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?

Why did Kamikaze pilots wear helmets?

Whose cruel idea was it to put an "s" in the word "lisp"?

If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes?
Why is it that, no matter what color bubble bath you use, the bubbles are always white?

Is there ever a day that mattresses are not on sale?

Why do people constantly return to the refrigerator with hopes that something new to eat will have materialized?

Why do people run over a string a dozen times with their vacuum cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it, then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?

Why is it that no plastic bag will open from the first end you try?

How do those dead bugs get into enclosed light fixtures?

When we are in the supermarket and someone rams our ankle with a shopping cart, then apologizes for doing so, why do we say, "It's all right"? Well, it isn't all right, so why don't we say, "That really hurt, why don't you watch where you're going?"

Why is it that whenever you attempt to catch something that's falling off the table you always manage to knock something else over?

Why, in winter, do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer when we complained about the heat?

How come you never hear father-in-law jokes?

And my FAVORITE…
The statistics on sanity say that one out of every four persons is suffering from some sort of mental illness. Think of your three best friends.
If they're OK, then it's you.
 

**A day without a smile is like a day without sunshine! And a day without sunshine is, like,............. night.**

The morning report

Good Morning World.  We are coming to you today from beautiful downtown  *****, Kansas, and as I look out the window  it looks like all seven people plus four hunters from Colorado are up and about, or else they forgot to shut the lights off when they went to bed.  Our population sometimes will more than double or triple during pheasant and deer season.  Jumped clear up to almost 20 last month for a couple of days.  Now for the local weather--- Weather looks good for the day.  It is clear and calm out, at least I can see the rock on a string out back (if I turn on the porch light), and the rock is hanging straight down.  Temperatures today will not reach yesterdays high of 72.  Maybe 50.  This is good for the pheasant hunters as they said they may have to strip down to orange boxers for hunting clothes if it stayed in the 70's.  Oh well, to each his own.  I said I wouldn't point and laugh.  Looks like the sun is about to pop over the hill.  Always a good sign when that shows up!

Now for the local news:   Obituaries--I saw everybody in town yesterday, so nothing for this section.

Other news:  I noticed  a couple of sheep across the road a looking a little preggies.  I guess there won't be no virgin wool this year again.  Damn, I wish he would leave them sheep alone. He is so damn ugly. The ram, the ram!

County was working on the roads yesterday.  At least I think he was working on the roads.  He  kept going back and forth all afternoon, so I a ASSumed he was working the road.  Never know about them guys.  He may not have even had the blade down.

Saw some smoke down by the crick yesterday.  Too warm for a fire.  Musta had the still going or else Ol Leroy be smoking that ditchweed again.  If I see him today I  will be able to tell.   He gets real strange when he smokes that ditchweed. I notice an area of it had been cut this fall.  Nobody else touch that stuff. So he must have stocking up for the winter

Well that's about it for today, but before I turn you over to the regularly scheduled dead air, I would like to leave you with a thought for the day---"It's all shits and giggles until somebody giggles and shits".
johnnyb

Bravery

My advice for the day--johnnyb

Projects and old buildings

I just got tired of looking at the picture of snow and this one just struck me as good for now.  I think this house is on my profile picture if you can enlarge it.  I don't know the age of the house, but it would be over 100 years old.  Hasn't been lived in for 25 or 30 years.   Just falling down.  It is just down the hill from our place.  Every time I walk by it, I just wish that I could have gotten hold of it before it started falling in.  It is a shame to see it this way.  Structurally, it will stand for a long time.  Roof is gone.  Floors are gone.  It would take a fortune to do, but I don't think it would   be impossible.  There are a lot of big old houses around the country.  Somebody's dream that faded mostly from the thirty's.  All it can be for me is a dream anymore.  Too old to tackle something like that and not near enough cash!

I have enough projects to do that will keep me occupied and out of trouble.  A friend gave us some bricks from and old schoolhouse.  I went and got them yesterday.  A couple of hundred of them.  Enough to do what I want to do.  We will be putting a wood stove in the sleeping cabin and the bricks will be used for that project.  I have the old chicken house full of re-purposed lumber.  Need to get it out and the building fixed up so we can get some chickens in the spring.  Need to finish my workshop in the back of the garage so I can get all my "stuff" out of a borrowed trailer in case it is needed.  The only bad thing about being retired  is you never get a day off.

Thought for the day (and I have used this before, so it isn't Alzheimers....yet) is : Go ahead and take that wooden nickel.  It's probably worth more than our regular money.

God Bless all---johnnyb

Welcome

I would like you all to meet my good friend the Gypsy Traveler at Prairie Pleasures and Simple Treasures.  We just got her going this morning.   She has just put an hello on for now, but will be adding more.  Stop by and say hello.

First Ramblings of the Year

Spring is sprung,
Fall has fell.
Winter has come,
and it is colder than ......usual!

I don't know where that come from, I thought I'd throw it in anyway.  Actually the weather has not been out of line cold.  The old year blew away like there were no tomorrow.  Sustaining winds 40-50 mph as forecast, with gusts a lot higher.  At 3 PM Saturday, the temperature was 50 degrees with high winds.  By 4 PM it was 34 degrees with higher wind and sleet.  Miserable as all "billy hell".  We just decided to stay in and greet the New Year in the warmth of the stove.  Neither one of us made it. The only ball that fell around here was eyeballs.  when I was young and knew it all, the big deal was to see how much I could drink and still be conscious at midnite.  Now the big deal is to see how much of a "power nap" it takes to stay conscious until midnite!  Funny how priorities change. I had meant to get a bottle of wine for us to toast us making it to the end of the year still kicking, but I had forgot to put it on the shopping list.  Talk about priorities!  Living 15-20 miles from somewhere and hurricane force winds put any idea aside of  any last minute shopping trip.  But it didn't make difference as we were both checking out the inside of our eyelids by midnite. 

At least the days are lengthening out.  A whole 2 or 3 minutes!  I mean, doesn't that really put a reverse on the seasonal depression.  Another week of this and my spirits are going to be so high I won't be able to stand myself,  let alone the wife being able to live with me.  Oh hell, its just the first of the year not the first of spring.  Bring on the anti-anxiety meds.  I don't know if I can handle it.   And they keep sending more seed catalogs!  I guess I'll just have order some seeds, and just sit and stare at them for a couple of months.

Actually this winter has been fairly busy and is moving right on.  There a lot of projects on all the burners, so on warm days I can get started on them.  Looking forward to all of the projects.  I will talk about them later.  I need to do some more R & D and F & R (foraging and requisition). 

Have a good one.  And if you can't have good one,  at least make the best of it and "keep on keepin' on"---johnnyb