Three of the Milligan sisters on vacation along the Gulf Coast
Jeanne, Holly, Nancy

May 3, 2017 - Wednesday

28 degrees/clear skies/calm winds

Pentoga Road

It seems to be spring everywhere but on Pentoga Road. My sister, Barb, who lives west of Indianapolis, sent a few pictures of her flowers and shrubs. You'll notice the trees are leafed out.

All of my perennials have barely begun to poke their heads from the ground. Barb's are growing and blooming.

What a difference five-hundred miles makes. Oh well, as I told her, come next August, when Indiana is sweltering under the heat and humidity of the dog days of summer, we should be enjoying the comforts of the North Woods. Of course, we could be shoveling snow in October.

An apple blossom on one of my trees that may or may not open in the next week or two. Leaves? What are those?

Tuesday was a much better day, thank you. Despite the snow flurries mixed with rain, I walked my usual three miles then headed to the shop. The morning was spent working on a gift, a scroll saw piece. Requiring many intricate cuts with a frequent change of blades, I got only about a third of it sawed before my eyes gave out. Fearing another bonehead mistake, I quit.

The rest of the day was spent working on the front stoop. The rain had stopped late in the morning and by early afternoon, the sun was poking through the clouds accompanied by rising temperatures.

There's quite a slope from the north to the south in front of the stoop and it didn't take long to be reminded that our ninety-eight year old house isn't square.

I dug, leveled, pounded, hauled gravel, removed gravel, sawed, muttered, and even managed to hit my thumb while hammering a six-inch spike. Oh yeah, I might have said a naughty word or two.

It was almost 6 PM before the framing was finished. The stoop is now ready to be filled with a gravel base and topped by sand with pavers inlaid for a surface.

Grandma Sargie pulled in last night accompanied by an almost forty pound chunk of gristle with a heart beat. Ol' Hambone came to visit for a couple of days and says he's going to help Pawpaw work outside.

With his Tonka truck in hand, Grady is ready to haul gravel today.

We had a rather active evening last night filled with nonstop talking and little guy activities. Though Grady didn't want to go to bed, he was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

Talk about a kick in the backside... I attempted to book a ticket on Delta Airlines (which serves this entire area) using Alaska Airlines miles and learned that as of May 1, they are no longer partners and won't honor each other's miles. I still have quite a few left over from all my Alaska travels and it appears that unless one utilizes a regular Alaska Air route, the miles are worthless. What would have been a flight to Mom's in June costing 25,000 miles now digs into my pocket for almost $400. So much for the Alaska Air loyalty that I've had for the past many years. 

I'll use the remainder of the miles to pay for a future trip for Sargie and me, someplace with sandy beaches and warm water, for hotels and meals, where it's worth our while to drive to, then fly out of a major airport that Alaska Air services. After that, I'll switch my loyalties to Delta.

Sargie closes today which means it'll be a Hambone/PawPaw day and evening. We're going to try to finish the front stoop and possibly replace the landscape timbers on the adjoining two flower beds. After that, we might have to fire up the tractor and take a load of rotten timbers to the burn pile and there's a chance we'll start the backhoe and begin digging the garden pond. 

Oh, and I noticed he has a brand new bike with training wheels, but hasn't mastered the concept of peddling and steering. We'll work on that too.

Watch out, Hambone's in the house.

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

... and people tell me I have a green thumb?
Check out Barb's hostas and rhododendrons.