Groceries, $100

 Photo of the day:

 

This is just ONE of our beautiful great grands. this is Oliver Jack, son of Josh and Megan. Ollie is walking around now and talking up a breeze. I heard him ask one of his cousins once, "Now what is your name?"  Asked as clear as a bell.

NOW for today:

It was late, but we needed something from the grocery store. I volunteered to head out and pick up the short list.  I don’t know about everyone else, but we have a place for our continuing list of needs from the grocery store.  Tonight it was a short list. My girl likes vitamins and supplements. Not sure if you must sift thru the vitamin and supplements aisle or not, but that is like an Easter Egg hunt.  Well tonight I could not find the two she wanted, I ran the gambit 3 times could not find them. I did get the rest of the list (plus a little more of course, )

Do you realize I carried everything I bought into the house in one load, the cost for that load was a little over $100. Shucks, 2 and a half pounds of Coffee was about $19. I think I will get ‘Chock Full of Nuts coffee next time, it was $16 for 2 ½ pounds.  BTW does anyone out there use Chock Full Of Nuts?

On line the big grocery stores said they had to increase prices because of Tariffs. That is common sense. I ran two businesses in my lifetime.  It is a fact, if wholesale prices go up so must your prices. To keep a business viable your prices MUST go up, that is simple common sense. Without a reasonable profit margin, a business goes broke.

I am not griping (much) but when you are old you tend to LOOK BACK and say ,’Our grocery bill for a week now is over twice my total income for a month when we got married.’

I know things have changed, but even YOU say, wow, two years ago things cost much less.

Sherry and I Thank God we can still afford to buy groceries without worrying, ‘will the check clear the bank.’

Hey back to my life, I took time to sit and read during the day. Sherry sat in our favorite swing in the picnic area and talked an hour today. Life is good, especially when you look over at a beautiful wife.

Thank you guys for some sweet comments, and thanks to family and friends who read and do not comment.

I look forward to reading stuff here and spending time thinking of you and your lives.

Nite Shipslog

PS

The BEST to who read, and I appreciate you taking the time to stop by.

Sgt Ding Dong

 Photo of the day:

 

The Bow of an LST opens and you exit (drive out) onto a beach.

So for today:

As a young Marine, I was promoted to Corporal.  Until this  day a Marine is considered a ground pounder and rifleman, no matter his job. MEANING: if you are a cook, radio operator, clerk, computer operator (etc.) you can still be called on grab that rifle (which had better be clean and ready) shoulder that pack and hit the dirt.

Well, I was chosen to train as a radio relay operator. I finally earned a radio truck and a generator trailer. I had a two man crew. Our job was to set up antennas in remote territory between the front lines and the command post. My buddy Corporal Dallas Fletcher was picked for the same MOS (Job description) He had his own truck also.

 

Fortunately in 1956 I was never in a combat situation. BUT one day Master Sgt Bell (the man Dallas called Ding Dong, behind his back of course) called me in. “Darnell we have received orders to Turkey for NATO operations. You are my educated man, you have a GED. ;-0 You will load the ship, we will depart Morehead City on the ship, LST1167 the Westchester County.. You will load all our trucks, trailers and jeeps. Let me tell you something, My jeep better be the first thing off that ship! Remember a rule, 'Last thing on is the first thing off,' Got that?”

I looked at him and said, “No, I don’ understand, I ain’t never been on a ship, much less loaded one!”

“You will learn! Now get out of here and start planning, I have work to do!”

I was one scared 17 year old boy,  but like everything else in life we all take it as it comes. I met with senior Marines who had made cruises and learned a lot. And yep, Sgt Bell’s jeep was the first thing off when we landed in Turkey. . LOL

ALL of us have faced things that floored us. It might have been a job assignment, a doctor’s report, a pregnancy, a disappointed marriage, the loss of a loved one, or a million other life shattering things. ………We have learned…….. or will learn, JUST FACE IT! (Prayer also helps!) ………..

It is very possible you have faced more than I ever have. Both our sons have SUFFERED DIVORCES it hurt them of course. I have no idea if they know how much their parents suffered, just seeing them suffer.

If your children made it thru their early life without getting into drugs, you will never know how blessed you are.  I thought in my 80’s that my only sorrows would be deaths of loved ones. Boy oh boy, was I ever simple minded.  My friends, I say this with all the love I can muster, NO ONE knows the pain you can feel until the time someone you admired and loved dearly, allows Drugs to ruin their life and that of others…….IT HAPPENS!

Knowing our Lord, and having friends who mention you in prayer helps a lot!

Nite Shipslog

Repeat PS: God has been very good to me. I am a sorry Christian, but HE gave me THE GIRL HE knew I would need to keep me straight. Dumb boys, need a God who cares.  LOL

Trash

 Photo of the day:

 

So for today:

Have you noticed you have more trash lately?  We have become a throw away and replacement society, methinks. At one time we returned our milk and soft drink bottles to be washed and we used. Shucks we kids even found enough coke and pepsi bottles to return to the grocer for the 2 cents deposit to get some candy bars. When we lived in town, Mama always put the washed milk bottles back on the porch for the milkman to pick up.

For many years families I knew had an old 50 gal drum where they burned the burnable trash.

Even the cities burned what trash they could before burying the remains.

Do you have an opinion of how WE as a country should take care of our waste? Today most counties bury the city garbage. They line the ground with plastic sheeting at times before covering the waste.  In Florida we make small mountains of dirt covered trash.

I honestly worry about that getting down into the water table over the years,  Some countries take the trash out in barges and dump it at sea. There was a period 0f times cities tried burning trash and using the heat to turn turbines to create electricity, not sure how well that worked.

What does your city or county with the tons of trash?

Any ideas? Do you have more garbage than you did 4 years ago?

Nite Shipslog

PS.

Thanks to all of you that read here. We enjoy comments and appreciate them. You guys are creative. It is great to have friends that tolerate me!  

Today, Celebrating Ben’s Birthday

 Photo of the day:

 

So for today:

Ben when he was starting to walk, wow, 42 years ago!

We celebrate several birthdays.  We have 2 single parents among our Grand kids and Sherry likes to do something special for them on their special days. Our Ben is 43 now. We had Corey for many years, we were not blood kin, but came into the family when J Jr married Carol.  He was a little darling and we considered him ours. But he passed a couple years back, so Ben is our oldest and He is JJr’s son. He was the guest of honor at Logan’s Steak House along with his sweet daughter Elsie who prefers to be called Elle at present.

Sherry said we had 20 present and enjoyed a great time. It is late, My beautiful wife is already in the bed and I got my kisses before she is off to dream land.

I will hand 2 small mini blinds tomorrow and the job will be complete.  JJ will move in soon I hope. Although I think all is complete, everything needs to be used to make sure no hidden glitch shows up.  It has been a tough 4 or 5 months, not sure the time. BUT IT IS DONE.

I promised my sweetheart I won’t tackle anymore BIG projects at HER  age.(Written with a smile !)  Of course I reserve the right to decide what is big or not. LOL

Thanks for all the nice comments.  You guys are the BEST.

 

Nite Shipslog

God is SMART!

Photo of the day:

 

 Above., THAT DAY!

      Our 50th anniversary and she is still  beautiful

So for today:

I have enjoyed my sweetheart so much during this time of my work on the apartment.  We have taken some SWEET time over the second cup of coffee.   Then many days we have enjoyed an hour or so in the picnic area in the swing. I have told he at least a million times of the nights (after I lost my license and before the USMC) how I felt leaving her house at 129 Hawthorne st, after a date.

(Yes I lost my driver’s license after rolling my beautiful ’48 Chevy one night (Single car accident, stupid driving) after taking her, then taking Martha (Vondale’s date) home, and on the way to drop Vonnie off, from the double date).

Anyway, with no car, we would sit on her front porch and smooch, her kisses sent this 16 yr old kid to heaven.  I lived about ¾ mile from her, and I FLOATED  down the hill, up the hill, to a path across the RR tracks and a couple streets to my home. Her kisses put me in another world.

Funny, and for you young folks,  her kisses still send this old man to heaven.  After many years, probably 70, since the first kiss, her kisses are the BEST!!  Just thought I would let you Kids ( not even 70 yet), Know, that love can last.  LOL

Nite Shipslog

PS: God has been very good to me. I am a sorry Christian, but HE gave me a girl HE knew I would need to keep me straight. Dumb boys, need a good God who cares.  LOL

A saying in my neck of the woods is so danged true:

She still yanks my chain!

Lye Soap

 Photo of the day:

 

We saw Goats while driving the "Highway to the Sun" in Montana

So for today:

I promised the lyrics of Grandma’s Lye Soap, here it is….

 

GRANDMA'S LYE SOAP
(John Standley and Art Thorson)

Do you remember Grandma's LyeSoap?
Good for everything, everything in the home
And the secret was in the scrubbin'
It wouldn't suds; It wouldn't foam.

Mrs. O'Mally, Down in the valley
Suffered from ulcers, I understand
She swallowed a cake, of Grandma's LyeSoap
Now she's got the cleanest ulcers in the land!

Little Herman and Brother Thurman
Had an aversion to washing their ears
Grandma scrubbed them with the LyeSoap
And they haven't heard a word in years.

So sing right out for grandma's LyeSoap
Good for everything in the home
And the secret was in the scrubbin'
'Cause it didn't suds or foam.

So sing right out for Gramdma's LyeSoap
(Sing it loud and clear)
Good for everything, everything in the place
The pots and kettles, the dirty dishes
And for the hands and for the face.

The end!

I remember mama started using Rinso in the 1940s and I had a ball in my tin tub bath with Ivory  because it would float.

Nite Shipslog

PS.

Thanks to all of you that read here. We enjoy comments and appreciate them. It is great to have friends that tolerate you!  

A bar of Hand soap? anyone?

 Photo of the day:

 

So for today:

Thank the Lord as far as I know I have no medical issues except my hearing. I can hear, mostly one on one, but background noise still eats at my nerves.  Most likely, if you wear hearing aids, you probably know what I am talking about.  I have lived with the saying for years from my sons, ‘Dad hears what he wants to hear!’  I hate to admit it, but I guess in reality that is a fair statement. Meaning, I can ensure I heard correctly by repeating it to the speaker.  I just do not think Of it at the time.

I am sorta dogmatic in my approach to health.  Since I have no med issues, I figure if I eat well with reasonable portions, I will remain healthy.  I do not take supplements to boost any particular facet of my body. Sherry gives me ONE pill, a one a day vitamin (for seniors). I am sarcastic I know, but what is the big deal about senior vitamins NOT just old simple, ‘ONE-A-DAY VITAMIN, that I have heard of all my life;

One thing most folks know about me, I DO not give medical advice because my doctor once said to me after I dropped my Cholesterol pill he had prescribed., “YOU ARE NO DOCTA!!  Most of the time he likes to see me because he can just visit and he works on his other patients on the computer as me talk, methinks.  But he did agree with me about the pill I stopped and said keep eating that oatmeal you seem to be doing swell w/o the meds.

In my childhood I looked forward to hog killing time. LOL I grew up with Grandmas lye soap, remember that?

Lyrics for Grandma’s Lye soap, will be tomorrows blog…

However I do give those advertisers credit for boosting the sale of supplements even  in the bathing products area, DO NOT USE SOAP but  keep that old body YOUNG (HA) with this-------, methinks I am probably the only person who still buys Dial and uses hand soap. 

Take care and have a good evening….

Nite Shipslog

PS:

Thank you for reading this mess and visiting. comment if you would like to.

 

More stuff, with an update

Photo of the day:

This is the old house we are trading for. It has been added to and modified several times in its life time.  We owned it once but never lived in it, just lived in the coach (shown below) behind it. LOL

A view of the property from above.  The roof circled in black is the house above, the area circled in blue is a big RV port and a carport and storage buildings.  Yeah big lot and nice place to park the coach when we are in town. LOL

So for today:

Presently we live in a ‘duplex’.  It is deeded as condos.  I built it 25-30 years ago. My sister and her hubby were living on an area that the city condemned (public domain) and gave them $80k for their cabin there. We got along so well, we and they agreed we could live side by side and enjoy life in retirement. They had lived in a 700 sqft home and I built them a 1400 square ft home, two car garage and 1400 sqft basement. Our units are exactly alike, just a mirror image of each other. The Of course the home cost much more than the $80k but he had saved my bacon once with an interest free loan and I wanted to do something for them.

 

When Kats hubby died, she offered to sell us her side. I offered her $120k for it and she refused. “Jack you gave us this home for $80k. I will sell it back to you for $80k and I don’t want to hear a word more about it.”  So we bought it. We paid her by the year.  When she passed away we owed her $10,000 on the house. I was the executor of her will and in her paper work she has a signed notarized statement that if we still owed on the home when she died, to consider the loan paid.  That is how we came to own both sides.

So we rented both out a little later and moved into our RV and lived off the income while traveling the country and some of the world for over 20 years. My sister Shirley eventually leased this side when her hubby passed away.  She took fantastic care of the condo.  When she passed away a couple years back we moved back into this side and parked the RV a lot of the time.

NOW the condo history is changing we thought we would stay here until we passed, but things change.

Minnie Pearl once said, “If you want God to smile, tell him YOUR plans!”

Soooo This condo will soon be owned by our grand daughter Sherece.  She is a single parent with a wonderful daughter, Stella.  Stella’s dad died, and Sherece has done a fantastic job with raising Stella. They live in a home we once bought for our retirement.  We wanted that old house back, so we approached Sherece about a trade.  She agreed, that is why we are moving.  I have been building the apartment in the adjoining Condo we rent out.  JJ will move into the apt and do the maintenance around here along with our remaining adjoining property.  We will be living a mile or so away but I will not have the weight of keeping all this stuff up.  JJ will also help Sherece if she need it.

We are hoping after the hassle of the switching moves, we can return to SOME travel and live carefree for the last few years we have.

Sorry to be so long winded.  I know I have confused things about our apartment, condos and the old house.  LOL

Nite Shipslog

PS:

God has allowed us to travel and meet some of the best folk on the planet, in person. and here on the net. As a matter of fact I have already scheduled a trip to PA Dutch Country the end of Sept!  LOL

Just stuff

Photo of the day

Sherry and her sister Collette sitting in Elvis's pink Jeep.  Collette was a big fan of Elvis.

So for today:

I have met a great guy, Roger Wise.  I wish we could have met 30 years ago we would have been the best of friends in my later years. LOL I asked Roger today where he was from. Up in Bakersville, NC close to Roan MT. when the pavement runs out, I lived ten more miles on in.  LOL He married a good friend who came over from Germany, Elka. It is great to meet good folks, even this late in life.  But it is sorta like the late second marriages in this life.  There are some great matches, lots of love left in life, but we all know these marriages will never celebrate their 50^th. Late second marriages just don’t last long enough most of the time, death calls us all home.

Oh and I have a church friend Billy.  Billy is blind and his sweet wife Jewel, passed away a couple years back.  Jewel’s sister Nina helps him get around. I talked to Billy a long time today. VERY INTERESTING! I asked him how did he spend his time during the day. “Oh jack, I build a little.”

“WHAT I said!”

“ Oh I love to work with wood. Yep, me and Nina just finished a car port.  We had to get help to install the metal roof though.  And a couple months back we installed 80 feet of 6ft fence.  We dug the holes, mixed the concrete and  set every post. Course Nina has to help me make a straight line!”

Amazing what you learn when you ask.

Oh yes, about the apt I am finishing, I was asked who was gonna live in the Apartment. That will be Jack Jr. He will take care of the outside maintenance of the area we are leaving.  He has been cutting the grass for a long time already. I told him, this apt. was big enough to support a couple, if he decided to get married again.  He laughed, “Dad I have been married twice already, I am using the old baseball truth, three strikes and you are out!”

Take care and y’all try to be good,  especially Victor and Myra,  the rest of us are already saints!

Nite Shipslog

PS:

God has allowed us to meet some of the best folk on the planet, in person. and here on the net, thank you for being here…  I have been trying to keep up and have enjoyed your blogs and comments….  Until later……. jack

 

Life and friends

 Photo of the day:

Buddy and Di, They met in England and he brought her back with him.  They live in Florida now.  Hope to see them this year on our trip down. Buddy is retired Army and has sure gotten OLD!  Dianne is still a kid.

So for today:

On our second cup of coffee this morning, our discussions turned to local folks.  That is not unusual, this small town I moved to in 1954 has changed drastically.  This was what was called a ‘Cotton Mill Town’. There were 26 cotton mills here.  Over all I think these mills produced thread from cotton. I went to ‘Textile School’ for a class once in High School at one time (before I quit school).  It was considered a ‘crip course’, easy to pass and I did.

Anyway, kids when asked, ‘where are you from?’  Would 99% of the time answer with which mill village they lived in, i.e. Majestic, Imperial, Climax, Chronicle, etc.  Sherry was born on the Climax, but lived on the Imperial when we met.

I never lived in one town long enough to even remember my teachers, except Ms Grill. In Valdese.  Sherry remembers many class members and EVERY teacher. She even attended school from first to 12^th grades with some of the same people.

There are + and –‘s for both life styles, but at times I do envy her long friendships.  But I would not give up meeting Sonny Turner in Burlington, VonDale Tucker in Albemarle or  Jim & Bub Page, Guy Abee and Peter David in Valdese.  Vondale’s family moved to Charlotte while we were in Belmont so we renewed our friendships. I got more acquainted with Buddy (Richard) Sansbury in Belmont. He, VonDale and I were a close threesome as friends for a couple years before I left and joined the USMC.

It would be a good thing to be close to some of those friends now, we did have some good memories.  I smile to think that Buddy and I had the same girlfriend, Margaret, during that time.

A good friend Martha busted my bubble once. She said she once said to Margaret, “Jackie broke your heart didn’t he?”  the answer, “No it was Buddy!!”  I still cannot believe that.  LOL

Life,  I guess we take it as it comes, the alternative: leaving life ( that, however is becoming a final option for all of us, especially mine now.  LOL

Nite Shipslog

PS:

God has allowed us to meet some of the best folk on the planet, in person. and here on the net, thank you for being here…  I have been trying to keep up and have enjoyed your blogs and comments….  Until later……. jack

I can see the finish line!

 Photo of the day:

This is the first house I ever built. It was 800sqft and sold for $30,000. Smaller than todays apartment I have built. LOL. I dug the dirt mixed the mortar drove every nail. The pictures are my sisters, they brought their husbands over to see this great creation.  LOL

So for today:

In the next few days I should be making an end to a long process of creating a 900 sqft 2 bedroom apartment in the basement next door.  We all have things we just don’t like or maybe do not understand.  Me?  One thing is I will NEVER understand why anyone would pay to have bricks laid for a house or business and then Paint them! I remember long ago I watched a church being built. They used some beautiful brick and when completed, they painted them?  WHAT?  Brick are maintenance free, if painted in 20-30 years someone is going to have to have it repainted. I drive by a brick home I built for us once, I loved it, it even had an indoor pool. Big beautiful brick chimney also, the new owner has painted it. OUCH!

All that said, all the painted brick I talk about were perfectly laid brick laid by the best of masons, no need to paint their beautiful skilled work.  NOW today I just went against my own feelings, my brickwork,  as small as it is on this apartment, looks terrible. I was messy with the mortar and I could not get them cleaned, TODAY I did something I have never done.  I painted those terribly laid brick, and they do look better.  So maybe there is a reason some paint brick. LOL

Yep I am on the downhill run. I must add two more heat/A/C vents, seam some carpets and spiffy up the storage area, it will be ready.  I am so glad to wrap this one up.

Sherry is right,  this is the LAST big undertaking for me….

Take care and enjoy the heat, it ain’t long ‘til Christmas….

 

Nite Shipslog

PS:

God has allowed us to meet some of the best folk on the planet, in person. and here on the net, thank you for being here…  I have been trying to keep up and have enjoyed your blogs and comments….  Until later……. jack

How do you feel about Electric Cars?

 Photo of the day:

Above is the 1934 Ford with a rumble seat. It was new 5 years before I was born. It was a favorite of mine. I could have bought one for $50 in 1955, but didn't have the $50  LOL

So for today:

Cars have improved so much  since my first car. The dimmer switch was on the floor. Trouble was the master brake cylinder was under the front floor board also and It was a pain to add brake fluid, many of us had leaky brake cylinders back then, A/C was a good add also. Bad thing was the engines needed over-hauling around 60,000 miles. Now we actually seldom have a break-down of any kind if the cars are maintained; Son Jack just said good by to a Honda van with over 300,000 miles on it.  Yes cars are much better today. Jack also has an older electric car.  He likes it.

I am not so sure they are good for the environment, I mean that is a lot of battery acid that will go to the land fills over the years.. OUCH

Oh, and those wind turbines, WOW do you know one of the newer ones can furnish power for 460 homes? That is amazing.  We know a man in Maine who has his own personal turbine and it serves his home and he sells some to the Maine Power companies. NICE, our power bill is usually over $100 a month in the summer.  We don’t have the wind here so that idea is out.

I cannot find definite output from  those solar panels I see.  I am always concerned then may cause the roof to leak at times.

How do you feel about electric stuff nowadays? i.e. wind mills, solar panel and cars?

Nite Shipslog

PS:

God has allowed us to meet some of the best folk on the planet, in person. and here on the net, thank you for being here…  I have been trying to keep up and have enjoyed your blogs and comments….  thinking of you……. jack