March 18, 2013 – Monday morning

12 degrees/cloudy/calm

Pentoga Road

Let’s see:

Cup of coffee – check

Fire’s burning in the stove – check

Computer’s on and the internet’s working – check

Okay, I’m ready to begin the week.

Sunday was a lazy day on Pentoga Road. In fact, I was tempted not to write this morning as other than the excellent St. Patrick’s Day feed last night, there’s not a lot to record.

Yooper Brother Mark in the kitchen at Sunday's corned beef and cabbage supper.

My morning stroll was typical. I listened to a podcast that lectured about the difference between the soul, an eternal energy, and how it uses the brain as a tool, a vessel to operate the human body while we live in this realm. I guess if one doesn’t believe in God, the entire concept would seem meaningless, but for those who do, it’s very interesting.

Speaking of God, has anyone been watching The Bible, the five part mini series on the History Channel? I was happy to see that it was the most watched cable program on television last week; kind of shows those who want to take God’s name out of everyday life that there are many of us who believe. It’s worth watching; Sunday nights at 7 PM Central Time Zone. And for those who don’t believe… watch it anyway, maybe you’ll learn something.

Most of Sunday was spent just messing around the house. We didn’t really accomplish anything, not that we needed to, but at one point, Sargie mentioned we might begin to scrape the wallpaper in the upstairs bathroom. I remember sitting in my recliner researching growing goji berry plants from seed, thinking that a root canal would be more enjoyable than peeling paper off the walls. In the end, no wallpaper was removed. That’s what next year is for.

I started laying out the greenhouse in the barn Sunday afternoon. It’s going to be a process, a step-by-step activity and depending on the temperatures and weather, I hope to complete it over the next ten days. Today’s goal: constructing the base; one step at a time. Sounds like an AA meeting.

The longest journey begins with the first step. Here we go.

I can't do anything, including take a walk or build a greenhouse, that Jimmy's not with me. 

Last night’s dinner at St. Agnes Church was wonderful. The crew of men that prepare the corned beef and cabbage dinner did a wonderful job and naturally, I ate entirely too much. We picked up Sheri on our way (Mark was already at the church working in the kitchen) and enjoyed meeting new people and seeing some we already knew.

Sargie stopped by McDonalds on our way home where I got a Shamrock Shake. I’ve been very diligent about sticking to my diet, but St. Patrick’s Day only comes once a year. The shake was delicious.

We spent the rest of the evening watching The Bible. I graded some assignments while listening and managed to keep abreast of the paperwork. So far/so good.

There’s a winter weather advisory for our area with several inches of new snow forecast. I guess I shouldn’t plan on tilling the garden.

Sargie’s back to work today helping to save the eyeballs of America and doing those things opticians do. I’m going to go for my walk, hope to work on the greenhouse, and later, begin to think about looking at this past year’s taxes. I guess April 15^th is going to come whether I like it or not. A man’s work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road…

The bird's become a camera hog. Each time I take the camera out of my pocket, he tries to sit on it or ends up in the frame.