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| Things are starting to come together! |
I love Texas. I have reconnected with my drawl. I embrace redneck influence. I suddenly need a cast-iron skillet.
Now, not everything is perfect this side of eternity. For instance the day the truck unloaded and the doors were opened for most of the day, a big 'ole bug made it's home (or maybe got stuck in a web?) in the peak of the ceiling. It honestly looked like a baby bat. It made me a bit uneasy to look up at that thing and wonder how long it was going to stay there. About 48 hours into it I looking up and it was gone. That was also quite concerning. Sure enough it had dropped and was found dead on the living room floor. At least it wasn't on my head.
Also along the topic of bugs, etc would be fire ants. I have vivid memories of a previous encounter with fire ants back when I was a kid living in a suburb of Ft. Worth with my parents. So this has been on my mind and a real concern on our current property. Let's spray the crap out of those suckers. Let's just pour gasoline over their homes and light them up. They are the enemy. Until...
Wayne tells me that his conversation with Danny, the previous owner, suggested that we not treat the fire ants because they keep the chiggers and the snakes away.
I'm sorry, ........ come again?
First of all, chiggers. You may not be familiar with these in the north but they like to live in tall grass in the south. I am allergic to them. I remember my family traveling back to the midwest when we were kids. We stopped in Oklahoma to pick blueberries because my mom thought it would be a fun childhood memory. Until I got chiggers and blew up like the blimp while I scratched myself until bloody. Not cool.
Then there's the whole snake thing. I can't even.
Will kept traipsing through the lawn and I kept warning him of fire ants. He claimed it was just an urban legend. Until he came in with a spring in his step and not the good kind! Then he told me how he had seen a snake in the landscaping. But don't worry, Mom, it was a baby. It was cute. Baby snakes turn into adult snakes, son, and we have a machete for that!!!!!
Which leads me to why we now own a machete.
Wayne and I were going for a walk in our subdivision one evening. We had some pertinent questions for the locals such as, what kind of lawn mower is good for the size of these substantial lawns? What do they do for TV out in the country? What the heck is with the wifi? Having already experienced the friendly nature of the locals, we thought we'd knock on some doors and ask these questions.
We had knocked on about 4 doors and come up empty, despite the fact that it looked like someone was home - garage doors open, cars out, etc. We were striking out but seriously impressed by the obvious safety of the area since no one seemed too concerned about locking stuff up when not around. We were going to give up when we gave one more house a try. Bingo! They answered the door.
We walked in on a little neighborhood shindig. They welcomed us in, poured us wine and treated us to Texan hospitality! It was here that we had our greatest take away - get a machete. You know, for the poisonous snakes and stuff. Good to know. We'll be adding that to the Walmart list.
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| Wayne's new riding lawn mower |
Don't get me wrong - our property is beautiful! We have a lake view. Groups of deer wander the subdivision. Hummingbirds wander in among the landscaping. It really is idyllic. Except for the fire ants, chiggers, snakes, skunks, and armadillos. Haven't I mentioned the armadillos?
First let me mention the landscaping. It's amazing!!! It circles the perimeter of our home. It makes use of all that is native to this area of the country. There's even a fenced area farther down the property that grows roses, blackberries, and I don't even know. But if you know me at all, you are laughing your butt off right now. Rachel ain't got a green thumb.
I'm in trouble. It's not that I'm not up for learning but I am way out of my league and have no one to help me. So for now I'm trying to keep up with the weeding which is enough by itself.
Which brings me to the armadillo. I was out weeding the landscaping when I noticed the wood chips messed in places. Then I noticed a big hole had been dug. That's when I called Wayne. When I looked up from the kitchen window and saw my guys with a .22, a machete, and a shovel I thought, "Shoot. We in Texas, folks!"
No armadillo has been harmed. Do not private message me. And yes, Wayne and I are going to take shooting lessons. When in Rome....
And while in Ottawa I was paying for the luxury of a retail establishment providing me with a plastic bag to hold my purchases, I now have so many FREE plastic bags that I have had to throw some out. Land of the Free, baby.
Remember how in Ottawa they only picked up our trash every other week? So that when you missed a week if you were out of town or something you had your garbage for a month? Remember maggots? Here we don't have trash day. We got ourselves a neighborhood burn pile, people! We also have 24/7 access to the big dumpster so that every day can be trash day. It's a beautiful thing.
What really strikes me about this area of Texas is how much it reminds me of the midwest except without winter. The terrain, the lakes, the trees are all reminiscent of the midwest. We had some members who live on the lake invite us over for dinner and jet skis. The temperature of the water was like a bath! Looking around we could have been in Wisconsin!
I am also throughly enjoying Amazon Prime. I've been paying for it for four years to make sending stuff to Will easier. Now I can finally use it for myself. Sweet.
Our wifi stinks. We really are out in the country. But seriously, have we not reached high speed internet to everywhere by now? Apparently not. So much for Longmire and The Crown. I'll never know what happened.
We have no cable television. We could get satellite. Until then we keep watching episodes of King of the Hill on DVD . Which explains why we keep ending all of our sentences with I tell you what.
I have dragged my family in to Target and Hobby Lobby I don't know how many times in the last month just because I can. I don't have to tally my total for the border, worry about duty, or packing it all in the vehicle with our luggage. Somebody pinch me!
I've never been much of an ice person. I usually prefer my water at room temperature. But when it's over 100 degrees, a woman needs some ice, I tell you what.
This is all the superficial stuff for the most part. Our real reason to be here hasn't really started yet. We're getting to know our new church family and have been welcomed with opened arms. It's a great feeling! We were brought into membership a few weeks ago and Wayne will be installed on August 26th.
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| Meeting up with the Texas cousins! |
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