Good-bye April ALMOST

Day 182, "Every picture has a story(or 2 or more),

A day for Dave.  I spent much more time with Dave than any of my siblings.  We played together, worked together and also worked together trying to get out of work if you understand!  A few of the many many memories are:

• Trying to finish the fall plowing so that we could go with Dad to the Minnesota State Fair.  We finished up on Jim's land with the lights on late at night.  We left the next morning with Dad for the fair.  Keep in mind that our MOO was to pull the plows out of the ground when the sun disappeared.  Even if we were at the far end of the field, end of day!
• Making guns out of wood using the vise and the drill press.  These guns were then used to play cops and robbers as we ran from the barn to the shop to the bins to the corn crib to the granary. Of course the good guys always won.
• Sitting in the big red (our truck) talking and eating chokecherries waiting for the combine hopper to fill.  At the perfect moment I would head out with bare feet across the field heeding NOT the thistles.  Dave would wait in the truck and then drive up so we could empty the hopper into the truck.  At the end of the day our mouths would be chalky and blue/red from the berries but we would ignore that as we gathered towel and soap and headed up to Lake Tewaukon on the big and little bike.  IF there was still day light it would be "no hands' from the farm to the lake.
• Playing ball with the corn crib as a back stop.  When possible, Richy would come to play with us.  
• Playing ball in the hay barn with a ball and using a 5 gallon pail which we mounted on the wall.
• Filling the water tank for the cows.  I probably can not count the times we forgot and the water spilled out into the pen only to be scooped out by one or both of us.  Really, how can you expect boys to remember the water is on as they play cops and robbers or other fun games?
• Doing fall plowing and waiting for Mom to put the dish towel on the barn door so we could come home for lunch.
• Frantically putting out the fire in the plowed rye field before the wind took it across the creek and lite Bert's wheat field on fire!
• Again, frantically getting the fire out before it reached the stubble field where the combine sat.  Just a bit of bad luck and the combine would have been history.
• Waiting and waiting for the sun to disappear so we could lift our plows out of the ground and head home.
• Waking up to hear rain on the roof.  How can we avoid work today?
• Playing all day long in the pasture where the creek meandered through.  As the summer wore on the creek had these pools of water that were full of mysteries!
• Shooting black birds in the trees behind the shop and also gophers in Bert's pasture.  The cats often got a nice meal.  Sometimes Dad would take us in the car and we would shot gophers in Obert's pasture.  Dave would shot out of the back passenger window and I out of the driver side back window.  To get the gophers to peak out of their holes you had to be quiet and then use a soft whistle!
• Setting up the table leaves in a V and then setting empty shells to knock down with marbles.
• Of course we probably spent more time picking rocks than any other work.  I never figured out how fields can grow rocks almost better than wheat.
• One can not forget picking weeds in the rows of small trees.  One should know that the weeds grew much faster than the trees.  By the time we were finished with a row we almost had to start at the other end again.  I am guessing the rows were two hundreds yards long.  Later those trees were a haven for pheasants in the fall.  (a note, Dad never bought us shotguns for hunting)  I will not get into detail about Joan not wanting to pull weeds so she decided to go to the house for a drink of water.  What she found---stays in the family!!!
• I could, for sure, make this list a lot longer but will stop for now.
• I would be remiss if I did not mention how talented Dave is.  From being a master woodcrafter to overhauling and restoring vehicles he pretty much does it all.  I might also add designing an addition to his house that ended up bigger than the original house AND building it all.  With all the skills he has, kind of reminds me of Dad.
• So my ramblings go on about my siblings whom I am so proud of.  Tomorrow, the baby of the family Helen.  

Terry and I spent a quiet weekend.  I had planned, for some time, to mount a TV in the guest bedroom.  I finally got to it only to find that it was not possible with the mount we purchased.  So it is back to Costco.  Not the TV but the mount.

Tennis will be light this week and perhaps until we leave.  Several of the guys I usually play with are out of town.

Terry has one appt today and that is about it.

Our weather is heating up a bit.  It is supposed to be high 80s most of the week.  That makes for nice swims as I try to jump in the pool 2 or 3 times a day.  I know, tough life it is!

I am in the middle of my FP and enjoying it a LOT.  As I sip my last cup I may retire to the Lani and think about the good old days, maybe!