Busy B(eth)

*Note: Sheeba would like to make it clear that that is NOT him dressed up in a bee costume. Thank you.

I’ve been doing some buzzing around the past couple of days, so I’m finally getting around to an update.

Yesterday was lunch with Cousin Shane and Matt, and we paid another visit to Pat’s Bar in LaPaz. Shane and I went there a few weeks ago, after not being there for years, if you recall. It was Matt’s first time there, and he enjoyed it, too. They both had burgers, with a side of fried mushrooms (one of Shane’s big weaknesses), and I had a BLT this time. It was tasty, and just the right size for me (i.e., not a huge portion impossible for me to finish). We had fun talking and getting caught up, and after we finished, we did a little drive through the countryside to check on the progress of the new highway. I really can’t convey the oddness of seeing this big highway and multiple overpasses going through the area where we grew up, an area that I think you could safely call ‘bucolic.’ Shane had a good point, though. He said that the major highways were built in the ‘50s, with some additions around here in the ‘70s, so we really haven’t witnessed such a major project in our area for decades.

We also speculated that the little towns of Lakeville and LaPaz could become ghost towns when the new highway passes them by, as did many towns along Route 66. I’m not sure...quite a few people have homes there, and some of the businesses might hang on if locals like us keep frequenting them. That’s one of the reasons we all like going to local places, in an effort to support such restaurants. They’re always much more fun and charming than a franchise, too!

We got back to Nutwood and sat out on the deck to have a cool beverage, chat some more, and enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful day. I always have a good time with the fellas, and yesterday was no exception. Thanks for the fun afternoon, guys!

This morning I got up an hour or so earlier than normal to head down to my Mom’s to help her with her ‘leventy-’leventh “last” garage sale. She wanted some help for this first morning, because that’s always the busiest, and she was pretty busy already when I got there (Although she wasn’t scheduled to open for 20 minutes...one of the worst things about garage sales, in my opinion. If I say 9 am, that’s exactly what I mean, so you can sit in the damn driveway and wait if you show up at 8:30!). It stayed busy most of the morning, and finally it quieted down and I had her go inside and grab a sandwich while I manned womanned the till. It wasn’t super busy after that, so I headed out around 1 pm. I hope she makes some decent money off of this one, and I think she will (she usually does).

We made a pretty good team. She’s the consummate salesperson, going around and chatting people up and generally charming their socks off. I can’t stand that kind of stuff, so I made change and wrapped and bagged people’s purchases! When I first got there, one lady had bought her stuff, and was standing there talking to Mom for what seemed like forever. She was going on and on about her broken pelvis a while back and her crummy ex-husband who used the F-word on her one too many times (I agree...that IS bad), and how he was jealous and followed her to church to try to stop her from going (she’s a Christian, doncha know) and blahbitty blah blay blue. I thought, “It’s going to be a long morning.” Why do some people feel the need to tell complete strangers details about their life? Maybe my Mom just has a look about her that says, “Talk to me.” haha I’m glad I didn’t inherit that from Mom!

Not everyone was a Chatty Cathy like that lady, though. There were some nice and cool people who were fun to talk with, and the daughter of a family friend and her husband, and others who know our family or are related to people who know our family...it’s small town life, yo. Anyway, I helped Mom with the busiest part, and managed to walk out of there with only a few things! I certainly didn’t need anything, but I got a 1931 copy of Tom Sawyer, a pretty little yellow bowl, this ceramic cat that Mom and Dad had sitting around for ages (I couldn’t bear to let it go...for some odd reason, I just love that cat...maybe it’s because all the nieces and nephews and grand-nieces and grand-nephews would always pat the thing on the head when they were visiting), and the most wonderful find: a bag full of packages of silver head pins used for making jewelry! Mom didn’t know what they were...she didn’t know why those straight pins had blunt tips! I had almost bought some more a while back. I’m glad I didn’t!

Got home, did my workout, signed for a package, got some deck time in. Tomorrow looks to be a calmer day, with a quick trip to the store in the morning for some extras for a Saturday barbecue, then just enjoying another beautiful day. Yay! ☼