Plum Tuckered Out

Miz Barbara is plum tuckered out tonight. Today is not Monday but it was wash day anyway. That should be an easy task now days, don't you think? But for some reason, just the thought that I'm chained to the house, or at least nearby, puts me in a catch-up-on-chores mood. Between moving clothes from washer to dryer and then folding, I do a lot of busy work. You know, come to think of it, I don't remember ever reading where MM did a load of laundry. Hmm.

In between those loads I watered the thirsty potted plants on patio, porch, and in the yard. It's not so warm yet but for five days or so we've had a hot wind blowing from about ten in the morning to sundown. That breeze sucks up all the moisture not only in the pots, but ground plants and bird bath, too. And, of course, while I was outside, I could see other things that needed to be done. It was trash day and the cans were sitting at the curb. What better time to whip the boungainvillea growing over the arch in front of our home into shape. Now, I do know for sure that I never saw a blossom or green frond in MM's apartment; and there was nothing growing in the Blue Moon either. Though she loved to be outdoors when able, that gal did not have a green thumb was my guess.

After a quick lunch (tuna salad on pita bread) and a large glass of cold water with lemon, it was time to sit myself down in the office chair and do a little reading/reviewing for Gina the Great. That's really not work--it's a matter of fitting it into my schedule. It's fun to read what others are writing and attempting to have published. But I have to admit that MM's life in Harts Corner is much more fun than these other lives out there.  My personal opinion, of course.

A friend sent me a Texas joke tonight. I read and grin and take those old "bigger and better" jokes with a big grain of salt. I have to admit I miss Texas though. I haven't lived there for more years than I want to think about and, now that Mama and Daddy are gone, I don't travel back on that trail of memories physically--only the memory is always there of what a wonderful childhood I had growing up in that small Texas town. From the very beginning, when Bethy Rose Wheeler presented herself to me, I knew I had to place her in Harts Corner. I know for a long time MM planned on leaving but when I involved her with the plight of this child, I could feel some of that desire waning. I'm sure her presence had the most to do with MM's decision to stay or go.

Do you folks know anything about Texas--well, except for the fact that two of our presidents came from there? Or that they eat, breath, and live football? There's much more to my state. For example, did you know Texas has had six capital cities?
      Washington-on-the-Brazos (Great Historical Park here)
      Harrisburg (That's Houston today)
      Galveston (Lovely Island City)
      Velasco (My daddy was born here; city on a bay on the Gulf (of Mexico)
      West Columbia (Town in Brazoria County on the Brazos River)
      Austin (my ancestors came to Texas with Stephen F. Austin when it was part of Mexico)
          Current capital of my fair state.

Did you sports jocks know that the first domed stadium in the U.S. was built in Houston?

I love the fact that the county where I lived for my formative years, Brazoria, has more species
of birds than any other area in North America.

Which would not mean a thimble full of spit to MM. She'd be more likely to find a body than a bird, even in that county. That gal worries me.

But tomorrow she's going to give us a family-sized version of one of her catering dishes--Green Chiles Rice Casserole. It's one of the best Tex-Mex dishes you'll ever eat, I guarantee you.