It has been quiet here in Omaha this week. The current White House occupant has not seen fit to send federal officers to our fair city, although he is sending them willy-nilly to the supposed ANTIFA hot spots of Portland, Kansas City, Albuquerque and Chicago. Evidently if one, without legal authority, acts in an authoritarian manner, he believes that will get the idiobase to vote in droves. When he is soundly defeated this November at the polls, we expect to begin hearing clamours of vote rigging. If he thinks there is uprising now, wait until he refuses to leave office - that will be an uprising. Enough politics.
Sunday evening we ordered take-out pizza from a local, well regarded pizza place near home and we were underwhelmed. Flavors were OK, but the crust was as tough as we have ever encountered. Most disappointing, but we will give them another shot in the future just to be fair. For pizza lovers, as we are, this was a let-down.
We spent a lot of time this week over at Abigail and Darcy’s home, finishing up the vegetable garden, installing a fence and gate on said garden, and putting a hole in the new picnic table for future installation of an umbrella over the table. Next on the agenda was a rebuild of the front retaining wall. Deb bravely pulled down the existing three tiered railroad ties, not realizing their weight. Luckily nothing landed on her toes, although moving them away from where they had fallen took a lot of huffing and puffing of the two of us. We managed to get them neatly lined up in the driveway a good three feet from where they had fallen.
Next we began building of a concrete block retaining wall using the load of 50 wall blocks we had delivered during the drop of the patio stones. By Tuesday afternoon, we had a sort of base laid and determined that Mark needed a new tool, a cold chisel, to complete the job. Who knew that a tool purchase would be part of the process!
We knocked off early Tuesday afternoon, as Deb needed to be in attendance at the first live Tuesday Night Drinks happening since the pandemic. Three of the four Omaha regulars met on Mary Picken’s deck and Glenda dialed in via FaceTime. Better than Zoom, but hard to sneak out for a bathroom break or a refill when you are “live and local.”
Wednesday morning we packed up tools and headed to Glenda and Jeff’s house in Lincoln for a “Little Free Library” repair session and marvelous lunch on their back deck. Last year, Mark constructed two identical Little Free Library structures, one for Glenda and Jeff and one for their own home. The Lincoln branch required a door stile makeover so the door would stop coming off in the hands of the patrons. Door, repaired, we toured Jeff’s HUGE vegetable garden and then were treated to a chicken breast and Caesar salad. A wonderful bottle of Portuguese table wine and a finishing dessert of Glenda’s home made rhubarb and berry pie, served ala’mode. (Rhubarb sourced from Deb & Mark’s garden and raspberry/blueberry mix courtesy of Jeff’s never ending berry patch.) Superbly delicious!
Thursday was back over to Abigail and Darcy’s to finish the wall. We went early in the day to avoid the late afternoon sun and we were completed (and exhausted) by 2:30. “Home again, Home again, jiggedy jig.” That evening we go to the Needelman’s for another patio dinner from our favorite Asian take-out. Again, a nice, although warm evening with good food, good wine, and good conversation with good friends.
As alway, mask up, wash those hands (repeatedly,) and stay safe.
As alway, mask up, wash those hands (repeatedly,) and stay safe.
