Dear Lily,

We greatly enjoyed your brief visit a couple of weeks ago (already!), and we are excited about your idea of finding a beach house somewhere for vacation next summer or fall to celebrate all of our birthdays.

Today of course is Memorial Day, and I believe it is the hottest one I’ve seen.  I do recall that it is usually hot, and this is the day that swimming pools traditionally open, but today has seemed especially muggy and sweltering.  We have stayed indoors.  I worked on the bedroom a little, but only managed to move things around rather than throw them away.  I did move some things out—books to be returned to the shelves or returned to the owners from whom I borrowed them.  I still cannot bring myself to tackle the “junk room.”

Darkness is falling, and one of our resident deer is out grazing in the side yard.  I had the bedroom light on while I made up the bed with fresh sheets, and she kept an eye on this strange occurrence, but now she is back to the task of filling her belly on our weeds.  There were 3 last year and into the spring of this year, but we no longer see them all together.  I believe they are all still coming, but in ones and twos rather than all 3 together.  We have been watching for signs of fawns but so far, if they have them, they are staying hidden.  I did see a tiny, tiny fawn following its mother out into a field near the highway.  Now I worry that the mother will get hit and the fawn will starve or be killed by dogs/coyotes.

We visited with the horses for awhile this afternoon, brushing them and checking them over for ticks.  I have never seen so many ticks on them before.  Granted they are not covered in them like the deer in the yard and like the dogs would be without protection, but every time I check Hoss I find 2 or 3.  The flies, fortunately, were much less numerous today than they have been.  I still left their fly masks on but loosened Hoss’ because it is rubbing the hair off  on one place on his jaw.  We discovered that the red roan mule that Ralph calls Junior has a terrible cut on his leg.  I contacted John to let him know about it, and he was already aware of it and said he was doctoring it.  I’m not sure what he is doing to it, but it needs a vet to clean it, trim the necrotic tissue away and sew it up.  Tomorrow I will see about purchasing something for it—a spray, as he will let me spray it but won’t let me touch it.  I sprayed it with fly spray, of all things, today, to get the flies out of it.  Since it is laid open, it will scar badly without stitches, but in spite of the deep, ugly wound, he is walking normally on the leg.  I am not sure how old the wound is, since we don’t always see the mules when we check on the horses.  They don’t hang out together, and those fields are large.

You will have to check out the schizophrenic house I have constructed on Pinterest.  I have included a staff of 4 to clean and care for the house.  I have chosen rooms that I like for certain characteristics, but they don’t fit together into any decorating scheme or even into a single structure!  It has been fun finding pictures of rooms, though.  But what I would really like right now is to purchase 10 or so acres,  put up a small shack near the front of it, build a decent barn on it, and fence it off for the horses.  I so miss having them up here with us but can’t support them on the small amount of land we have open for them.

I recently had eye “surgery” which has improved my vision greatly.  I had noticed that the world had become blurrier over the past year and finally went to the optometrist for new glasses.  He discovered that I had developed secondary cataracts.  Apparently if they leave even a few cells in the eye when they remove the lens, they can grow into another cataract on the artificial lens.  Last Friday I went for an office visit and ended up having one eye done that day.  I simply sat on a stool and rested my chin in a little cup and my forehead against a brace, and the doctor pointed the laser mounted on the other side of the machine at my lens and with rapid clicks removed the cataract.  On Wednesday of this past week I had the left eye done.  Now my vision is so clear that I’m not sure that I need new glasses.  It was amazing.  There was no pain and very little sensation.

I think I told you that Ryan has joined the Army.  We are somewhat distressed but trying to be supportive and non-critical.  His original idea was to join the Navy, and I could support that since I felt he would not be in ground combat in our current actions.  But I am more worried about him seeing combat with the Army.  Not that the Navy is not involved in our current wars/police actions, or whatever the politically correct term is, but I had hoped that if he was involved, it would be long-range.  I understand why he has to do this, but I don’t have to like it.  Meanwhile, he doesn’t actually leave until November.

I still have not traded vehicles.  I have not been able to find what I’m looking for.  In fact, I have had difficulty with the process of searching.  And, too, I love my truck, gas guzzler that it is.  I actually feel guilty for driving it any more than necessary, due to the waste of gasoline, but I enjoy driving it.  However, I did plan to buy another truck, so I don’t know what my problem is–other than entropy.

It has gotten quiet here.  Ralph has turned off the tv, the dogs are stretched out in the floor sleeping, and the ceiling fan is making a rhythmic two-toned hum as it circulates air.  I think I will go read and then go to bed.  Up early in the morning for another day of work.  Hope all is well with you.

Love,

Kate