So, our damned Irrigation Rotation is coming at 4:00 in the Morning Tomorrow and The Son has to be at Work by 5:00 in the Morning, which means, I'll have to rely on The Young Prince to help me. That might not sound like a Big Ask or Big Deal, but it is. Relying upon a Serious Schizophrenic to be your Backup is a Last Resort Hail Mary kinda Move. I had a Senior Fall and Slipped on the Mud near the Ditch during the last Rotation of Irrigation and was floating like a Starfish, so, The Son is nervous about me doing it at all. We were picking Goat Head Burs and tiny Sticks out of my Dreadlocks for Days afterwards! *LOL* Luckily I didn't get injured, well, mebbe my Pride, coz I went down Horizontally and like a Ton of Bricks, like a Cartoon Fall!!! And just laid there in my Jammies, like a Wet T-Shirt Contestant, completely Soaked to the Skin, with my Okabashi Flip Flop Sandals floating beside me coz they came completely off my Feet! *Smiles*
I have some Rubber Galoshes but I don't think that helps with slippery parts of the Pasture that might get overly saturated to where the Ground just can't absorb any more Water. We'd flooded some last Rotation coz of the Ditch getting backed up with Debris that floated downstream from Lazy Neighbors who hadn't cleared out their Ditches. It got stuck at Omar's Ditch coz he has his covered, so the Pipe he installed is narrower than the very Wide Ditch we have. We have one of the widest and deepest sections of Ditch and I like it that way, great flow, easier to clean out and holds a lot of Water. Some Neighbors have shallow and narrow ditches or overgrown ones, you're responsible for maintaining your Ditch that runs either behind or in front of your Property. Ours runs behind and we Share it with the Neighbor directly behind us. So you really have to cultivate a Relationship with whatever Neighbor Shares your Irrigation Ditch for mutual cooperation of Irrigation and Maintenance. When Laura moved, it's now Manuel, a Younger Owner whose very nice, Laura and her Boyfriend were in their 70's so becoming limited to what they could and couldn't do.
I didn't have it in me to go to The Desert Botanical Gardens and make the trek across the Valley to get there and Walk around. So, instead I did Environmental Cleanup and got a whole Bag full of Aluminum Cans. A lot of Drinkers over this Holiday Weekend. One of the Food Banks had left a Box in the Park and everything was taken except Two New Simply Orange Juices, which is what we Buy and it was starting to get Warm Outside so I got them so they wouldn't spoil in the Heat if left there untaken all day long. And, I also found an Antique Table Leg with a Brass and Clear Marble Claw Foot!!! Odd thing to find, someone had mebbe used it as a Walking Stick or for Protection against any Threat, I dunno, I brought that Home too as I can use the Claw Foot, it's quite Ornate and will easily unscrew off the broken Table Leg it's on. You do find the Strangest Things discarded.
Nobody else has Accessed The Forbidden Post, so it stands at 17 who did manage The Gauntlet of Sensitive Post Warning status. *LOL* The Garbage did come Today even tho' it's a Holiday, no Drama this time tho' early this Morning as I'm taking The Son in to Work I almost shit Kittens coz The Young Prince had overfilled it last Night and I didn't know, so I had to jump out and squash it all down so the damned Lid would close fully lest we get Tagged and not picked up again!!! So, I had to remind him, don't do that or they won't pick up our Garbage now, they're getting fussy and anal about Lids being tightly Closed or they just Tag it as in Violation and pass it up. I just don't want or Need more City Services Drama. I Won the last Battle, but, I just would rather comply with any Silliness they're implementing than Fight with them constantly. But it makes sense why Illegal Dumping has escalated, now I know WHY!
I made Cinnamon Raisin Brioche French Toast with Maine Maple Syrup and Vanilla Powdered Sugar for The Family this Morning. I was very Uptown about Breakfast for Memorial Day. *Winks* I even used my mini Retro Shenango, Jackson, Buffalo China, and Syracuse Diner Ware Pitchers for the Syrup, they're so Cute and have great 1950's Diner Graphics on them. I have a small Collection of Restaurant Ware Mini Pitchers and we do use them all of the time. Some are Military Logo Emblem Graphics too. Above is a little Sampling of my Collection, various sizes, I have other Graphics, some in Green and Brown on White. All were either Chazza Scores or I got from our Antique Mall from a Vendor who Specializes in Retro Diner Ware and has good prices on it. I don't know if they were an avid Collector downsizing their Personal Collection, or just gravitated to that Genre of Merch to Resell?
Anyway, I'm sitting here quietly Blogging in our Bedroom. The Man has taken to watching Jackson Galaxy The Cat Whisperer's Reality Show and the Australian Zoo Show with the now Grown Irwin Kids, Robert and Bindi. Who sound and look so much like their Dearly departed Dad, Steve Irwin, who got Killed by a Stingray of all things he ever messed with!!! They are following in his Footsteps of Zookeeping, Environmental and Conservation, which would have made him so Proud. He took a lot of risks, many unnecessary, and it sealed his Fate in the end, but his Kiddos seem more cautionary and sensible around Wildlife. Of coarse what made Irwin so Famous was how outrageously risky he was and that translates well to Reality TV and those that flock to it to hope they Witness a pending disastrous Moment. The Shows are both Cute ones and more uplifting than what he usually watches, which is probably better for his Psyche.
LATER: Took The Man out to Estrella Park with a Quartet of Subway Sammies they had a $3.99 each Special on, and a Cooler full of Cold Drinks. It was a Breezy Day, but Warm, we sat and had a Picnic Lunch at one of the Ramadas and I did Environmental Cleanup while he sat out in the Fresh Air in the Shade and near the Bathrooms. It does him good to get outside, we practically had the whole Park to ourselves, considering it was Memorial Day Weekend, becoz there is a Fire Ban in effect, so no Charcoal or Wood BBQing allowed, nobody was there. During the Fire Bans the Parks are deserted but we've had so many big Fires already that they just can't take the risk of having more. The Man enjoyed the Outing and it was good to be able to do one with him again, I'd missed doing that with him. He's still having some Breathing Issues, but the Wind and Pollens were likely to blame, it kicks up dust, Pollen and particulates into the Air. There were some good sized Dust Devils it kicked up too.
I got a lot of Exercise while doing a few Hours of Environmental Cleanup at that large Mountain Park tho', and gleaned a fair amount of Aluminum too. The Man looked like he'd had enuf Fun for the Day tho', so I could tell it was enuf of an Outing for him already, even tho' he just sat in the Shade and enjoyed Nature with a nice Picnic Meal. Which is about all he can handle right now, so soon after yet another Hospitalization. I've got about another Two Bags of Aluminum to take in to the Recycle Center Tomorrow, they were Closed Today for Memorial Day Holiday. Yesterday The Son had BBQed Hotdogs and Hamburgers coz we had Sayde over visiting The Young Prince and it was just an easy Meal to serve up to Feed a large group without hassle. The Son LOVES to BBQ, it's a Guy Thing, grilling. *Smiles* His Dad used to always do it and then when The Man couldn't anymore, The Son took over and his Dad passed the Mantle and Torch to him to be the Family Grill Master. *Smiles* And Memorial Day Weekend just Begs for at least One BBQed Meal.
We're getting Free NetFlix and Hulu now with my Phone Service, we may have always had it, I just didn't know it!!! Otherwise we never would have been paying for NetFlix like we did. Anyway, The Son set it up using my Phone's Freebies for it all and I watched a Samuel L. Jackson Movie I had never seen before with Ed Harris, Luis Guzman and Eva Mendes in it too called "Cleaner" {2007}, which was really good, a Crime Thriller, but also Funny in parts. I was Surprised I never had seen it, thought I'd seen most of Jackson's Movies, usually like anything he's in, and he's been in a LOT of Movies. He's one of the most versatile Actors in Hollywood IMO... he can morph into so many different and interesting Characters in each. Hard to Believe he's 77 now and Ed Harris is 75... a lot of my Fav Celebs are quite Geriatric now, but still Working and making good Movies.
The Daughter has gone Off the Grid now for about a Week without contact. Last we knew she was doing more work for Jason and his Neighbor out on their Mini Farms/Ranches. I know that they don't always get strong Cellphone Signals out there coz of the Mountains they're up against and both Guys are Older than me so I don't know they use Computers much, if at all? She has about 7 different FB Pages coz she's such a Paranoid Schizophrenic, so I don't always know which one she's using at any given time, the last entry to one of them was May 18th, which was around the last time she made contact. You have to get used to this kind of thing with someone who has Serious Mental Illness... they go MIA a LOT. No answer to any Social Media or Phones I've reached out with... so... will have to wait for her to respond. I'm sure Jason would have contacted us if something was Wrong, he's the elderly Cousin of our Nextdoor Neighbors. I know he's had Truck Troubles, so probably can't drop her off. Those are very nice Mini Farm and Ranch Properties out there with Guest Quarters.
I know I don't buy everything my Grandson likes to eat and he is a very fussy eater becoz he has Eating Disorders brought on by the Schizophrenia. He often Imagines his Food is Alive and Moving... or that it's Tainted. He seems to feel confident that nobody at Amazon is trying to Poison and Kill him tho'. *LOL... I know I shouldn't joke about his Paranoia like that... however... Smiles* But sometimes it is Dark Humor Funny, Sorry... but, I can't help it... when something just Amuses me that is Gallows Style Humor. And that Thought just Tickled me... the absolute Trust he puts in Amazon Food Deliveries being not Tainted... but... sometimes any other Food COULD BE??? *Bwahahahaha* But, whatever... the Amazon Deliveries keep coming and I don't have to Pay for them so I'm Fine with that. *Winks*
Above is one of the Granddaughters in Mexico blowing me a Kiss. I hear from the Grandchildren in Mexico and the Grandchildren in Pittsburgh via The Book of Faces and mostly their Photo Shares they send. They're all pretty good about Posting often on the Social Media that is FB. Princess T doesn't use FB at all, she considers it very Passe'. Perhaps it is, I wouldn't know. *Winks* I do think the Grandkids all use it more for my sake and my Generation's sake really, coz it's not like they Write Letters or Call you either, so... it's the next best thing to being there in Person and making any actual Contact with Grandparents who are Dinosaurs and not Local. *Smiles* They all got used to me always Photographing my Food Porn and now most of them do it too, which is pretty Funny. It's as if we're now having Food Porn Challenges with one another. *LMAO* They all used to Tease me about doing it and now they all do it too!!! That's what's Funny to me.
Plus they all began to realize if they Photographed their Food when Eating Out, it's Assumed that they're a Social Media Influencer or Food Critic and get the VIP Treatment at all the Establishments. And there's certainly no Downside to that and it does Promote those Businesses and gives them Free Advertisement and there's no Downside to that either. Everyone Wins. I have sometimes been asked and I just say I'm a Blogger... they don't know I'm not a Food Blogger... there are some of those who exclusively have Foodie Blogs and Critique Restaurants and such. I used to Follow some Food Blogs and had to Stop coz it made me too Hungry at ridiculous Hours that I'd be Online Reading them. *LOL* But some of you do have some good Food Porn you Share too and I do always appreciate a good Foodie Photo. And sometimes it's introduced me to something New I never ate or mebbe never heard of, like Tomato Pie, which I guess is a Southern Thing!? I still haven't had one coz they don't offer them here in the Southwest, but I WANT to try one now!
Above is a couple of Adorable Pixs of The Young Prince's Paternal Aunt Stephanie as a Toddler. She was such a Pretty Baby and grew into a Beautiful Young Woman. Sadly she's on The Outs with The Young Prince, and her Mom {his Gramma Lydia}, right now. She Married into Money and it did Change her in ways that sadly aren't necessarily Positive towards her own Family Members. She has a very Nice Husband, he has a very Successful Business and comes from a very Nice Family with Money, so, they aren't the Problem at all, she just began associating more with the Pretentiousness that having Money can sometimes Change those who are Nouveau Rich. She grew up extremely Poor and Disadvantaged. She worked very hard to get her Degree in the Pharmacy Career Field and is now a Pharmacist, making good Money herself and I'm very Proud of her for that. But, I don't like how she's treating her Nephew {The Young Prince}, or her Mom now. Her Mom is Dying. She used to be very Close to The Young Prince so it's hurtful to him she doesn't want to be now. She's been Okay with me so far.
Above, another one of the Granddaughters in Mexico, also blowing me a Kiss. I get the Three of them mixed up visually sometimes coz they almost look Cloned... especially the Younger Two! *LOL* They're all doing really Well right now and I'm so relieved. I was so Worried about them when Saint Maria, their Custodial Paternal Gramma, Died and left them to fend for themselves and none of them was 18 yet at that time! The Oldest one, when she finally turned 18, helped Care for, Support and finish Raising her Two Younger Sisters tho' and now each of them has a Boyfriend who also helps them out a lot. We found out the Youngest and her Boyfriend even have their own House now!!! That was a huge Surprise and I'm very Happy for them. Each has a good Boyfriend and all Three of them Work now and have their own Incomes. Sometimes they'll do Facetime with The Daughter while at Work showing them where they Work, one is Managing a Bodega that her Boyfriend's Mom Owns. The Oldest is still going to College, Working, and also Modeling as another Side Income Job. She Inherited Gramma Maria's Home, so lives there with her Middle Sister now.
Another Granddaughter in Mexico, one of Princess T's Older Siblings, with her Daughter, one of our Great-Granddaughters. She has an Older Son whose a Tween, and has been Married a long time to her Childhood Sweetheart, a really Good Guy. This Granddaughter went to University somewhere in Spain, where some of Salvador's Paternal Relatives still apparently live. His Dad was a Spaniard who lived in Mexico and was high up in the Mexican Government, he got Assassinated when Salvador was only 13 and Maria was Widowed ever since then. Many of Maria's side of the Family are also very high up in the Mexican Government. We have met some of the Relatives who are Presidente's of their Regions, they have Bodyguards and everything. When they took us out to Dinner they have the entire Restaurant cleared out for just them and their Guests. I found that to be terribly unsettling, having a Motorcade and stuff... just never FEELS Safe but high up Government Officials do need that added level of Security.
This is the Young Prince's Paternal Gramma Lydia, who is now Dying of a Terminal Illness she's battled for a very long time and is now succumbing to finally, from what our Grandson has said about it. It's Hep C and her Husband Joe Died of it many Years ago, he looked Healthy and Fit, but got it when he was a Drug User. It can be Cured with Treatment, she could not always get her Treatment and had a lot of damage from it due to Poverty, Lifestyle, and poor access to good Healthcare. Anyway, our Grandson hasn't had contact with her in a while so doesn't know if she's even still among the Living or not? She hasn't Posted to Social Media since April 13th, which is unlike her to go Off Grid like that on FB, even tho' she does often in Life go Off Grid frequently, her Birthday was April 11th. He has her thick coarse Hair. We all Love Lydia, but Relationship with her for our Grandson was always difficult becoz she too suffers from Serious Mental Illness and could be quite volatile. Lydia is a Handful, much like The Daughter is. I do think Bobby gravitated to a Relationship with our Daughter becoz she's so much like his Mom, who he Loves Dearly but has a very complex Relationship with. Bobby mostly Raised himself since he was 13 he's been on his own, while his Mom was in and out of Institutionalization. Just like The Daughter has been constantly.
So I was used to Dealing with someone who could be quite unstable like that, but who, I genuinely Like the Personality and Essence of, in spite of their SMI Status and Choices in Life being quite complex and challenging for Family and for Friends who Care about them deeply. I think I'm the only person she's never gotten into an altercation with, and was always on her best Behavior around me for all the Years we've known each other. So her Family would always invite me to Special Occasions and Family Gatherings if she was coming, so she'd Behave. *LOL* Lydia is a Colorful Character and she Adores The Daughter, and The Daughter Adores her too, even long after The Daughter and her Son were no longer together she kept in touch with our Family. So she always got along fabulously with both The Daughter and I. Crazy just Respects Crazier I guess? *Bwahahahaha* We never Judged her either, she is Authentically herself. I do Hope she has Family around her when the Time comes for her to Cross over? There are Estrangements right now tho'. I'm sure the Family will let us know when she Passes tho', at least Bobby will, our Grandson's Dad.
The Daughter once had to be Tased out of his Apartment by Glendale PD and sent off to Mental Health coz she was gonna cut his Heart out with a Knife and was using an Axe to chop into the Door of the Room he Locked himself into!!! I thought it might make the News. Bobby and The Man went and Signed the Commitment Papers and before the Ink was Dry the Mental Health Committee let her out and said she was "Restored"! They had me come get her and she tried to kick the Windshield out of my Vehicle and jumped out while I was going 45 mph and Ran like a Gazelle across 3 Lanes of heavy Traffic! NOT Restored, clearly. *Winks* This is how The Mental Health System tends to go, in case ya don't know, if someone is very, very SMI and yet also very, very Cunning, Clever and Convincing, they can tell the Board everything they wanna Hear and Agree to Everything to get Sprung. She's Played Judges and Prosecutors in Mental Health Court too, she's very adept at it in fact.
I've told the Board every time, Listen, she's Crazy, not Stupid... of coarse she Agreed to everything and told you everything you Wanted to Hear... she Played you. And now if she does something really awful, it's on you Guys for making a very Bad Error and Decision in your Evaluation of her. Anyhoo... Now they, she and Bobby, are on very Friendly Terms and he knows not to Trigger her Crazy Ass... or Mine. *Winks* He has Triggered me only a couple times in all these Years, each time involved the Grandson, each time he realized he's really, really, stepped in my Waters and wasn't near enuf a strong enuf Swimmer not to Drown in them. *Winks and Smiles* Now we have an "Understanding"... also, his Son is now a Grown Man. So they sort their own shit out between each other now. Only Involve me if you truly need Mediation and a "Heavy" in that Situation. And it will then BE a Situation, rest assured. But, we got Stories! *Winks*
Bobby at least has tried to be a Parent, even tho' he had no Idea what Good Parenting looked like, he never had any. Salvador never tried with any of his Girls he had with The Daughter, Four of them, or any of his other numerous Children, I think he has 15 Total!!!! And Salvador led a Privileged Life with a very Good and very Influential Family, was very well Educated, is very Skilled in his Career Field of Computer Programming, and extremely Charming, everyone Likes him. And becoz he is Handsome and doesn't look his Age, he is and has been a notorious Womanizer who Fathered too many Children by numerous Women. He and The Daughter were together a very long time and she followed him to Mexico when Lockheed couldn't renew his Work VISA for him and he got Deported shortly after Princess T was Born. He went to Work for Lockheed in Mexico when they had a lot of International Contracts. They had Three more Daughters while in Mexico, the Three that his Mother ended up Raising. Our Daughter too Mentally Ill to Parent, he too irresponsible to.
And since he was an Only Child and Maria had him very late in her Life, she didn't mind taking on the Three Granddaughters to Raise becoz they looked the most like her side of the Family. Maria, tho' Born and Raised in Mexico and only Spoke/Understood Spanish, is originally of French Immigrant Ancestry who came to Mexico Generations ago and got into the Mexican Government at High Levels. So, she was Ethnically, a European with Blonde Hair and Green Eyes, White skin. Those Three Grandchildren look like our Daughter, but are Fair like Maria's Family, so they look White and not half Hispanic, with the Mixture of Native American, Welsh, French Canadian and Asian thrown in from The Daughter's Ancestry lineage. Maria did a very good job with those Kids and they Adored her and she absolutely Adored them... they were and became her whole Life. The Daughter, in Maria's latter Years, helped with Maria's Caregiving until The Daughter had to come back to America. In latter Years she and Maria became very close.
Anyway, Families and their Dynamics are often quite Complex... and how you work all that out is strictly up to each Family Unit. To me Family is EVERYTHING... but I realize for some Families, that isn't their Priority or their Outlook towards Family, for whatever the Reasons. I never presume to Judge anyone's Relationships coz I'm not them and so I don't know everything they may or may not Deal with or even want to. But, I sure see a lot of Dysfunction, High Drama and Estrangement between Families... and many of them at least have the Appearance to be more Functional than ours, yet, aren't. And I think that is a tragedy...
If you can be close with Family it's a Blessing... if you can't, well, it can be a whole other Story... Dawn... The Bohemian
This started with the image of you "starfished" in the irrigation ditch! I hope the rotation went well!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize the Irwin kids had a show, maybe I'll check that out. Steve Irwin was such a likable personality, his death was a shocker.
Nice that your grandkids keep you updated on FB. You're right that not many young people - or anybody - uses it much. Stay cool!