why even bother with a forecast if they're always wrong.

Good morning.
Can you frickin believe it?
Friday morning, the NWS forecast for Sunday was sunny and 69.
By Saturday morning, they changed it to mostly sunny with a 20% chance of rain.
By Sunday morning, it had changed to mostly cloudy with a 50% chance of rain.
Well, it rained nearly all day!
How can someone get paid so well, for basically frickin guessing?
Anyway, after returning home from cleaning the Salon, I spent the early morning making another batch of wings.

Spiced Rum barbecue sauce on the left, and Light Italian dressing on the right.
And since we appear to finally be staying above freezing, I un-winterized the mo-ho.
So as of right now, (knocks on wood) all systems are functioning.   :-)
And since I couldn't work in the yard, I spent a good part of the day restocking the mo-ho. Water, pop, cleaning supplies, kitchen condiments and spices and bathroom supplies. We like to have everything we need in the mo-ho, so on each trip, it's mainly just taking food and clothes.
I did manage to get a few spring pics of the yard.

Some cute little spring flowers that will be done and gone when this space is filled later with hostas.

So spring has finally arrived in mid-Michigan!

looking good!

Good morning.
As expected, it's been a very busy week in the salon, as I worked late yesterday, and have a full day today.
 It appears winter has given it's last breath.  Finally!
After snow flurries Thursday, It's warming up nicely and should be in the upper 60's all weekend.   :-)
And the long range forecast is looking good too. Finally!
So after work today, I expect to have another productive weekend. I'm planning to finally un-winterize the mo-ho, and finish restocking it, as we shall soon begin a new RV season.   :-)
And with that, time to get going.
Have a great weekend!

2 nice days in a row?

Good morning.
We've managed to get nearly 2 nice days in a row!
Yesterday was cloudy, but remained dry for most of the day, and temps hovered near 60.   :-)
I managed to finish downsizing the flower bed behind the house.

Transplanted the daffodils from the front to the back, and hauled up 6 wheelbarrows of black dirt from my compost areas. The perennials in the front, (Toad lilies and Japanese anemones) were dug up and turned over. Couldn't risk trying to save them due to the invasive ground cover that has consumed the area.
Now the bed will be mainly hostas, with shrubs. An Azalea at this end, a Contorted Filbert next to the air conditioner, a weeping Japanese Maple at the other end with 3 Lewisa's under neath, and Golden Barberry under the bedroom windows.

And you can see the daffodils are finally blooming. At least the ones near the house. Out in the yard, they are just about ready to open, though they may take a while as this weeks temps are diving back into the 40's and 50's. Today it's currently 34 out and a high expected of only 46. But it is forecast to return to normal temps, (60's) by the weekend.

And with all the rain we've had, the grass has greened up real nice.
I also managed to get out in the pond and thin the Pickerel Rush and water lilies. As pretty as the Pickerel Rush is, it spreads like crazy! At least in  my pond. I have to take out 2/3 each year to keep in under control or it would quickly consume the entire pond!
So a productive weekend! And with the rain and cold weather's return, at least I'll be back to work. And it looks like a pretty good week.
Now time to get going.

One nice day

Good morning.
Finally, a beautiful spring day!
Temps hovered around 60. It was sunny. It was non windy.
It was beautiful!
I took full advantage of the one day.
I washed the mo-ho, and started downsizing another flower bed.

This one is right behind the house. Runs the entire length, from the deck to the corner of the back.
This bed consisted of mainly hostas near the house with other shade loving perennials near the front.
The bed got infested with a mutant form of a ground cover that's commonly called around here, Bishop's Weed. The garden variety has light green and cream variegated leaves. The mutated form that is quickly spreading throughout the bed has medium solid green leaves and grows twice as tall.
I thought of just nuking the entire bed, but I'd like to save the hostas, especially the giant Blue Angel. So I thought I'd remove everything but the bushes and Hostas, and see how it goes.
I won't be able to reseed the area for awhile since grass needs 70's to germinate well, and that could be a long time coming the way our spring is going.
But spring does creep along, and here's a few pics to prove it...

A Burgundy Hellebore and my very large pink Hellebore.

And a very cute tiny Rip Van Winkle Daffodil.

And rain is forecast for this afternoon, so I'm going to try to get some things done this morning.
So gotta go.

Spring c-r-e-e-p-s slowly forward.

Good morning.
It was a busy week in the Salon.
It got all the way up to 39 on Saturday. Our normal high should be 60.  :-\
Sunday reached 48. I did do some yard work and started restocking the mo-ho.
It's suppose to get up to 63 today, before falling back into the 50's later this week. If so, I'll wash the mo-ho.
We've had a very cold March and April. 
At least, yesterday was dry, and today should be also.
We've had 6.7 inches of rain this month so far. Our entire April average is 3.42.
It's suppose to rain again tomorrow.
No daffodil pics yet. They are all laying on the ground after our bitter cold weekend. If milder weather ever stays, they'll perk back up.
I did get a pic of these on Friday....

Dwarf Dutch Iris. Only about 5 inches tall.
 And that's my morning update.

This is just mean

I took these pics early this morning.
Mother nature is just plain mean.
That's all I'm saying.

is it ever wet!

Good morning.
As expected, it's been a very busy week in the salon, and I'm working late today and tomorrow.
Again, it has rained all week. We have received over 5 inches for the month so far. Our normal for the entire month is 3.53. And we still have nearly 2 weeks to go. But with spring like temps, the grass has almost over night turned rich green and the daffodils are beginning to bloom. The next few days are suppose to be dry, so I'll try and take some pics.
I've lost 3 customers over the last 3 weeks. One died at the age of 66 from a heart attack. One was taken to the hospital at 92 and I was told to cancel her standing appointments as she very likely will not return.
And the 3rd is being taken from her home and put into a retirement facility.
I would say the majority of my customers are around my age or a little older. Most of my elderly customers I do I 'inherited' from stylists who retired or moved out of the area. So over the last several years, Out of 14 weeklies, only 3 drive themselves. That's how old my weeklies have become.
Anyway, time to get to work. Friday is 'weekly day'.   :-)
Have a great weekend!

spring is in the air.....finally

Good morning.We actually had an entire day without rain yesterday. A bit cool, but sunny.
We tried out the new bike rack on the newly installed hitch.

Very easy to get the bikes on and off.
And there are numerous signs of spring....

I don't remember what these are called, but they're tiny and colorful and the first spring bulbs to bloom

You can see how small they are next to a clump of daffodils that are budding up.

And this hole you see near the fountain? It's a rabbits nest in the early stages of construction. We've sat indoors in the TV room watching the rabbit gather nest material and is lining the soon to be used nest.

Once she's ready to give birth, she will clean up the area around the nest, and you won't even know it;s there until baby bunnies come up to explore.

And almost the entire state is under either a flood watch, warning or advisory as they're expecting heavy rain again over the next 3 days starting this afternoon.

And we're still running below normal temps for this time of year. The daffodils should have been in full bloom on the 15th, but look to just start opening this week. So we're still running a couple weeks behind normal.
I also checked the hydraulic jacks on the mo-ho the dump pump and charged up the dump battery. So far, all systems are go for the mo-ho..   :-)
And now time to get going for what is looking to be a busy week in the Salon.

it was a busy week

Good morning.
The work week ended very busy. I ended up working quite late Friday and Saturday, so as a treat, Craig made me a delicious pizza Saturday night.

It was an olive burger pizza. It was yummy!
We've had rain every day since a week ago last Sunday. It was a miserable, dreary, wet week. Good thing I was so busy at work.
Sunday morning, I came home from cleaning the Salon, and when Craig finally got up, it was snowing out.

Fortunately, it changed over to rain as the temps got all the way up to 40.  :-\
And it's forecast to rain pretty much every day this week, although the temps should be in the 50's.
With all the rain, the grass is greening up nicely, and the daffodils look like they're almost ready to bloom.
The weather broke a bit in the afternoon, and we backed the mo-ho out of it's winter parking space, so I can begin the process to get it ready for another season. So far, I checked the slide-outs, the furnace, and the fridge. All working.  :-)
I then replaced all the batteries in everything. And thank god, no evidence of mice.  :-)
We also put together the new bike rack that will go on my Kia, which I'm taking in this morning to have a hitch installed. So now, I better get going.

rain, rain, go away

Good morning.
Last Sunday....rain
Monday....rain
Tuesday....rain
Wednesday...rain

Today....rain
Tomorrow....rain/snow
Saturday....rain
Sunday....rain
It looks like a broken record. Nearly the entire state is under a flood warning or advisory.   Fortunately, Our house or salon is nowhere near a river, and our creek has only reached flood stage once in the 28 years we've lived here, and only flooded the lower back of the yard.
And all this rain should help alleviate the low lake levels and sure has all of a sudden greened up the grass and helped shoot up the daffodils and hyacinths.
And they do say, "April showers bring May flowers". Well, we should have a bumper crop then with all this April rain.  :-)
And so far, it's been a very busy week in the Salon, so I gotta go!

how to take your tower apart.

Good afternoon.
I received an e-mail  asking how to open the computer's tower.
Well, that all depends on the make and model of your computer.
Normally, most towers have a side that slides off. Usually there's 2-3 screws you need to remove from the back, to enable sliding the side off.

Above, Craig's computer has a removable side that wraps over most of the top, so he has 2 screws on that back side, and one on the back top.

My tower has a side that slides off, so I have just 2 screws to remove to enable me to slide the side off.
Also, look closely and you can see a handle in the middle to use to pull the side off.
Hope this helps.   :-)

Spring has begun......finally

Good morning.
Spring has officially arrived!
I went out during a break in the rain to finally find the Pussy Willows in bloom. 

Only about 4 weeks behind when they normally bloom back in mid-March.  :-\
I cut a bucket full and put some in the house, and the rest will go to the Salon.

I posted a pic of these back on March 29th.  The Hellebore is getting ready to bloom now, and the daffodils that had barely shown above ground, now have blooms extended and will probably bloom by the weekend.

The pond has completely thawed, and with rain projected for the rest of the week, I expect to see the grass starting to green-up.

I made another batch of wings, and now have plenty of snacking size bags of them in the freezer, for when the snacking bug bites.
I also ordered a bike rack.

I have an appointment for next Monday to take in the KIA to have a hitch installed.
Then we'll be able to take our bikes into town and use the cities extensive river trails.
I also ordered Rubber Roof Cleaner and Rubber Roof Treatment  for the mo-ho from Camping World. With an online coupon I found for $10 off any purchase, I got them both, including shipping, for $25.52. A much better buy than $36.38 that a local RV dealer wanted.  :-)
And that's all for now.

slow going

Good morning.
Sorry for the lack of posts. Did you miss me? ....Hello?..... Anyone there?  
Anyway, It ended up a very busy week at the salon.
And spring continues to drag it's feet. The pond is mostly melted, but the temps have hovered just over 40. Today, it's rainy and windy with rain expected for the next 5 days.  :-(
I did manage to get out Friday after work and so some more trimming done, and cleaned out another flower bed. 
Saturday evening, Craig made us a big platter of nachos for dinner.

As usual, it was yummy.
And until the weather finally gets warmer so I can do some serious working in the yard, and start getting the mo-ho ready for trips, I've got nothing else to report.
But then again, no news is good news.  :-)

ummmm. I love wings!

Good afternoon.
This is what I awoke to this morning....

yuk!
Spring is sure slow coming this year.  :-(
It got all the way up to 39 today and not as warm yesterday.
So.... needless to say, nothing was done outside.
I did get a lot of cleaning done inside, and Craig made us a delicious meatloaf for Monday.

As you know, he doesn't like his pic taken. Too bad.  :-)

He made a slightly different variation of his cheese stuffed meatloaf, and it, was, good!
I also made a batch of wings Monday and today. Wings were on sale last week, and I bought several bags.

First batch......Apple Whiskey barbecue, and Lemon Pepper. Precooked, and after cooked.

We snacked on the lemon pepper Monday night. it was very good!
Today, I made Hickory Smoked barbecue and Island Mango.

I'm having fun trying different sauces and so far, I've loved them all!

After they cool, I bag them up and freeze them for future snacking.
If I haven't said it before, I LOVE wings!
In other news. It looks to be a busy week in the Salon. I'm going in early tomorrow, before other stylist get there, so I can put Drano down the drains. I need to do that periodically as hair clogs the drains and slows the drainage.
Now Craig's calling me to dinner, so time to go.

it takes all kinds

Good morning.
It was a nice spring like day yesterday. Temps hovered around 50.   :-)
I got some more work done in the yard. Cut back some more shrubs, (summer flowering, not spring flowering) and cleaned out another flower bed.
Temps today and tomorrow are back in the high 30's, but later in the week, back near 50.
It ended up being a pretty bus week in the salon.
And speaking of the salon. I've had all kinds of customers over the years. Customers who are always late, those that are always early. Some have had the same style for years, others change hairstyles  often.
I've had a swimmer from the local high school get a checkerboard pattern on his head. I did 'hat hair' for crazy hat day at the school. Here's a pic of that one I ran across.

I've even had a customer ask if I could bleach 'all' her hair. (think about that for a minute) And no, I didn't.
I could go on and on about customers over the years.
But now, I'll tell you about a customer from last Saturday. She comes in every 4 weeks for a color touch-up.
She walks in, asks if I have a microwave for her instant oatmeal. I showed her where it was, and mixed up her color. As I'm trying to apply her color, she mixes up her breakfast. Dumps a package of oatmeal in the bowl, stirs, opens several baggies, and adds cinnamon, orange segments, and blueberries. She then proceeds to eat this, while I'm attempting to get her color on.
She then has to process for 40 minutes. Why she couldn't have done all that while she was processing, I have no idea, except it was obviously all about her, and not at all about me. But I'm use to customers like this, and just go with the flow. After all, they are the ones spending money in my Salon.
This morning, we're taking Craig's car to the dealer. His check engine light has been on for about a week now, and he's checked and rechecked the gas cap. It's probably some stupid sensor.
And with that, time to get going.