April 14, 2011. Canyon Lake, Texas. Starting into Business.

It was all her idea.  Linda and her husband purchased a summer home in Maine.  She was born and raised there, still had relatives there, and wanted her two children to get to know Maine.   But there was a problem.   Linda wanted to re-decorate while husband Bill thought it looked just fine.   Now Linda was a smart lady.  She figured out that if she earned the money,  Bill would be happy.  Linda had a good friend Robin who was a real estate agent, and after discussions with Robin, Linda calculated that if she sold four houses a year, her decorating would be covered in any given year.

Next step for Linda was to take me for lunch, bringing along the papers to sign to register for the real estate course.  After a long conversation and much frivolity over a liter of wine,  we both filled in our application, along with the stamped envelope which she mailed.  Linda would never have taken the course by herself, but as I had just completed graduate school, she knew I was free to take the course during the day, and she knew I could get to the University of Maryland.  So off we went to take the course, not to have a career but more to humor a good friend.

Next step was interviewing.  But that is another story.

April 13, 2011. Double D Ranch, Harper, Texas. Country Life.

It is different, living in the country.  Today, the UPS was to deliver a package to us at the ranch.  This is not an easy thing to do.  Firstly, the driver must find us on this obscure county road, and secondly, as we live in the house on top of the hill, we must stay down below in the ranch house awaiting his arrival.   Ken knew all the pitfalls, but wanted to check out the system.

By nine o'clock we are down at the ranch house.  The computer tracking is invaluable as we knew the package was to be delivered today and we wanted to be busy.  I am happy to report, the system worked beautifully.  I took my last two magazines down with me, also  asked Suzanne for a couple of chores while waiting, so I was productive the whole time.

After lunch, which we stole from the freezer and ate by the fire-pit, the driver drove up.  He commented that it was the first time he had delivered to our place, which was true.  Now that we know to trust the system, we might have more packages delivered to the ranch.  The driver commented that he knows every residence on his route and that he will deliver before two o'clock.   It is different in the country.  He also called me by name!!

April 12, 2011. Harper, Texas. A Quiet Day.

It was a beautiful day.  Clear blue skies and a light breeze, 75 degrees F.  Perfect weather.    Reading all morning while I wait for the electrician Pat to arrive still makes me uneasy.  There must be a list of tasks to turn to.   But now I am down to reading the last  three periodicals.  Then I finally can turn to my Kindle.  Pat is ready to begin, when he has the time.

The past few days I have walked from the Top House to the ranch, late in the afternoon to enjoy the cooler evening.  I hear birds all around me but never see a thing.  The ground is as hard as stone and even thought the rains fell in the middle of the night Monday, the grass is still brown and we are required to feed the cattle.    It feels as dry as Arizona.

Loren our builder came out this afternoon late, to give us advice.  A small building, formerly used as a sewing room by the former owner, has been used by the girls as a play room.  It is an ugly small structure and even though we had it painted, it is still an ugly small structure.  I had noted the last few times  that the girls were not using the play room, so asked Suzanne about moving it and turning it into a bunk house.   She thought it a good idea.  Loren was here to tell us if it was worth the effort.

The result?  "Give it away and buy a bigger building that will house four sets of bunks", said Loren.   Now we must check prices.   It seems that nothing is ever really simple.

April 11, 2011. Double D Ranch, Texas. Catching Up.

I have been catching up even since we arrived in Texas.  Our service sent our mail here,  which included all  the mail since the beginning of December.  That's a lot of mail.   It was fun reading the Christmas cards.  Time is slower in April than in December, so having the time to read and re-read and savor was a luxury.

But the magazines are another thing.  I have been dutifully reading since we arrived, trying to catch up with the periodicals, but I'm not finished yet.   My system is the put them in order, with the same magazines together and the topics together.  Then I arrange them in reverse order, with the most current on the top of the pile.   Ken just stacks them up and reads whatever is on top.   Not me.  First I organize, then I read in order.   I'm beginning to hate weekly magazines.

The end is in sight.  I am catching up.

April 10, 2011. Double D Ranch, Harper, Texas. Roll Ups.

On the way to Joyce and Robbie's house,  Ken asked me what we were having for dinner.   Usually Joyce invites us for a specific meal and tells us what she has prepared, but tonight, even though she told me what we were eating, I did not know what she meant.  I told Ken that we were eating roll-ups, but as I did not know what she meant by roll-ups, it would be a mystery meal.

Every part of the country has there own  customs.  It takes awhile to figure out all the differences.  Sunday evening is a time when a light meal is served.  Many people go out to a big meal after church, so the evening meal is not a proper large dinner.  Joyce and Robbie often eat roll-ups, which is Polish sausage with dark break around it and served with mustard.  Kind of an ethnic hot dog.   Potato chips and Frito's accompany the roll-ups.  Cinnamon rolls for dessert.

Great food.  Great company.  Now I know all about roll-ups.

April 9, 2011. Double D Ranch, Harper, Texas. A Feast.

The dinner was superb.   Everything about it was remarkable.  It was served at home, in the middle of the week, where in a family of busy people the evening meal would be pleasant but not fancy.  But on Thursday evening, it was a memorable meal.

The food was wonderful.  Gumbo prepared by Suzanne.  She didn't start out a good cook.  In fact her grandmother suggested to David that marrying Suzanne may be a problem because she appeared to have no wifely skills, but she has acquired them.  She is an excellent cook, as this gumbo shows.  For dessert we ate pie, made by Suzanne with the help of Allison and Samantha.  Two choices for pie too.

The twins also made fancy the dining table,  using napkin holders and name cards at each place.  The scene was festive, as was the meal.  Sarah and Abigail cleared the dishes and served the dessert, both done competently and quietly.

Now, truth be told, I invited ourselves to dinner, suggesting to Suzanne we stop by for dinner on our way to the ranch from the lake.  She took it upon herself to turn a meal into a memory.   We are grateful.

April 8, 2011. Double D Ranch, Texas. An April Fool's Joke.

Allison's teacher suggested the joke.  Both girls thought it a good one but first wanted permission from their Mother, as they had been told not to play those games.  The teacher felt sure their Mother would agree to the switch, so the game began.  Allison and Samantha are identical twins and are in the third grade,  but as they always wear different clothes and  are in different classes at school, most people think they can tell them apart, but truth be told, even their grandfather can't tell them apart, especially if apart.

The girls switched classes.  Only the one teacher at school was aware of the joke.   Both girls played their new part well.  It was not until well after lunch that one or two of their good friends began to figure out that something was amiss.  By two o'clock they confessed and returned to their own classroom, amidst great laughter.  Even the head of the Elementary school, who thought she knew the girls apart, was fooled.  She agreed.  It was the best joke of the day on that April Fool's Day at St George's School but she urged them not to try the same joke next year!!  "I can only be fooled once", she said.